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A survey conducted by the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups found that despite lay-offs and threats of wage cuts, 70 per cent of Form Five graduates were not prepared to accept jobs paying less than $6000 a month. Ninety per cent of Form Seven graduates held the same view.
The three most popular occupations for Form Five graduates were secretarial and clerical, or within the civil service and disciplinary forces, and in educational work. For Form Seven graduates, the three most popular occupations were secretarial and clerical, within in banking and monetary sector, and in the civil services and disciplinary forces. Jobs in retailing, construction and personal services were the most unpopular among graduates. More than 30 per cent of respondents attributed the reason that they did not choose a career in those industries to the demanding nature of the job.
More than 38 per cent of graduates said lack of skills was the largest obstacle to their findings a job. Besides lacking skills, graduates also feared that they were too young and failed to meet educational requirements. More than 70 per cent of the graduates agreed that the Government should provide them with subsidies for undergoing retraining courses.
The survey demonstrated that fields of commerce and accounting were the most popular among graduates. Some professional subjects that had attracted many students in the past were no longer popular. Only a few graduates considered studying medicine, engineering, architecture or law. The findings showed that graduates were worried about the demand of these professions in the market. Layoffs have also taken place in these industries, even though these were once considered long-term professions.
This telephone survey was conducted from 20 to 21 July 1998. A total of 649 graduates (including Form Five, Form Seven and University graduates) were successfully interviewed.
The survey noticed that 80 per cent of graduates desired to continue studies after graduation, particularly those at a young age. Around 74 per cent wanted to complete a university degree. Surprisingly, 14 per cent of the graduates wanted to take up post-graduate studies. The findings might suggest that the poor economy had scared people away from job-hunting. People might consider ?/FONT>studying?/FONT> as an alternative in the midst of the present economic downturn.
Ninety per cent of graduates would consider applying for loans to take courses related to job searches. The lower the education level of the respondents, the greater the desire to apply for the loans. Many graduates would try to take different kinds of courses offered by different colleges or institutes to keep up their knowledge, if they were not qualified to be promoted to upper level.
Only about one-fourth of the graduates said that the employment services provided by the Labor Department were helpful.
The Senior Research Officer of the Federation said that because of economic slowdown, graduates this year might face a difficult time in finding a job. The jobs which graduates disliked most were in industries hardest hit by the economic downturn. It suggested that the current economic performance of industries affected graduates' occupation preferences.
Youth Opinion
Polls No. 57
