Graduate Employment Outcomes: ACG vs Government Data

June 30, 2025

--CHINA--

Graduate Employment Outcomes: ACG vs Government Data (2019; 2005-2021)

In recent years, graduate employment in China has undergone significant shifts, shaped by changing employer practices, evolving student preferences, and macroeconomic disruptions—particularly the COVID-19 pandemic. Comparing data from the Asia Careers Group (ACG) and the Chinese Ministry of Education / KRI national survey reveals two very different post-graduation realities, especially for the class of 2019.

Contrasting Outcomes in 2019

Chinese national data (2019):

Source: China College Graduate Employment Annual Report 2019. East China Normal University (ECNU), MyCOS Research Institute.

For 2019 graduates, the national dataset shows a fairly traditional pattern of early-career placement:

30% of bachelor’s degree holders secured full-time jobs within six months of graduation.
An almost equal proportion of 31.1% progressed straight into domestic postgraduate study.
Very few graduates pursued internships, freelance work or entrepreneurship; categories that were either underreported or not captured in the survey design.

In contrast, our ACG data which based on Chinese students who studied at international universities and returned to China—shows a more fragmented early career phase. Among internationally educated Chinese graduates in 2019:

Only 25.5% of bachelor’s graduates entered full-time roles within six months.
36.7% of master’s graduates secured full-time jobs in the same period.
58% of bachelor’s graduates and 41% of master’s graduates were engaged in internships.
A small but growing proportion pursued freelance work or entrepreneurship, especially at postgraduate level.

Side-by-Side Comparison (2019 Snapshot)

These differences suggest a key difference in early employment patterns: while domestic graduates transition quickly into jobs or further study, ACG alumni (international graduates) were more likely to enter internships first—often as part of an “intern-to-hire” route or while navigating re-entry into the Chinese job market.

Trendlines (2005–2021): A Tale of Two Trajectories

Source: China College Graduate Employment Annual Report 2023. East China Normal University (ECNU), MyCOS Research Institute.

Looking at long-term trends from 2005 to 2021, the government data reflects a gradual decline in full-time employment immediately after graduation:

Full-time employment post-graduation declined from 47.2% (2005) to 32.1% (2021).
Postgraduate study became increasingly common, rising from 15% to 33% over the same period.
Flexible employment (freelancing, start-ups, etc.) peaked at 25% in 2015, before declining to 11% by 2021.
The overall placement rate (excluding those unemployed or inactive) reached 84% in 2017 but dropped to 76.5% by 2021.

ACG Data Highlights:

2005–2009: Almost all ACG graduates entered full-time roles, largely from business or engineering programs.
2011–2015: Full-time employment stabilised around 60–70%. Internships and start-ups began to appear as key paths.
2017 (pre-COVID): Internships made up nearly 20% of outcomes, suggesting a shift in employer behaviour toward internship-led hiring.
2019–2021: COVID shocks led to a spike in internships (up to 59%) and a drop in full-time hires (down to 24.8%).

Post-2021 Recovery and Outlook

More recent data shows signs of recovery. In 2023–24, nearly 50% of internationally educated Chinese graduates secured full-time roles within six months—closing much of the gap with pre-pandemic levels. Internship rates fell back to the low 20% range but remain higher than in the 2010s, suggesting that short-term work experience continues to play a key role in early career entry for this group.

Overall, the data suggests that while international graduates may not transition into full-time work as quickly as domestic graduates, especially in periods of labour market stress, they are more likely to take on internships or flexible roles as a first step. This highlights differences not just in outcomes but in career pathways—and the need for targeted support during the return-to-work transition.

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--INDIA--

Graduate Employment in India: ACG vs National Trends (2016–2025)

India’s post-pandemic graduate employment story is shaped by two different but complementary sets of insights: the India Skills Report (ISR) that measures the employability of final-year students based on standardised testing. And the other, our ACG data that tracks real-world employment outcomes for Indian graduates who studied overseas and returned to the domestic job market.

The ISR is a supply-side measure (score) that assesses “employability” as the proportion of students who meet national aptitude and domain-skill benchmarks. ACG data, by contrast, reflects demand-side outcomes—how many graduates actually secure jobs, internships, or freelance work. Together, these perspectives help distinguish between how prepared graduates are and how the job market is responding.

