SINGAPORE — Graduates fresh out of university found it harder to find full-time permanent jobs, with the proportion dropping below 80 per cent, according to the latest graduate employment survey.

Results from the survey, which were released on Feb 24, showed that 79.5 per cent of graduates secured full-time positions in 2024, down from 84.1 per cent in 2023.

But those who did find full-time jobs saw higher earnings with the median gross monthly salary at $4,500 in 2024, up from $4,317 in 2023.

More fresh graduates were unemployed — 12.9 per cent in 2024, up from 10.4 per cent in 2023. This group refers to those who are unemployed and looking for a job or about to start work or business ventures.

More of them are also in part-time or temporary work — six per cent, up from four per cent in 2023 — or doing freelance work (1.6 per cent, up from 1.5 per cent in 2023). Most graduates in this group were in such roles voluntarily, the survey noted.

Some 12,500 graduates from full-time programmes at National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Management University, Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) took part in this survey, representing a response rate of 73.3 per cent.

They were surveyed by the five universities on their employment status as at Nov 1, 2024, about six months after the completion of their final examinations. 

Due to different academic calendars, the surveys for the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) are ongoing and will be released at a later date.

About 11,100 respondents were in the labour force. Of this group, 87.1 per cent found permanent, freelance, or part-time jobs within six months of graduating, down from 89.6 per cent in 2023.

Graduates in the labour force refer to those who are either working or unemployed but actively looking for a job. 

Health sciences, business, and information and digital technologies were the three course clusters that continued to record the highest full-time permanent employment rates for graduates in 2024, from about 83 per cent to 88 per cent.

Graduates of information and digital technologies courses continued to take home the highest monthly pay at $5,600, up from $5,500 in 2023.

All other clusters also recorded higher median gross monthly salaries for graduates in full-time permanent employment.

In 2024, Singapore's economy grew 4.4 per cent, compared with an earlier estimate of four per cent, the Ministry of Trade and Industry on Feb 14 said in its economic survey for the year.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.