Less than 75% of fresh graduates from private institutions secure jobs within 6 months
[SINGAPORE] Fewer than three in four fresh graduates from private education institutions found employment within six months of graduation, based on the Private Education Institution (PEI) Graduate Employment Survey 2023/2024 released by SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) on Monday (May 26).
The survey was conducted between November 2024 and March 2025, and received responses from about 3,500 graduates across 27 PEIs, out of which about 2,300 were in the labour force.
About 74.8 per cent of the 2,300 fresh graduates secured employment within six months of graduation. This was a dip from 83.2 per cent for the 2022/2023 cohort, reflecting weaker overall hiring demand as compared to previous years.
In particular, 46.4 per cent found full-time permanent employment, 24.2 per cent found part-time or temporary employment, and 4.2 per cent took on freelance work.
However, the median gross monthly salary of PEI fresh graduates in full-time permanent employment from the 2023/2024 cohort rose to S$3,500, an increase from S$3,400 in the previous year.
Graduates from the engineering, sciences and business course clusters had the highest percentages of graduates in full-time permanent employment.
Meanwhile, the information and digital technologies course cluster reflected the highest median gross monthly salary in 2024.
In Budget 2025, workforce support measures were introduced to help workers, including fresh graduates, navigate the uncertain economic landscape. This is intended to support individuals in their continual skills development, where PEI graduates can tap SSG's and Workforce Singapore's resources such as the Jobs-Skills portal for insights on in-demand and emerging skills.
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