Employment rate for Singapore's polytechnic grads takes slight dip

Job prospects dipped marginally in 2014 for polytechnic graduates in Singapore, with fewer graduates joining full-time permanent employment positions.

That was the key finding of The Graduate Employment Survey, which was jointly conducted by the nation's five polytechnics between 1 October and 8 December 2014.

Attracting a total of 15,321 respondents, the survey found the overall employment rate for fresh graduates was 89.2% in 2014, a marginal decrease from 89.8% in 2013. A slight decline was also observed in the overall employment rate for post-NS graduates last year (92.4%) compared to 2013 (92.8%).

Additionally, the report found there were a smaller number of economically active fresh graduates in full-time permanent employment in 2014 (59.4%), compared to 62.7% in 2013, with a corresponding increase in the proportion of graduates working in part-time/temporary jobs.

The median gross monthly salary among fresh graduates in full-time permanent employment was maintained at $2,000, according to the report.

“When queried, a majority of these graduates indicated that they were working on a part-time/temporary basis because they were currently pursuing or preparing to commence further studies,” the report stated.

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Echoing the trend, fewer post-NS graduates opted for full-time positions last year (73.0%), compared to in 2013 (74.2%). However, these graduates enjoyed a 6.7% rise in their median gross monthly salaries (from $2,250 in 2013 to $2,400 in 2014).

The survey also compared the salary levels of polytechnic graduates across various fields of study.

It found fresh graduates in full-time permanent employment from the health sciences and built environment, engineering and maritime course categories earned both higher mean and median gross monthly salaries compared to their peers from other course categories.

Post-NS graduates in full-time permanent employment from hybrid courses and health sciences earned the highest mean gross monthly salary and highest median gross monthly salary respectively.

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