Source: India Skills Report 2025: Enabling Global Talent Mobility. ETS Assessment Services, Gurugram. Wheebox & CII (2024).
For earlier data (pre-2019): available here.

Key Contrasts and Observations

Pre-COVID: ACG graduates consistently outperformed ISR employability scores. Full-time employment rates for internationally educated graduates remained above 60%, while national employability hovered around 46%. This suggests that global exposure and international credentials were linked to stronger job conversion at home.
COVID Disruption (2019–2021): ACG full-time hiring fell sharply to 37%. Many returnees moved into internships (up to 27%) or part-time/freelance work (15–16%), indicating a shift toward short-term or fallback options. Meanwhile, ISR scores remained relatively flat at ~46%, highlighting a disconnect between graduate skills and job market demand.
Post-Pandemic Rebound (2022–2024): ACG’s full-time rate rebounded to a peak of 69% in 2023, well above ISR’s modest climb to 51%, which indicates that improvement in outcomes was driven more by demand-side recovery than by gains in skill-readiness.
2025: Both datasets converge at ~55%, suggesting a new equilibrium. Graduates may be better prepared, but job creation hasn’t kept pace. Going forward, better alignment between skills and available roles will be critical.

Broader National Context: The Graduate Squeeze

Source: India Employment Report 2022: Employment, Unemployment and Informality in India, Institute for Human Development (IHD), 2022.

While graduate employability and outcomes improved in some areas, the structure of India’s job market shifted in ways that made it harder for degree-holders to secure stable, salaried roles.

Between 2019 and 2022, total employment grew by 78 million, but regular formal jobs, which typically require a degree, rose by only 4.1 million (from 47.5m to 51.6m). That accounted for just 5% of all new jobs during the period. After a modest increase in 2021, formal employment actually declined by 0.8 million in 2022. By that year, formal wage jobs made up only approximately 9% of total employment (51.6m out of 544.5m), reinforcing how limited the pool of graduate-appropriate roles has become.

At the same time, job creation came overwhelmingly from self-employment, which added +63 million jobs (241m → 304m) between 2019 and 2022. The biggest contributors were own-account work (+25m) and unpaid family work (+34m)—roles that rarely require a university degree. This shift suggests that many graduates who could not secure salaried jobs were pulled into fallback or informal roles. Meanwhile, the supply of graduates continues to outpace demand. India produces roughly 1 million engineering graduates each year, far exceeding the growth in formal jobs.

Although some graduates are turning to entrepreneurship, the base remains small: the number of “employers” rose from 10.7m → 13.9m (+3.2m), representing only 2.6% of the workforce in 2022.

Key Takeaways

Employability ≠ Employment: Graduates may meet skill benchmarks, but that doesn’t guarantee a job—especially when the market isn’t hiring.
Demand drives outcomes: ACG’s sharp rebound in 2023 underscores how hiring cycles shape job conversions, employer behaviour can shift quickly, sometimes outpacing graduate readiness.
When hiring rebounds, conversions can surge: The spike to 69% full-time placement in 2023 ACG data suggests that employers valued experience or international exposure more than just passing a test.
Convergence signals a new normal: By 2025, both ACG and ISR hover near 55%—suggesting the post-pandemic bounce is fading, and a more competitive hiring landscape is settling in.
Informality still dominates: Most new jobs have come from informal sectors such as self-employment, unpaid family work, and casual labour. These roles are often concentrated in rural areas, where degree requirements are low and formal employment opportunities are limited, which is why they’re considered poor matches for graduate talent.

Taken together, these structural shifts help explain why graduate outcomes, both domestic and international, remain under pressure, even as skills improve. The limited growth in formal employment, combined with an oversupply of degree-holders, means that job readiness alone is no longer enough. Without stronger demand for graduate-level roles, many qualified candidates will continue to face delayed entry, underemployment, or fallback options that don't reflect their capabilities. Unless formal job creation keeps pace with the scale of degree production, improvements in skill-readiness will continue to deliver limited returns.

