Currently, there are four to five cosmetic surgeries for graduates every day, about half of the center's total, he said. Hesaid both girls and boys, mainly in liberal arts and fine arts, had the surgeries.

"Appearance is a representation of a person's quality and the first impression that a job hunter leaves to the interviewer is very important," said Wang Kaiyu, a sociology researcher with Anhui Academy of Social Sciences. "It is necessary for a person to display the best aspect to interviewers."

"But job hunting is not a beauty contest, talent and working capability still remain the most important factors," said the researcher.

Premier Wen Jiabao said in January that finding jobs for graduates was a government priority, and the State Council announced a series of new measures to boost graduate employment.

Most of the measures, including a three-year internship program for 1 million graduates, encourage students to lower their expectations and to seek jobs in rural areas or in smaller firms, for example.

"As long as a graduate is talented and practical, appearance will not play such an important role given the employment promotion measures the country has taken," said Wang.

(Xinhua News Agency March 1, 2009)