I came across an article on graduates’ expected salary range, from 2011 Graduate Employment Survey (GES), an annual survey that crunches the salary data of fresh graduates who have just entered the workforce.
It looks pretty good. But one have to take note that the amount includes CPF from your employers as well as your own contributions, and all other benefits have been costed in.
From their survey, Law degree holders came out tops, with the median monthly salary hovering at a whopping S$5,000 for fresh graduates.
Business & Accountancy: In the 2011 EOC survey, 32% of Business undergraduates and 44.8% of Accountancy majors expected to earn between S$2,500 and S$2,999 in their first job.
Computing: Computing students expected to pocket in between S$2,800 and S$3,ooo monthly.
Engineering:Engineering undergraduates found themselves getting median wages from S$2,850 to S$3,000.
Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences: Despite their creative mindsets, most Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences undergraduates had a relatively rational and modest outlook when it came to pay expectations with 42.7% expecting between S$2,500 to S$2,999 for their first pay check.
Top 10 Average Gross Monthly Salaries
Note: All SMU programmes listed here are 4-year courses and awards degrees with no awards, merit, high merit, cum laude and above. ‘Cum Laude’ means ‘With honour’
1. NUS Bachelor Laws (LLB) (with honours) – S$5,037
2. SMU Information Systems Management (Cum Laude and above) – S$4,294
3. NUS Bachelor of Medicine & Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) – S$4,016
4. SMU Economics (Cum Laude and above) – S$3,999
5. NUS Bachelor of Computing (Information Systems) – S$3,911
6. NUS Bachelor of Business Administration (with honours) – S$3,871
7. SMU Business Management (Cum Laude and above) – S$3,777
8. NUS Bachelor of Arts (Architecture) – S$3,677
9. SMU Accountancy (Cum Laude and above) – S$3,671
10. SMU Information Systems Management – S$3,637
The article was originated from: http://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/expected-actual-salaries-much-did-peers-actually-earn-024038323.html
So where do you stand? From the article above, does that mean you are only worth that amount? Or if you are not from one of those schools, does that mean you are worth lesser than the median salary in your respective field?
I am not from any of the schools above, but I did pretty well for my career. My secret recipe for doing well is to not look at the money. As soon as i do that, i stop doing well. What do i mean, some might ask. Is this a crazy thought?
Now, imagine you are looking for a lawyer, would you prefer to look for one who is busy counting how much he is making every day, every moment, or you are hoping to get one who is busy finding way to win cases for his clients?
If you are looking for a doctor, do you wish to find a doctor who is busy counting how much money he is making every day or you are hoping to get one who is busy taking care of his patients’ needs, and constantly improving himself and finding ways and means to treat his patients?
I might not know how else to put it across to you. But one thing i realise, when you start to focus on the money, it can become a mental block, an obstacle that will stops you from making more money. And we can’t help it. After giving our best, at the end of the day, we are only making this little. You be thinking if it is worth it. Or you might be thinking, since i am only paid this much, why should i give my best. And for some, i will only work for them if they pay me the median salary. Which will most likely turns out to be a worst case scenario for them. They will slow down their career progression because of money.
So what should you be doing?
Focus on being really good, as in REALLY REALLY GOOD at what you do.
The best lawyers, doctors, lecturers, speakers, engineers, architects, marketers, they do not know exactly how much they are making. Yes, they do have a rough idea how much, but they won’t be able to tell you exactly how much they are making. Because they are too busy focusing on polishing their craft, skills, work, whatever you want to call it. All they want to do is to produce the best results, outcome, and bring as much satisfaction to the people (ie: their customers, their bosses) they are serving as possible.
When you are really good at what you do, you have a better chance to make your customers happy & satisfied with your services. When your customers are happy, you will have more customers. More customers mean more businesses. More businesses mean more money.
You might be thinking, that will only apply if you are a freelancer or doing your own business. But even if you are a salaried worker, think like a business man. When you are really good at what you do, you will have a better chance to make your customers happy. When your customers are happy, you will help your boss gain more customers. More customers mean more businesses. More businesses means more money. More money for the company should mean more money to pay you as salary.
You might be thinking what if you do not handle any customers. It works the same way too. If you are really good at what you do, you will impress your bosses. When your bosses are impressed, they will give you are responsibilities and a bigger role. A bigger role and bigger responsibility should mean more money for you.
If you are very good at what you do, I mean REALLY VERY GOOD, and yet your boss is not paying you more, then what are you still doing at that company? Anyway, that is another issue and topic altogether that deserves another posting as a topic on its own.
In any case, focus on being REALLY GOOD at what you do. Finding more money is not going to be your issue.
Do you think everyone is doing the same thing? I dare to say, not everyone is thinking or building their career with this frame of mind. Which is the majority of the workforce are struggling to make more money.
And I’m a contrarian. I like to do what others are not doing or thinking. To me, doing the same thing and sharing the same frame of thoughts as the majority, chances are I will be having the same outcome as them, getting low pay. If I want a different outcome, does it make sense to not do and think what they are doing? Only then, i would have a better chance to achieve results that is going to turn out differently from the rest.
