On May 9, the 2026 Forbes China Economic Forum was held at Sias University in Zhengzhou. In an interview, Zheng Qiang, a Distinguished Professor at Zhejiang University, stated that he does not agree with the concept that “Chinese college graduates are facing employment difficulties.” He said, “It’s not that they can’t find jobs, but that satisfying jobs are truly hard to find.” He advised college students to “complain less and not be too picky. How about starting with a low salary and getting a high salary later?”

After watching the video, I was a bit speechless. Reflecting on some trivial matters from my own work experience over the past few years, I’m writing this article to analyze, from the GIS industry perspective I have observed, the question: “How about starting with a low salary and getting a high salary later?”

Conclusion First: It Doesn’t Work

I can say unequivocally that the starting salary is extremely important for the vast majority of GIS professionals. It not only represents your economic income when you first enter the workforce but also establishes the baseline for your long-term career development and salary negotiations. To give a simple example: suppose you are an HR manager. A candidate’s previous salary was 5,000 yuan, and now you are offering them 15,000 yuan—a 200% increase. How outstanding must this person be, and how perfectly must their skills match the role, for you to offer such a salary without being questioned by company leadership? Would you be willing to vouch for them? If there is another candidate who previously earned 13,000 yuan and is asking for 15,000 yuan, with skills that are similar or even slightly lower, which one would you choose?

Is There Really Time for Growth?

Can you start with a low salary and later earn a high one? The key to whether this is possible lies in the foundation for achieving that high salary later.

Some may say that while working they actively learn, work hard, conscientiously work overtime, and so on. It is undeniable that countless people have succeeded using this method in the past. But times have changed. The simplest example: how many companies today truly comply with labor laws? How many companies demand overtime? How many demand overtime without pay? In a previous article of mine, “How Many Hours Do GIS Professionals Work per Week?”, I conducted a survey, and over 60% of respondents worked more than 8 hours a day. With such high-density working hours, how much time do you have left for learning and growth? You wouldn’t even have time to attend evening classes.

Others may say that work itself is a form of growth. Yes, I acknowledge that. However, the institutional design of most companies today is deliberately set up so that no individual becomes irreplaceable. Putting all your eggs in one basket is inherently unstable, so the system in most companies is designed to mold everyone into replaceable cogs. You may think you are very important, but in reality, the company can function just as well without you. For example, consider the programmer at CVTE (Shiyuan Co., Ltd.), who was pulled into a work group chat even while receiving emergency medical treatment. Didn’t it seem like he was very important? So what happened? The company is still running normally now, isn’t it...

Is it possible that as soon as you join a company, you can work hard, receive key mentorship from leadership, get involved in core business, and become a management backbone...? If you are a third-generation employee in the power grid industry, perhaps. But in most cases, everyone thinks this way; however, there are only a few management positions, and not everyone can be a leader. So the rat race begins. As an employee, you must eventually recognize that you cannot win forever.

In my opinion, the idea of “starting with a low salary” is just like the toxic motivational saying “No pain, no gain.” It is self-deception, a form of self-comfort.

The GIS Industry Is Not a “Start Low” Track

Coming back to our GIS industry, as someone who has been deeply involved in this field for 10 years, I believe: Hard work deserves respect, but a “low salary” is by no means a necessary path for GIS college graduates. Actively embracing hardship and passively enduring low-pay exploitation are two entirely different things.

Using AI, I gathered some data from BOSS Zhipin: For fresh graduates, GIS development positions offer a monthly salary of 12K-20K, which can reach 25K-40K with 3-5 years of experience; spatial data analyst positions offer 8K-15K; field surveying positions offer 6K-10K. None of these require a low-salary transition (these figures refer to first- and second-tier cities). If you fall for such nonsense and choose an entry-level GIS job with low technical barriers, high replaceability, and limited room for growth, you will fall into a vicious cycle of “unable to upgrade skills—hard to get a high salary.”

Although the GIS industry may not be booming right now, its core lies in value matching. Growth relies on skills, not low-salary compromises. Respecting professional value and providing reasonable compensation—this is the bare minimum logic. Moreover, today’s college graduates face immense living pressure, and a low salary cannot guarantee basic living needs. I believe young people are not unwilling to endure hardship; rather, they refuse to accept “more work for less pay” and resent having structural difficulties reduced to personal failings.

Some Special Cases

Having said all that, does it mean you should never accept a low salary at the start? Not necessarily; many situations require specific analysis. For instance, exchanging a low salary for stability is common in civil service and public institution positions—what I often refer to as GIS “iron rice bowls.” In such an environment, finding a job where you can see your entire career path ahead can even be a form of happiness. Another example is exchanging a low salary for growth, such as joining a startup company where you are not there for the immediate salary but for the potential upside after an IPO. There’s also exchanging a low salary for a career switch, like when a product manager in construction industry informatization wants to transition to the semiconductor industry informatization, etc.

So, if you are going to accept a low salary, you must be seeking something else in return. You can’t just accept a low salary with nothing else to gain. If a job offers no stability, no growth, and no promising track, and young people are unwilling to take it, then don’t tell them not to be picky. Why don’t you try it yourself?

Summary

Employment for young people today is genuinely difficult. The people I’ve met around me, including those in the Mala GIS community and those whose resumes I’ve helped forward, are really working very hard. I often say that if I had graduated after 2020, with my skill level I genuinely would not be able to find a job. Competition for civil service and public institution exams is cutthroat, graduate school entrance exams are cutthroat, state-owned enterprises are cutthroat, and private companies are just as cutthroat. Since I started my GIS public account in 2013, I have visibly seen the number of stable GIS job postings I collect each year decrease. Even the number of people asking me to help forward recruitment messages has declined (partly because my account isn’t doing well).

If you are a young person currently struggling to find a job, it is one thing to say such things. But if you are in a high position, having enjoyed past glory thanks to the dividends of the era, and then turn around and criticize young people for xxx, that is truly shameless. As the elder once clearly recognized, “Of course, a person’s fate depends on their own efforts, but one must also consider the course of history.” If you can’t help, keeping silent is also a form of kindness.