Not long ago, the Ministry of Education issued a "letter on the agreement to set up civil affairs vocational university", explicitly agreed to the Beijing Institute of Social Management Vocational College as the basis for the establishment of civil affairs vocational university, and to give its vocational undergraduate university positioning.
The first set of five vocational undergraduate majors, including modern funeral management, according to the enrollment plan, modern funeral management will be enrolled this year for the country's 16 provinces 120 people. So far, the country's first funeral vocational undergraduate program came out of nowhere.
In the past, the secular vision often fear and taboo death. Funeral seems to be a door that people dare not easily approach, and even to avoid the industry, "low-key" has been synonymous with.
It is understood that before China opened funeral specialties for more than 20 years, more than 10 colleges and universities to open the funeral profession, training the highest level of education for the specialist.
With the official announcement of the birth of the funeral career undergraduate program, the funeral industry has also been pushed into the spotlight again. Many people feel curious, funeral profession needs to be upgraded to the undergraduate level? What does the first undergraduate funeral career major study? What can I do after graduation?
Over the past few days, the reporter conversed with a number of practitioners, college representatives and industry experts, trying to unveil the funeral industry and the country's first undergraduate funeral career major mystery.
Funeral market demand tends to diversify, graduated from the specialty they often feel "overwhelmed".
Weddings and funerals have been a "big deal" for Chinese people since ancient times.
 
Despite the end of life, people still try to maintain the dignity of the last moment. Coffin and coffin, make-up and plastic surgery, funeral farewell, cremated remains, each link carries the respect for the deceased.
"Birth and death are equally important. As a ferryman at the end of life, we should let every deceased person leave the world with a decent appearance." These words come from Xu Yuzhou of Hangzhou Funeral Parlor. Practicing more than 20 years in Hangzhou funeral professional graduates in the circle, counted as the "old master" like existence.
In 2002, Xu Yuzhou as the earliest batch of funeral professional college students, from the Changsha Civil Affairs Vocational and Technical College of modern funeral technology and management graduated from the first batch of funeral professional college students recruited by Hangzhou Funeral Parlor.
Changsha Civil Affairs Vocational and Technical College is one of the first batch of national model higher vocational colleges and universities. In 1995, with the creation of the Modern Funeral Technology and Management Program in the college, the gap in China's funeral vocational education was filled. Since then, more and more funeral professionals have set sail from the school.
At the beginning of the 21st century, there were very few young people willing to work in the funeral industry, Lao Xu recalled. "In the early years, most of the ones (funeral parlors) could recruit were bold, less educated and forced to support their families' needs." Lao Xu, who graduated from a professional college, carries a lot of expectations.
Lao Xu took up the funeral parlor's "craft work" - body make-up artist. Every day he has to lead his colleagues to do embalming, cosmetic surgery, make-up for the remains.
Usually, Lao Xu will work together with colleagues in advance, the appointment of the next day cremation of the body from the freezer pull out, and then for the deceased to organize the instrument, cleaning, disinfection, makeup, makeup, etc.. In the case of female deceased, Lao Xu will put on the right amount of foundation blush, draw eyebrows, and apply lipstick according to the family's request; for men, they will shave clean and fix their hairstyles with hairspray, and so on.
When it comes to the more serious trauma of the deceased, the remains of the organization is also more complex. Often need to use special materials to fill the missing parts, and then carefully bandaged, stitches, make-up ...... longest time, Lao Xu and his colleagues three people, continuous operation of eight or nine hours, only "will be" repaired.
After the old Xu's care, each of the deceased remains have become peaceful, seem decent and dignified, skin color from white to red. Families say, "It's like they've fallen asleep."
Even though he has received much recognition, Lao Xu still feels somewhat unable to catch up with the young. "Young people nowadays know a lot and are very good at checking on the Internet when they don't understand, and they are more adaptable than we are to the diversified service needs of the moment." Lao Xu believes that the timely absorption of more professional fresh blood, very necessary.
Ding Hong, born in 1997, is the old Xu said "know more" young people. From Chongqing City Management Vocational College of modern funeral technology and management after graduation, Ding Hong in Hangzhou Funeral Hall in the farewell will be engaged in the emcee host work. As the "director" of the curtain call ceremony, he used language to interpret the respect for life, soothe the pain of the living.
The day before each farewell ceremony, Ding Hong will communicate with the family of the deceased in advance about the process of the ceremony and the script of the emcee. Years of study have given him a good idea of what to avoid or how to handle unexpected situations. For example, not to say "hello" and "goodbye", and how to deal with the emotional outbursts of family members during the process. But occasionally, Ding Hong will also feel overwhelmed.
Originally, with the liberation of ideas, everyone's "farewell" needs are increasingly personalized, some want to play the piano, violin, some want holograms at the farewell ceremony, there is a need to host in a foreign language ...... "service! It's getting harder and harder to do." Ding Hong lamented.
Ma Minmin, a college graduate funeral attendant, had the same technological panic. "Funeral is currently still a relatively traditional and homogenous industry. In order to meet the personalized needs of families, there is still a need for some crossover talents who are also good at other fields to join, such as broadcasting talents and information technology talents."
In fact, in addition to the urgent need for cross-border technology, funeral professional graduates in the management level of the dilemma is equally prominent. Hangzhou Funeral Hall staff told reporters that at present, the funeral home management post a few funeral professional graduates. Young funeral specialist graduates into the funeral parlor work, bring the industry's new technology, but on the management position, or more need for undergraduate graduates above the professional counterparts.
With the launch of China's first funeral-related undergraduate program at this Civil Affairs Vocational University, many of the practitioners' dilemmas seem to be expected to be broken. However, standing in the new node, practitioners also have doubts: "Will it just be one more better-sounding 'name'?" "Is there any upgrade in the content of learning, and can it provide more personalized services for families?" "Are undergraduate funeral professionals better able to meet the needs of management positions?" ......
How to learn "white matter" undergraduate?
Infuse the culture of life education into the training of talents.
In fact, not only practitioners have doubts, many people are equally confused - learning "white" read three years is not enough? Funeral profession really need to upgrade to the undergraduate level? In China's funeral education pioneer, Civil Affairs Vocational University (Ministry of Civil Affairs Training Center) Life Culture College Honorary Dean Professor Sun Shuren, the answer is yes.
 
