Class of 2020 remains sought after by employers and earn higher salaries

NTU’s Class of 2020 continues to be in demand and are drawing higher starting salaries, despite the pandemic-hit economy.

More than nine in 10 NTU fresh graduates in the labour force reported that they found employment within six months after completing their final examinations, comparable to the Class of 2019.

A total of 4,636 NTU graduates participated in the 2020 Joint Autonomous Universities Graduate Employment Survey (JAUGES), jointly conducted by NTU and the other autonomous universities in Singapore. This includes 4,553 graduates from the Class of 2020 as well as 22 Biomedical graduates and 61 Medicine graduates from the Class of 2019 who took part in a follow-up survey.

NTU's Class of 2020 earned more than the graduates from previous cohorts, with a mean gross monthly salary of $3,840 for fresh graduates in full-time permanent employment, an improvement of 4.0 per cent from $3,693 in 2019. Their median gross monthly salary was also higher at $3,660 in 2020, compared to $3,500 in 2019.

Fresh graduates in Business & Computing (double degree) earned the most among their 2020 graduate peers with a median gross monthly salary of $5,400, compared to $4,833 in 2019. This was followed by Medicine graduates with $5,250 after completing their one-year housemanship or first-year residency, and Accountancy and Business graduates with $4,405. The other top earners were those who graduated from Computer Science, Computer Engineering, and Aerospace Engineering courses.

Professor Tan Ooi Kiang, NTU's Deputy Provost (Education) said, “Despite COVID-19's impact on the economy, NTU graduates continue to stand out in the fiercely competitive job market locally and abroad. We know employers value our graduates for their skills and competencies, in addition to their global and industry exposure. The latest employment survey results suggest that employers are willing to pay a premium for them too."