|
 SINGAPORE, March 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Accounting and financial management firm PwC was voted as 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 intended to apply to upon graduation. Following close behind PwC in terms of student popularity was another “Big Four” accountancy firm, EY. Rounding up 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 work whom they intended to apply to in 2016. 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, & Supply Chain — Singapore Airlines
- Media & Advertising — Mediacorp
- Property & 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 (in this order): the promise of good career prospects, a 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 we 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 survey – The Singapore Graduate Barometer 2016 — was administered by GTI Media with the support of the careers services centres at NUS, SMU , NTU, SIM and SUTD. The results of the survey determined the rankings of Singapore’s 100 Leading Graduate Employers of 2016.
For the full list of sector finalists and employers ranked in the top 100 for 2016, visit www.singapores100.com .
|
