Training paves way to career
A RECENT survey has revealed that one out of five Hongkong Polytechnic graduates found employment with companies he or she had previously worked for during summer training or placement programmes.
The employment survey, conducted by the Student Affairs Office of the Hongkong Polytechnic, interviewed 3,384 students who completed their studies in June 1992.
Eighty-three per cent of the graduates had found satisfactory jobs when the survey ended in December.
Among them, 20 per cent had worked for their current employers during summer training programmes or placement exercises organised by the institute.
Mr Lee Kai-yu, Head of Student Affairs Office, said the findings showed the importance of summer placement exercises.
''Students think the purpose of summer jobs is to make some extra money or to kill time. But actually, there's more to it,'' he said.
''Summer jobs can be considered a self-evaluation process. Students can learn more about the working world and see which field is more suitable for them.'' Mr Lee added that the institute's summer placement exercise was very popular. ''Students would be able to better handle similar jobs after they graduate as they have experience.'' The survey also found that the commercial and industrial sectors continued to take the lead in absorbing Polytechnic graduates.
The engineering field attracted the highest percentage of graduates (24 per cent), followed by sales and marketing (16 per cent) and accounting (nine per cent).
The percentage of graduates joining public utilities, education institutions and non-profit making organisations increased from 11 per cent in 1991 to 13 per cent last year.
More students joined the health service because of the establishment of the Hospital Authority.
But the percentage of graduates joining the civil service went down from nine per cent in 1991 to four per cent in 1992.
The average monthly salary of the graduates was $8,400, a 10 per cent increase compared with that of the previous year.
Almost 84 per cent of the graduates found their courses relevant to their work, and about 58 per cent of the graduates got more than one job offer.
Among the graduates who did not work, 14 per cent pursued further studies and the remaining 1.5 per cent, mostly overseas students or emigrants, left Hongkong.
The number of graduates pursuing further education at local institutions went up from 181 in 1991 to 163 in 1992. Thirty-three per cent returned to the Polytechnic as the institute had introduced more degree programmes.
The number of degree graduates went up from 1,005 in 1991 to 1,265 in 1992.
