The University of Hong Kong

Careers Education and Placement Centre

Where did the 1997 Biochemistry graduates go?

I. Introduction

The information contained in this paper is extracted from the Graduate Employment Survey of 1997 to answer the following questions about Biochemistry majors : -

How were they employed six months after graduation ?
Of those who pursued further studies, what programmes did they follow ?
Of those who were employed full-time, how long did it take them to secure their first job offer ?
In which sectors were they employed ?
How much did they receive in salary ?
How many job offers did they receive ?
Who were their employers and what were their job titles ?

II. Employment Situation in 1997

Altogether 24 persons graduated from the University with a B.Sc. degree in Biochemistry. Among them, 22 (92%) responded to the survey. Most (73% or 16 graduates) of the Biochemistry graduates were in full-time employment within six months of graduation. The remaining 27% (or 6 graduates) pursued further studies. Nil unemployment was reported. (Table 1)

	Biochemistry																		HKU Overall *
	Total					Male							Female
	‘97		‘96		‘97				‘96			‘97				‘96			‘97		‘96
	No.	%	No.	%			No.	%		No.	%			No.	%		No.	%	No.	%		No.	%
No. of respondents	22	100	23	100			12	100		14	100			10	100		9	100	2272	100		2139	100
F/T employed	16	72.7	15	65.0			10	83.3		9	64.0			6	60.0		6	66.7	1829	80.5		1743	81.5
P/T employed seeking F/T job	0	0	0	0			0	0		0	0			0	0		0	0	37	1.6		34	1.6
Unemployed seeking F/T job	0	0	0	0			0	0		0	0			0	0		0	0	53	2.3		34	1.6
Further studies	6	27.3	8	35.0			2	16.7		5	36.0			4	40.0		3	33.3	339	14.9		314	14.7
Emigration/home country	0	0	0	0			0	0		0	0			0	0		0	0	4	0.2		6	0.28
Not seeking F/T job	0	0	0	0			0	0		0	0			0	0		0	0	10	0.4		8	0.4

Table 1. Employment situation

* HKU overall refers to the figure for the total HKU population and includes M.B.,B.S. and B.D.S. graduates.

III. Further Studies

Three graduates pursued postgraduate studies in the same discipline as their first degree. All of them were enrolled in local tertiary institutions. Table 2 shows the academic programme Biochemistry graduates were engaged in and Table 3 shows the source of finance.

	Academic programme
Field of Study	M.Phil.
Science	3

No Response = 3

Table 2. Academic programme

Source of Finance	No. of Graduates
Own Fund	2
Teaching Assistantship/Studentship	2

No Response = 2

Table 3. Source of finance for further studies

IV. Time Taken to Secure Employment

Among those graduates who were in full-time employment, 88% secured their first job offer before the end of October. The percentage increased to 100% by December. (Figure 1)

Figure 1.Time taken to secure employment

V. Employment Sectors

Over half (63% or 10 graduates) of the Biochemistry graduates were employed in commerce and industry, followed by 25% (or 4 graduates) in education and 13% (or 2 graduates) in civil service sector. (Figures 2 & 3.)

Figure 2. Employment sectors

Image29.gif (9322 bytes)

Figure 3. Employment sectors by sex

VI. Basic Salary and Gross Income

In general, the average income of 1997 Biochemistry graduates was higher than that of their predecessors in the previous year. (Table 4)

	Basic Salary				Gross Income
	Biochemistry		HKU Average*		Biochemistry		HKU Average*
	‘97	‘96	‘97	‘96	‘97	‘96	‘97	‘96
Mean	$17,208	$10,779	$15,749	$14,457	$19,037	$11,686	$17,552	$15,902
Median	$12,500	$10,000	$12,500	$12,000	$13,530	$11,233	$14,521	$13,542
Minimum	$8,500	$6,000	$4,400	$3,000	$8,500	$9,000	$5,000	$5,500
Maximum	$54,000	$15,135	$59,000	$55,000	$74,000	$15,135	$74,000	$60,000

Table 4. Basic salary and gross income

* HKU average refers to the figure for the total HKU population and includes M.B.,B.S. and B.D.S. graduates.

VII. Number of Full-Time Job Offers

38% of the graduates in full-time employment had more than one job offer. 13% reported having received three job offers. (Figure 4).

Figure 4. No. of full-time job offers

VIII. Names of Employers and Job Titles

The job titles of the Biochemistry graduates in full-time employment and the names of their employers are listed below.

Employers :	Job Titles :

CIVIL SERVICE -
HKSAR	Fire Officer
HKSAR	Probationary Inspector

EDUCATION -
St Gloria College	Laboratory Technician
The Chinese University of Hong Kong	Research Assistant
The Chinese University of Hong Kong	Technician
The University of Hong Kong - Department of Pathology	Research Assistant

COMMERCE & INDUSTRY -
Abbott International	Medical Representative
Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd	Analyst Programmer
Chan, Lau & Wai Solicitors	Legal Assistant
Gene Co Ltd	Sales & Marketing Executive
Hop Lick Electrical Ltd	Marketing Executive
Kun Fat Hong	Purchasing Officer
Lippo Protective Life Insurance Co Ltd	Assistant Officer
Quintiles East Asia Pte Ltd	Clinical Trial Assistant

No Response = 2

Table 5. List of employers and job titles

Note: Some alumni have indicated willingness to talk to individual students about their work. Their contact telephone number can be obtained from counsellors at CEPC.

IX. Similar information on graduates from other disciplines of study are available for reference in the Careers Library. Please enquire with the CEPC.

Careers Education and Placement Centre

3/F Wong Chuang Lai Wah Building

Meng Wah Complex

The University of Hong Kong

Pokfulam Road

Hong Kong

Telephone : 2859 2314

Fax : (852) 2559 5238

E-Mail : CEPC@HKUCC.HKU.HK

Homepage : http://www.hku.hk/cepc

Opening Hours : Monday - Friday (9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.)

Saturday (9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.)

Margaret Lee

Nelson Yip

June, 1998

The analysis is based on information provided by the respondents, and the Careers Education & Placement Centre should not be held responsible for any errors arising therefrom.

No part of this report may be reproduced in any form or by whatever means,

without written permission from the Director of the Careers Education and Placement Centre,

The University of Hong Kong