Staying on top of college recruiting means being aware of their expectations, and expectations are pretty high right now. According to a new survey from CareerBuilder, 67% of employers say they plan to hire recent college graduates this year, which is up from 65% last year and is the highest outlook since 2007.
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More than one-third (37%) plan to offer recent college graduates higher pay than last year, and 27% of employers hiring recent college graduates this year will pay a starting salary of $50,000 or more.
The national survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder between February 10 and March 17, 2016, and included a representative sample of 2,186 hiring managers and human resource professionals in the private sector across industries and company sizes.
“In addition to an improving economy, we are beginning to see a rising number of retirements, which is creating more room for advancement and creating opportunities for entry-level candidates,” said Rosemary Haefner, chief human resources officer for CareerBuilder. “But just because there are vacancies doesn’t mean college students are always ready to fill them.”
While prospects appear better, some employers are concerned that new college grads may not be ready for the real world. Twenty-four percent do not feel academic institutions are adequately preparing students for roles needed within their organizations, an increase from 21% last year. When asked where academic institutions fall short, these employers cited the following concerns:
- Too much emphasis on book learning instead of real-world learning: 47%
- I need workers with a blend of technical skills and those skills gained from liberal arts: 39%
- Entry-level roles within my organization are more complex today: 25%
- Not enough focus on internships: 13%
- Technology is changing too quickly for an academic environment to keep up: 13%
- Not enough students are graduating with the degrees my company needs: 11%
When asked to name which skills they think recent college graduates lack for the workplace, most of these employers cited interpersonal or people skills (52%) and problem-solving skills (48%). Other skills these employers stated include:
- Leadership: 42%
- Teamwork: 39%
- Written communication: 37%
- Oral communication: 37%
- Creative thinking: 35%
- Project management: 27%
- Research and analysis: 17%
- Math: 15%
- Computer and technical: 14%
Tomorrow, more on college graduate expectations.