Students participate in outdoor activities at a kindergarten Photo: Xinhua

A former employee of a wealth fund management company in Beijing has secured a new job at a kindergarten operated by the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), with the unusual career path arousing both interest and debate on social media, Chinese domestic news portal thepaper.cn reported.

Curious netizens pored over government announcements to unveil a former employee with a postgraduate degree working with a wealth fund management company, was now listed as a top out of a total of five job applicants at a kindergarten associated with MOFCOM.

The new position is an accountant at the kindergarten. Chinese government departments and its affiliated entities are required to publish their annual employment history and the details of all job applicants to the public for transparency purposes.

Some netizens were appalled by the switch of this person from a highly sought-after financial position to a new job at a kindergarten associated with a government department.

But there are also netizens who believe the job at a government affiliated institution offers stability and the job could be less stressful.

The news came against the backdrop of reported industry-wide salary reductions across the asset management industry, which is undergoing a correction following a massive boom in the past several years.

"Some may see it as a downgrade, but I believe this could be an upgrade [in job]," one netizen commented.

Experts pointed out while the new job at the kindergarten may sound like a "step backward", it reflected the unique career path chosen by each individual based on his or her career planning, area of interest and the reassessment of situation of the line of trade the person engages in. So, the job change was quite "normal," they noted.

China's central government aims to create more than 12 million urban jobs in 2024, with a surveyed urban unemployment rate kept within 5.5 percent in 2024, as it implements an employment-first policy.