[Singapore, 28 Feb 2014 (Friday)] – Graduates from Singapore Management University’s (SMU) 2013 cohort have registered a strong overall employment rate^[1] of 92.3% and high starting salaries across five of the university's degree programmes.

The results were revealed in a joint Graduate Employment Survey (GES) conducted by three autonomous universities in Singapore namely Nanyang Technological University, National University of Singapore and Singapore Management University.

This is the second year in which the three autonomous universities conducted a joint survey. The survey, which was carried out with fresh graduates revealed that 92.3% of SMU graduates gained employment within six months after completing their final examinations with more than 86% being offered jobs from before graduation to within the first two months of completing their final examinations. For graduates who took up full-time permanent employment, some 55% of them received two to six job offers. The survey yielded an overall response rate of 75.8% from 1,257 participants of the 1,659 SMU alumni who graduated in 2013.

The mean gross monthly salary of SMU graduates in full-time permanent jobs is a record $3,455, since SMU graduated its pioneer cohort in 2004. This is a 1.8% increase over the previous year’s mean gross monthly salary of $3,395.^[2]

The top 20% of wage earners commanded a mean gross monthly salary of $5,281.

Among SMU graduates who are working full-time, 32 chose to embark on an entrepreneurial path and started their own businesses.

SMU President, Professor Arnoud De Meyer said, “The strong survey results reinforce the fact that SMU is producing a highly trained work force; versatile, confident and articulate individuals who are business-ready and market relevant for Singapore. Our holistic undergraduate educational experience provides a distinctive interactive pedagogy with personalised attention for every student. Through community service, public speaking and leadership skills, coupled with the valuable work experience that they gained through their industry internships, and a rigorous academic programme, SMU students are poised to be transformed into well-rounded leaders who are able to make a difference when they graduate. They have a distinctive edge in the job market and possess qualities that are highly sought after by employers.”

The versatility of SMU graduates was also demonstrated in the wide variety of professions and industries that they are employed in, ranging from finance and insurance; legal, accounting and auditing, information and communication, business and management consultancy,  as well as the public and social sectors.

As compared to 2012 results, more of SMU’s graduates this year have joined industries such as education, finance and insurance, advertising and market research, retail and, public administration and defence.

SMU’s graduates continue to do well across the six Schools in 2013.

The mean gross monthly salary of SMU’s Accountancy graduates increased to $3,342 for the 2013 cohort. The median gross monthly salary is $2,825. Those with Cum Laude or better achieved a higher mean gross monthly salary of $3,634.

The Business Management graduates' mean gross monthly salary is $3,520. The median gross monthly salary is $3,200. Those with Cum Laude or better were paid a mean gross monthly salary of $3,975. 

The Economics graduates garnered a mean gross monthly salary of $3,513. The median gross monthly salary is $3,339. Those with Cum Laude or better achieved a high mean gross monthly salary of $3,820.

The Information Systems Management (ISM) graduates drew a mean and median gross monthly salary of $3,468 and $3,300 respectively. Those with Cum Laude or better, enjoy a high mean gross monthly salary of $3,862.

The mean and median gross monthly salary of the Social Sciences graduates is $3,150 and $3,000. Those with Cum Laude or better enjoy a higher mean gross monthly salary of $3,267.

Please refer to Annex for the detailed figures.

The follow-up survey^[3] on SMU Law graduates showed that 100% of the respondents are employed with mean and median gross monthly salaries of $ 5,246 and $5,000 respectively. Those with Cum Laude or better had a mean gross monthly salary of $ 5,617, a 10% increase over 2012.

Since its inception in 2000, SMU has pioneered its own unique brand of pedagogy. Modeled after the American system, the SMU curriculum is intentionally structured as four-year programmes to give undergraduates a holistic education which not only includes seminar-style classes that encourage free and open discussion, but also compulsory internship (including  overseas internships), overseas study missions and compulsory community service work.

SMU was the first university in Singapore to make internships compulsory for all students. The internship programme gives SMU students maximum benefits - exposure to real working life, gain personal real-world perspectives and insights into career choices and get a chance to build valuable business networks. The Dato’ Kho Hui Meng Career Centre, through its start-to-finish approach in preparing students for the workplace, organises a variety of networking events, career talks and company visits, among several career preparation resources. It provides career counseling to students and ensure successful placement in internship and jobs by working closely with industry.

Professor De Meyer commented, “SMU students are given a head-start in their careers through the opportunity of taking up internships. Our students don't just learn from being interns; they value-add with innovative ideas and solutions. Many of them are talent-spotted and offered jobs by their intern companies even before they graduate. Internships are certainly a more reliable way for employers to consider fresh recruits. I am confident that such industry internships combined with SMU’s rigorous multi-disciplinary programmes which equip students with a total skill-set, consisting of hard knowledge skills, soft people skills and ‘heart’ skills will continue to stand them in good stead in both their professional careers and personal lives.”

SMU pioneered “The Finishing Touch” course, by which students have to pass a compulsory career preparation skills programme that includes career planning, interview and networking skills, business etiquette and managing workplace relationships.

Come 1 March 2014, SMU’s career centre will also be launching a Majors and Careers Pathway Guide to provide seamless one-stop access to information and e-services for all SMU students via an intranet portal. The guide which lists academic majors against various job titles, industries, skills required and employer requirements, aims to help Year 1 and 2 students make an informed decision about their choice of an academic major. The guide’s job titles and industries are derived chiefly from the annual Graduate Employment Survey (GES) which comes directly from SMU graduates’ responses during the surveys.

Explanatory Note: Cum Laude and Merit Awards

SMU uses the cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) criteria to identify degree candidates with academic excellence in the following award categories: Summa Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude and Cum Laude. These are Latin awards adopted from the American system, and can be translated as with Highest Distinction, with High Distinction and with Distinction, respectively. All Cum Laude awards are highly selective.

They do not equate to the various classes of degree honours conferred by universities that follow the British system of academic honours. A graduate needs a GPA of at least 3.40 out of 4.00 to be awarded Cum Laude. All SMU bachelor degrees are four-year full-time programmes.

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