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--MALAYSIA--

Graduate Employment in Malaysia: ACG vs Government Data (2010–2025)

Malaysia’s graduate employment landscape has evolved sharply in the past decade, reflecting both structural pressures and shifting post-graduation pathways. A comparison between Asia Careers Group (ACG) outcomes and national data (as reported by KRI and MOHE) reveals not only differing employment rates, but also divergent job quality, wage expectations, and definitions of career success.

Diverging Trends in Full-Time Employment (2021)

Source: Shifting Tides: Charting Career Progression of Malaysia’s Skilled Talents. Khazanah Research Institute, 2024.

In 2021, national data reported that 59.3% of Malaysian graduates were in full-time employment. In contrast, ACG data showed that only 30.05% of internationally educated Malaysian returnees had secured full-time roles. The remaining ~70% were in internships, part-time, contract, freelance, or entrepreneurial positions.

This is more than just a statistical gap. It points to a structural difference in early career trajectories. Many returnees, particularly those from creative fields or international programmes, are entering more dynamic, transitional pathways, often with delayed access to stable, long-term roles. These outcomes may reflect shifting employer expectations, different career timelines, or gaps in local market integration for returnees.

Longer-Term Shifts in Full-Time Employment (2010–2021)

Source: Shifting Tides: Charting Career Progression of Malaysia’s Skilled Talents. Khazanah Research Institute, 2024.

Source: Asia Careers Group

Looking beyond 2021, the broader trend from 2010 to 2021 shows that full-time employment has been declining steadily across both national and ACG datasets, though at very different rates. MOHE/KRI data shows a moderate decrease from 53.2% in 2010 to 44.1% in 2021, reflecting the gradual rise of non-standard employment across the domestic market.

The decline is much more pronounced in ACG’s data. Full-time employment among internationally educated Malaysian returnees dropped from 77.3% in 2010 to just 30.0% in 2021. This sharper drop reinforces the idea that returnees are entering the workforce through less conventional pathways such as internships, contract work, and freelance roles. These changes are likely influenced, again, by employer preferences for “intern-to-hire” models, a growing emphasis on flexibility, and market pressures that delay the transition into permanent roles. Despite the lower immediate full-time employment rate, ACG salary data suggests that these graduates still go on to secure higher-paying positions—just not through traditional entry routes.

Wage Growth

Source: Shifting Tides: Charting Career Progression of Malaysia’s Skilled Talents. Khazanah Research Institute, 2024.

Source: Asia Careers Group

Salary Comparison (2021)

One of the most striking contrasts is income:

That said, higher salary outcomes among ACG graduates likely reflect more than just educational background. They also point to urban concentration and sectoral skew. Many returnees are employed in multinational firms or high-growth industries such as tech, consulting, or finance—typically located in major urban centres. These sectors offer higher starting salaries but are not representative of the broader Malaysian graduate population, particularly those entering the civil service, manufacturing, or regional labour markets.

Wage data reveals a marked variation between national graduate outcomes and those of internationally educated Malaysian returnees. According to national statistics, a large majority of graduates remained in low-wage brackets in both 2010 and 2021. In 2021, 65.6% of Malaysian graduates earned below RM2,000, with 43.6% earning under RM1,500. Over the past decade, wage growth has remained largely stagnant for domestic graduates, despite rising levels of higher education attainment.

In contrast, ACG data shows a significantly stronger salary trajectory for returnees. By 2022, 65.2% of international graduates were earning above RM6,000, rising to over 75% in both 2023 and 2024. Very few fell into low-income brackets, with less than 3% earning below RM2,000. While some of this gap may reflect sectoral differences, qualification levels, or employer preferences, it also points to a structural shift in early career entry. ACG graduates now report lower rates of full-time employment immediately after graduation—dropping from 75–80% in 2010 to just 30% by 2021—but this doesn’t necessarily reflect weaker long-term outcomes. Many now begin with internships, contract roles, or freelance work as transitional “bridge” jobs, gaining experience and market exposure before securing permanent roles. This delay may, in fact, position them for stronger salary outcomes later, as they accumulate relevant experience, build networks and gain leverage in better salary negotiations once hired.

