HR in ASIA - 2017
Accounting and financial management firm, PwC was voted as the Singapore’s most popular employer among local students and university graduates in 2016, according to an annual national survey of local university students’ and graduates’ career preferences by GTI Media Singapore.
10,500 students and fresh graduates from local institutions of higher education were asked to name the employers they intend to apply and aspire to work for upon graduation. Following close behind PwC in terms of student popularity, was another “Big Four” accountancy firm, EY. Rounding up and making it to the top three most popular graduate employers is DBS Bank.
“Typically, large accountancy firms tend to be popular employment choices among local graduates due to the wide range of functions and number of vacancies they need to fill annually,” said Isaac Hee, director at GTI Media Singapore. “However, the Big Four firms have also been very assertive about engaging students at local universities this year.” Through the survey, students and graduates also identified the most popular employers by sector of workings and strong employer brand. They were:
Accountancy & Financial Management — PwC
Banking and Financial Services — DBS Bank
Consulting — PwC
Engineering, Design, & Manufacturing — Rolls-Royce
Fast Moving Consumer Goods — Unilever
Hospitality, Leisure & Tourism – Singapore Airlines
Investment Banking & Investment Management — DBS Bank
IT &Technology —Microsoft
Logistics, Transport, and Supply Chain – Singapore Airlines
Media & Advertising – Mediacorp
Property and Real Estate – CapitaLand
Public Sector — Ministry of Education (MoE)
The survey showed that local students and graduates were actually more optimistic about the ease of landing their first job this year compared to previous year. Students expected their job search to last an average of three months in 2016, and to submit an average of 15 applications before getting a job offer. This was down from an average of 4.2 months in 2015.
When asked to identify what would convince them to pursue a career with an employer, the three factors that students indicated as most important were: the promise of good career prospects, conducive work environment with friendly colleagues, and an employer that showcases good leadership qualities.
“For students and graduates, many of them just want to know that they are part of a bigger picture,” Hee said. “In fact, 64 percent of the students surveyed this year believed, it was more important for them to feel fulfilled at their job over earning lots of money.”
“For them, career fulfillment is not just about getting a steady job with good pay. They want to see themselves grow with the company not just as employees, but also as people. They also want to see that their contributions to the company’s growth are recognised.”
The Singapore Graduate Barometer 2016 survey was administered by GTI Media, with the support of careers services centers at NUS, SMU, NTU, SIM and SUTD. The results of the survey determine rankings of Singapore’s 100 Leading Graduate Employers of 2016.