Singaporean Fresh Grads Are Being Offered Up To SGD5,000 A Month For Their Starting Pay
According to results of a joint graduate employment survey.
By John Lim — 28 Feb 2018, 01:20 PM
A recent survey has revealed that Singaporean fresh graduates earned higher starting salaries last year, with some getting as much as SGD5,000 (RM14,806) in a month depending on their qualifications
The Straits Times cited an annual survey of graduates from the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), and Singapore Management University (SMU).
The survey, conducted last November, polled 11,628 fresh graduates of full-time courses from the three universities.
According to the survey, they took home a median salary of SGD3,400 (RM10,068) in 2017, up from SGD3,300 (RM9,772) in 2016
Fresh graduates with degrees in business, economics, and computing saw the biggest pay increase. For example, information system management graduates from SMU earned SGD4,000 (RM11,845), a significant increase from SGD3,600 (RM10,660) in 2016.
Those with a double degree in business and computing from NTU earned SGD5,000 (RM14,805), compared with SGD4,600 (RM13,621) in 2016.
In regards to job hunting, about 88.9% secured employment within six months of their final examination, a dip from 89.5% in 2016
The 88.9% refers to graduates in full-time, part-time, temporary, or freelance work.
With that said, the percentage of graduates securing full-time permanent jobs fell from 79.9% in 2016 to 78.4% last year.
But human resource experts in the city-state said the slight dip in full-time employment isn't something to worry about as fresh graduates have other priorities
David Leong, the managing director of a recruitment firm, told The Straits Times that some will choose to either further their education or take a long break before working.
"Some graduates are very specific about what they want in full-time jobs. Some of them are more open to venture into small businesses," Ronald Lee of Primestaff Management Services, a Singapore-based recruitment agency, added.
What about Malaysia? How much are local graduates earning?
Based on JobStreet Malaysia's 2017 Salary Report, average minimum salaries for entry-level positions can starts as low as RM800 to as high as RM5,533.
However, the report indicates that not all jobs are created equal and certain fields demand higher basic salaries than others.