At the same time, some graduates may prefer flexible or project-based roles, especially in creative or digital industries, before committing to a long-term position. These dynamics help explain why ACG international graduates are still seeing strong salary outcomes, even if their path to permanent employment takes longer than it did a decade ago.

Entrepreneurship

Source: Shifting Tides: Charting Career Progression of Malaysia’s Skilled Talents. Khazanah Research Institute, 2024.

Source: Asia Careers Group

Entrepreneurship remains a relatively niche pathway among ACG graduates. While national figures suggest that 16% of fresh graduates were self-employed in 2023, ACG data shows a much lower figure of just 5.4% among returnees, comprising of 3.96% entrepreneurs and 1.49% freelancers. This breaks down to approximately 72% entrepreneurs and 28% freelancers, a distribution broadly consistent with national trends, though at a significantly smaller scale.

This suggests that while the composition of self-employment is similar, the overall interest in entrepreneurial or freelance paths appears lower among internationally educated graduates— possibly due to higher salary expectations, greater access to urban job markets, or a stronger preference for structured roles in established organisations.

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--SINGAPORE--

Graduate Employment in Singapore: ACG vs National Data (2013–2024)

Singapore’s graduate job market has long been seen as structured and high-performing, but recent data points to a more nuanced landscape—particularly for graduates from Private Education Institutions (PEIs). A comparison between Asia Careers Group (ACG) data and official figures from SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) reveals shifts in employability, job stability, and wage outcomes that mirror broader regional trends.

Employment outcomes

Source: Table 1, Employment Outcomes, from the Private Education Institution Graduate Employment Survey 2023/2024. SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG).

Headline Employment Outcomes (2023–2024)

SkillsFuture Singapore’s most recent Graduate Employment Survey offers a more granular view of outcomes across different higher education pathways. It highlights results for graduates from Private Education Institutions (PEIs)—which include non-public institutions offering full-time external degree programmes, as well as graduates from Autonomous Universities (AUs) and polytechnics. While top-line employability figures are often quoted, the full breakdown tells a more nuanced story.

In 2023/24, only 46.4% of PEI graduates secured full-time permanent roles. Another 5.7% were freelancing, 17.3% were in part-time or temporary work, and 25.2% remained unemployed with most still actively job-seeking. Despite a modest rise in median salary from $3,400 to $3,500, the data suggests tightening employment conditions and slower pathways into conventional roles. Overall employability dropped from 83.2% to 74.8%, and full-time permanent employment declined even more steeply—from 58.7% to 46.4% in just one year.

Comparing with ACG Data (2023–2024)

According to ACG’s data, graduate employability in Singapore improved slightly from 75.5% in 2023 to 80.85% in 2024, surpassing the 74.8% reported for PEI graduates in the SkillsFuture data. However, the composition of that employment tells a deeper story.

ACG’s figures show that just over half of graduates were in full-time roles in both 2023 (52.2%) and 2024 (51.8%), which is quite comparable to the 58.7% full-time permanent employment rate reported for PEI graduates in 2022/2023. While the latest PEI figure (46.4%) has dipped, the overall trend suggests a similar distribution between standard and non-standard job types across both datasets.

Notably, ACG’s 2024 data also points to a sizeable portion of graduates in internships, contract work, or less conventional roles such as freelance (2.8%) and entrepreneurship (7.1%) — reflecting a shift in how graduates are entering the workforce. This aligns with observations from the SkillsFuture report, where non-traditional employment pathways appear to be growing. It’s also worth considering that differences in job type definitions between sources may affect how roles are categorised, adding nuance to any direct comparison.

The contrast suggests ACG graduates, many with international or private degrees, are more likely to find work overall, but often through transitional or flexible roles rather than immediate permanent placements, reinforcing a broader shift in graduate employment expectations and employer behaviour.

Diving deeper into degree types

Source: Table 3, Employment Outcomes by Course Clusters, from the Private Education Institution Graduate Employment Survey 2023/2024. SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG).

Another layer of insight comes from the breakdown of employment outcomes by course cluster, which reveals not all fields offer the same post-graduation prospects. Among PEI graduates, those in Business and Sciences had relatively stronger footing, with more than half securing full-time permanent jobs (50.1% and 51.8%, respectively). In contrast, Arts, Design & Media graduates had a notably lower FTP rate at just 26.7%, despite a 70% overall employment rate.

