New | Computing jobs most lucrative for China’s graduates
Medical professions earn much less, with physicians the lowest paid among those who graduated last year, study shows
China’s computing graduates are enjoying the highest incomes, riding on the back of the country’s internet boom, a study says.
Jobs in internet development and applications were China’s best-paid professions, with last year’s graduates in those jobs earning an average monthly salary of 4,582 yuan (HK$5,800), according to a report released on Wednesday by education analysis firm Mycos.
These were followed by graduates in computer- and data-processing jobs, who earned 4,562 yuan a month on average.
Graduates in those high-paying professions studied computer science or technology and software engineering, the report said.
The long-term income advantage of college education is considerable
The annual study – which has become Chinese graduates’ authoritative handbook for employment since it was first published seven years ago – surveyed 264,000 graduates from 2011 and 2014.
Among those who graduated in 2011, jobs in internet development and applications were also the best-paid, with the graduates earning 8,289 yuan a month on average, the report said.
Industry-wise, graduates last year who joined the media, information and communications industry earned the most at 4,304 yuan. The finance industry came next, with a monthly average income of 4,291 yuan.
Graduates in medical professions earned comparatively less, with physicians being the lowest paid, earning 2,713 yuan six months after graduating. Pharmacists and surgeons were paid about 3,000 yuan.
The average income of those who graduated last year stood at 3,487 yuan, according to the report. This was 7.3 per cent higher than 2013’s 3250 yuan.
“Deducting the inflation factors, the income of graduates over the past three years maintained stable growth,” Mycos said in the report.
Mycos’ survey also found that 61 per cent of last year’s graduates were satisfied with their jobs – 5 percentage points higher than in 2013. Some 46 per cent said their jobs matched their expectations.
Findings from those who graduated in 2011 showed their average monthly salaries had risen 98 per cent to 5,484 yuan since they graduated.
The income growth of these 2011 graduates outstripped that of urban residents, whose salaries rose 17.4 per cent in the same period, the report said.
“The long-term income advantage of college education is considerable,” Mycos said.