It is understood that over the past 20 years since the opening of the funeral specialty in China, the number of funeral students trained each year has totaled about 1,200. This has solved the problem of shortage of skilled technical personnel at the front line to a certain extent, but it is far from meeting the development of the funeral industry and the public's demand for high-quality people's well-being.
Sun Shuren analyzed that in the past, funeral education focused on the cultivation of talents at the level of junior colleges and higher vocational colleges and universities, while the current funeral business is in the process of "transformation from traditional funeral to modern funeral", "conversion from funeral management to funeral governance", "sublimation of funeral culture to the culture of life", and the development of the funeral industry. To the sublimation of the culture of life" of the three major changes, the demand for talent has also changed. The funeral industry is in urgent need of undergraduate-level vocational education to meet the urgent demand for talent.
Xiong Bingqi, director of the 21st Century Education Research Institute and an education scholar, believes that the purpose of upgrading the funeral profession to the undergraduate level is to cope with the increasing demand for civil service in an aging society. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, 11.1 million people will die in China in 2023, with an average of one person leaving every three seconds, "an aging society will require more and higher-level talents in the field of funeral."
What kind of high-level talent does the modern funeral industry need?
Sun Shuren will focus on research. He believes that the current funeral industry needs talents mainly include modern funeral research, planning, innovation talents, modern funeral service project development talents, funeral career development, planning, layout talents, system and operation mechanism reform research and innovation talents.
 
For his part, He Zhenfeng, dean of the School of Life and Culture at the Civil Affairs Vocational University, believes that technical talents are equally important. "As the funeral industry transforms and upgrades from low-tech to humanistic, ecological and technological funerals, new technologies such as 'Internet+', AR and 3D printing are widely used, and new demands such as intelligent funeral management and funeral culture research are becoming more and more urgent for high-level technical and skilled talents. "
So, what changes can be brought to the current predicament by specializing in the funeral profession?
The reporter learned that the modern funeral management profession for the funeral industry, civil administration, funeral service management, funeral culture research, funeral equipment and product development, embalming and plastic surgery, cremation and funeral equipment maintenance positions and other occupational groups, the curriculum broadly including life culture education, funeral management, funeral information and intelligent technology, funeral service organization management, hospice and grief comfort, embalming and plastic surgery technology, cemetery planning and design. plastic surgery technology, cemetery planning and design, etc.
He Zhenfeng believes that the direction of the funeral undergraduate program to train talents is higher dimensional, involving more subject systems, such as medicine, machinery, psychology, ethics, philosophy, etc..
In He Zhenfeng's opinion, under the cultivation of the funeral undergraduate program, students not only have the ability of technology and service level, the development of standards and technology research and development and management level of the ability to have the same. For example, they should be able to participate in the formulation of technical standards, operating procedures, work programs, conduct research on funeral culture, and have the ability of technological research and development, transformation of scientific and technological achievements or experimental results; they should master the professional knowledge of civil affairs management and the operation and management of funeral service organizations, and be able to manage the funeral service organizations, as well as train and guide funeral practitioners in technological skills, solve the more complex technical problems in the field, and the ability of on-site innovation The ability to manage funeral service organizations and provide technical skills training and guidance to funeral practitioners, solve more complex technical problems in the field, and innovate in the field.
"Funeral undergraduate education not only allows funeral talents to broaden their employment channels and become competent in management positions, but also lays the foundation for subsequent related industries to provide more humane and personalized services. In addition, the signals released by the specialization of funeral majors are also conducive to the public's establishment of a correct outlook on life, life and death, and life." Sun Shuren said.