Authors

• Aarresaari network of the Academic Career Services in Finland

Keywords

appointment to job, career, educational certificates, employment opportunities, graduates, higher education institutions, labour force, temporary employment, tertiary education

Abstract

The survey charted the career and employment situation of Bachelors and Masters who graduated from Finnish universities in 2000. The survey was conducted five years after the respondents' graduation, and it charted the stability of the first years of their careers, and whether their job was commensurate with their qualifications.

The respondents' work history was charted by asking them whether they had earned other degrees or participated in in-service or specialised training related to their job or occupation after the degree earned in 2000. The time spent in paid employment after graduation was queried, including both work in general and work commensurate with their qualifications. The number of employers and separate employments and offices was charted, as well as whether the respondents had been entrepreneurs, self-employed or freelancers and how long, and whether they had been outside the labour market because of family leave. Possible periods of unemployment were also canvassed. The respondents were presented with potential obstacles to getting a job (e.g. lack of experience, weak labour market situation in the field, gender) and asked to assess how much each of them had hindered their employment.

The respondents' current employment situation, type of main employer, and type of work were charted. They were also asked where they had received information about their current job. The respondents' monthly gross income was queried, as well as how well it corresponded with the contents and level of responsibility of their job and with their academic education. They were also presented with a set of attitudinal statements on whether they liked their job. The respondents who were in temporary employment were asked to tell the most important reason for the temporary nature of the contract, the duration of the contract, and whether the contract was preceded by another temporary contract with the same employer. Correspondence between work and education was studied by asking the respondents whether an academic degree had been a prerequisite for their current job, and hether their current job responsibilities corresponded with their academic education and field of study. If they did not fully correspond, the respondents were asked to name the most important reason for accepting the job. The importance of university education was probed by charting the respondents' satisfaction with their academic degree from the point of view of career. Finally, the importance of various skills (e.g. information retrieval skills, managing skills, Finnish communication skills) in the respondents' current job was surveyed, as well as how well their university studies had developed these skills.

Background variables included the respondent's university, gender, age at the time of graduation, and information on the degree (degree title, length in credits).