I. Introduction

The University of Hong Kong

Careers Education and Placement Centre

Where did the 1997 Japanese Studies 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 Japanese Studies 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

Of the 63 respondents who reported to major in Japanese Studies, 84% (or 53 graduates) were in full-time employment within six months of graduation. 6.4% (or 4 graduates) were still looking for full-time employment at the time of the survey. Another 9.5% (or 6 graduates) went on for further studies. (Table 1)

	Japanese Studies																	HKU Overall *
	Total					Male						Female
	‘97		‘96		‘97				‘96		‘97			‘96					‘97			‘96
	No.	%	No.	%			No.	%	No.	%		No.	%		No.	%	No.			%	No.		%
No. of respondents	63	100	71	100			10	100	13	100		53	100		58	100	2272			100	2139		100
F/T employed	53	84.1	64	90.1			9	90.0	12	92.3		44	83.0		52	89.7	1829			80.5	1743		81.5
P/T employed seeking F/T job	2	3.2	0	0			0	0	0	0		2	3.8		0	0	37			1.6	34		1.6
Unemployed seeking F/T job	2	3.2	2	2.8			0	0	0	0		2	3.8		2	3.4	53			2.3	34		1.6
Further studies	6	9.5	4	5.6			1	10.0	0	0		5	9.4		4	6.9	339			14.9	314		14.7
Emigration/home country	0	0	1	1.4			0	0	1	7.7		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

Five graduates pursued further studies in Japan, while one graduate was enrolled in a local tertiary institution. Of these, three graduates pursued postgraduate studies in the same discipline as their first degree. (Tables 2 & 3)

	Academic Programmes
Field of Study	M.Phil.	Master (Coursework)	Postgraduate Certificate
Arts	1	1	1

No Response = 3

Table 2. Academic programmes

Source of Finance	No. of Graduates
Own Fund	1
Teaching Assistantship/Studentship	1
Full Scholarship	4

Table 3. Source of finance for further studies

IV. Time Taken to Secure Employment

89% of the Japanese Studies graduates secured their first job offer before the end of September. The percentage increased to 100% by the end of November. (Figure 1)

figure1.gif (15692 bytes)

V. Employment Sectors

Most (93% or 49 graduates) of the Japanese Studies graduates were employed in commerce and industry, followed by 3.8% (or 2 graduates) in the education sector. 1.9% (or 1 graduate) each joined the civil service and the community, social and personal services. (Figures 2 & 3)

figure1.gif (15692 bytes)

VI. Basic Salary and Gross Income

The remuneration received by the 1997 Japanese Studies graduates is shown in Table 4.

	Basic Salary				Gross Income
	Japanese Studies		HKU Average*		Japanese Studies		HKU Average*
	‘97	‘96	‘97	‘96	‘97	‘96		‘97	‘96
Mean	$11,748	$10,955	$15,749	$14,457	$14,126	$12,806		$17,552	$15,902
Median	$11,000	$10,000	$12,500	$12,000	$13,000	$11,917		$14,521	$13,542
Minimum	$4,400	$6,500	$4,400	$3,000	$8,500	$7,000		$5,000	$5,500
Maximum	$21,980	$28,660	$59,000	$55,000	$31,333	$28,660		$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

Of those in full-time employment, 77% of the graduates had more than one job offer. 53% reported having received three to eight or more job offers. (Figure 4)

figure1.gif (15692 bytes)

VIII. Names of Employers and Job Titles

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

Employers :	Job Titles :
CIVIL SERVICE -
HKSAR - Home Affairs Department		Executive Officer II

EDUCATION -
Chiu Tsang Hok Wan Primary School		Certificate Mistress
MFBM Chan Lui Chung Tak Memorial College		Graduate Master

COMMUNITY, SOCIAL & PERSONAL SERVICES -
Hong Kong Campus Crusade for Christ		Campus Staff

COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY -
Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd		Assistant Project Executive
Amega Travel Ltd		Sales Executive
Asia Television		Creative Trainee
AWT Realty (China) Ltd		Marketing Consultant
Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd		Cabin Crew
Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd		Customer Services Officer
CTI Ltd		Customer Service Executive
Dai Nippon Printing Co Ltd		Secretary
Fance House		Marketing Executive
Founder (HK) Ltd		Personal Assistant to General Manager
Fuji TV Network Inc		Assistant Manager
Fujitsu Denso International Ltd		Purchasing Assistant
Fuman (HK) Co Ltd		Clerk
Grand Hyatt (HK) Hotel		Front Desk Clerk
Hitachi Chemical (HK) Co Ltd		Administrative Executive
Honda Motor (China) Ltd		Sales Coordinator
Hongkong Bank		Counter Services Officer
JST (HK) Co Ltd		Introductory Control Assistant
Japan Airlne		Passenger Traffic Officer II
Kal Shan Enterprises Co Ltd		Administrative Assistant
Kansai Felt (HK) Ltd		Sales Coordinator
Man Sang Jewellery Co Ltd		Sales Executives
Matsushita Electric (HK) International Logistics		Purchasing Assistant
NCS (HK) Ltd		Consultant
Nippon Express		Customer Service Clerk
Nok (HK) Ltd		Sales Assistant
Promotional Partner		Marketing Executive
Ricoh		Purchaser



Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Ltd		Management Trainee
Sanwa Bank Ltd		Administrative Assistant
Sanwa Bank Ltd		Chief Clerk
Shindengen (HK) Co Ltd		Sales Coordinator
Shinyei Kaisha (HK Branch)		Sales Assistant
T N Morries Employment Agency		Sales Assistant
Ta Yang Silicone Rubber Ltd		Customer Services Officer
Tempstaff (HK) Ltd		Marketing Assistant
The Daiwa Bank Ltd		Credit/Marketing Officer
Organization’s name not reported		Interpreter
Organization’s name not reported		Marketing Executive
Organization’s name not reported		Secretary

No Response = 9

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