The highest median salary was reported in Information & Digital Technologies at $4,080, suggesting demand in that sector remains robust. Meanwhile, salary data for fields like Engineering and Arts wasn’t available due to small sample sizes, but the data overall highlights clear disparities across disciplines, both in job stability and pay.

And if we were to compare this with the data from Asia Careers Group:

While ACG data is grouped more broadly by degree type, some parallels can still be drawn with the SkillsFuture PEI dataset. In ACG’s 2024 data, Business graduates recorded the highest employability (84.6%), full-time employment rate (63.5%), and a median salary of $5,092. This is comparable to the PEI data, where Business also showed strong outcomes, albeit with a lower reported median salary of $3,483.

STEM graduates in ACG’s dataset had a full-time employment rate of 44% and a median salary of $4,587, while in the PEI data, the Information & Digital Technologies cluster — used as a proxy for STEM — showed a similar full-time rate (43.4%) but a slightly lower median salary ($4,080).

Graduates in the “Others” category (which includes fields like Law) in ACG data saw 82% employability, 46.2% full-time employment, and a median salary of $3,776, which aligns with the ranges reported in PEI’s Humanities or Sciences clusters (e.g., $3,500 median salary and 39.8% full-time employment for Humanities).

While classification frameworks differ slightly across both datasets, the comparison suggests broadly consistent patterns: with Business degrees generally showing stronger employment and salary outcomes, and other fields may see more variation depending on discipline and market dynamics.

Source: Graduate Starting Salary Tables. Ministry of Manpower, Singapore.

Source: Asia Careers Group

Median Salary Comparison

And as we look at the trend of starting salaries over the years, a clear difference begins to show between ACG data and government figures. ACG graduates have consistently reported higher median starting salaries, which likely reflects the added value of international education. However, those salaries have been on a downward trend from 2013 to 2021, with only slight improvements in 2022 and 2023. In comparison, government-reported salaries have gradually increased, especially after 2021. This suggests that while domestic graduates may start with lower pay, their salary growth has been more stable. The gap between the two trends may be explained by differences in job sectors, hiring timelines, and how quickly graduates transition into permanent roles, particularly in a changing labour market.

Source: Asia Careers Group

Over the past decade, employability trends among Singaporean graduates have undergone a steady shift, especially when viewed through ACG data. In 2013, the employability rate for internationally educated Singaporean graduates was above 91%, reaching a peak of 94.1% in 2014. However, this figure has gradually declined over time, dropping to 75.5% by 2023. This mirrors broader changes in the graduate labour market, where full-time employment also decreased from nearly 80% in 2013 to just over 52% a decade later. The rise in internships, part-time work, and freelance roles now makes up nearly half of graduate outcomes, suggesting that early career pathways have become more diverse and, in many cases, less linear.

This decline does not necessarily reflect weaker graduate quality. Instead, it points to a labour market that is shifting. Employers are increasingly relying on contract-based hiring or internship-to-permanent pathways, while graduates are also exploring flexible or short-term roles, particularly in sectors like technology, media, and design. Compared to national data, which has consistently shown higher overall employment rates (typically above 88%) but also a growing share of temporary or freelance work, ACG’s data highlights how international graduates are navigating a more competitive and cautious hiring environment. Taken together, these trends point to a new employment norm: one that rewards adaptability, values practical experience, and often requires a longer path to reach full-time, stable work.

And to sum this entire data section up,

As graduate employment pathways grow more fragmented and competitive, universities have an increasingly important role to play in helping students navigate the transition from education to work. This requires more than curriculum reform or employability training alone. It also means investing in robust graduate tracking, understanding sector-specific hiring patterns, and using data to inform both academic planning and career services. Collaborations between institutions, government agencies, and labour market researchers can bridge critical information gaps. Organisations like Asia Careers Group offer one example by providing timely, outcome-based insights into graduate trajectories. We help universities identify where support is needed most and tailor interventions that actually reflect the realities of today’s job market. Let’s all do better in supporting graduates as they transition into meaningful, sustainable careers.