China's People's Liberation Army is on a major charm offensive to attract a booming student population as the world's biggest fighting force targets the skills its needs to modernise.

The 2.3 million-strong PLA saw a budget increase of 12.7 percent to around $90 billion in 2011, according to official figures, and Beijing has said the extra funds will be channelled primarily into modernising ageing technology.

"Modernisation involves two main challenges: mechanisation and computerisation", said senior colonel Geng Yansheng -- chief press officer for China's defence ministry.

"It's about going from a quantitative army to a qualitative one, going from high human density to high technological density," he said, referring to a process that started in the 1990s.

As the number of graduates in China grows -- up from 3.38 million in 2005 to 6.3 million in 2010, according to colonel Jiang Jiping, in charge of recruitment -- they represent a rich source of talent.

"The army is looking to recruit students in order to adapt to the needs of modernisation and take account of the cultural changes among young people", Jiang told members of the French Association of Defence Journalists.

What they "bring to the modernisation of the army is very visible", he said.

"In the navy (the PLA includes the navy and air force), where there is a lot of new technology, they are capable of picking up technical training quickly", he added.

Senior colonel Yan Feng, commander of the air force's 24th division based in the northern city of Tianjin, near Beijing, confirmed that he recruited pilots from both military schools and universities.

Recruitment incentives

China has acknowledged weaknesses in the cyberspace sector, and rejects recent accusations of espionage made by international organisations and big US defence groups.

"Our use of the Internet remains elementary," said general Qian Lihua, a high-ranking official in charge of foreign affairs at the defence ministry.

All these elements combined have led the army to offer incentives to young graduates in an effort to boost recruitment.

For a two-year enlistment, the PLA will reimburse 24,000 yuan ($3,600) in student fees incurred by young officers at university over a four-year period.

According to Jiang, "several tens of thousands" enlist every year, "30 to 40 percent" of whom pursue a military career after the two-year period is over.

These obviously sensitive statistics are impossible to confirm. In 2010, the PLA's daily newspaper said the army had 100,000 recruits.

What is clear is that there has been a clear growth trend over the past decade in the number of graduates joining the PLA.

Yuan Jianda, who covers defence for the People's Daily -- the Chinese Communist Party mouthpiece -- said that "defence news interests a lot of young people".

"For them, a job in the army is an exciting one", he said.

Another factor working in the PLA's favour is the increasing competition for jobs among graduates.

An international relations expert based in Beijing pointed to the impact of the 2008 financial crisis.

"Young people coming out of university are finding it more and more difficult to find work. This is well known," he said.

Official figures show that at the end of 2010, nearly 600,000 graduates had yet to find jobs.

Ever fearful of instability, the Chinese government is concerned mass unemployment among young graduates could spark social unrest.

"Under these circumstances, recruitment works well," the expert said.

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