Advice on pay package for fresh graduate

[kevinkschui]

Does anyone know a suitable starting pay of a fresh grad with either finance or accountacy degree? Cos need to guage e amount to pay the newbies.

[pi-chan]

i was told 1.2-1.4k for a BA degree

[kevinkschui]

Is it so low? I know big 4 paying ard 2.4k for an accountancy grad but obviously the workload is hell la....
Anyone can provide more info and details?

[pi-chan]

thats what i was told bigger oder well known firm might pay more 1.6 -1.8 but they said i will never make it over 1.8 even not in big 4 oder big banks

[admin0]

thats what i was told bigger oder well known firm might pay more 1.6 -1.8 but they said i will never make it over 1.8 even not in big 4 oder big banks

1.6-1.8 --> does it mean 1600 - 1800 SGD as month ?

[pi-chan]

yes

[sundaymorningstaple]

What do you expect when we can hire degreed accountants with 10 years experience in full sets from our neighbours for 1200~1400/mo. And they don't job hop quite as badly as locals, although the past couple of years it would seem it is catching on thanks to the lax practices of MOM in trying up up the fertility rate by giving almost anybody PR anymore.

[perrygss]

i was told 1.2-1.4k for a BA degree

That is too low for a BA degree!!

[sundaymorningstaple]

Would depend where the BA is from wouldn't it.

[pi-chan]

its a German Degree (tax and audit, with compulsory optional subject Finance)

[madura]

its a German Degree (tax and audit, with compulsory optional subject Finance)

Fresh grads with a German degree are rare here so I'm uncertain about the market rate for them.

The local universities do publish their graduates average salary on their websites. Otherwise, you might use this as a gauge:
http://www.jobsfactory.com/edm/070911EO ... xtract.pdf

imho, you should be suspicious of any finance/accountancy degree grad who would say yes to less than $2k a month. It just shows that they are not smart enough to know what the market rate is (and are you sure you want to employ someone who isn't able to figure that out?)

[sundaymorningstaple]

madura,

I'm assuming here that you are local (I'm also assuming you are a recruiter as well). If you were from some of our Asian neighbouring countries, you might be surprised what you would work for and how much that amount would translates to in the home country. Accountants in Singapore are highly overrated and easily replaced with Asean replacements (the only potential problem is language - if your require a good command of English that is).

If a person want to do an economic migration, they may well have to find a way to jump the queue in order to make the first step. Therefore, taking a substantial drop in Salary in order to get their foot in the door here is a established practice. As an HR Manager I make a habit of using this practice to keep my Cost Centers as lost as possible therefore positively adding to my bottom line. Now, while they are working, they have a Paid Visa, can legally rent, and can jobshop as long as they want until they find something suitable without worrying about their 30 day visa expiring. It would seem that you are the one that may require a reality check.

Pi-chan, you missed my drift (roundabout question) about the degree. But obviously English is not your first language correct? To re-phrase it more bluntly, where are you from? (okay, had to edit this as I remember you post in another thread as well) German, with German, English & some French.

Without experience you are going to have a bit of a problem unless you are prepared to do like the regionals do. Why should they pay a western expat a larger sum of money especially seeing that they have neither experience of any kind nor local/regional experience and even a possible language handicap (most companies requiring at least bi-lingual capability with fluency preferably in English & Mandarin). I don't think your odds are in your favour to tell the truth.

[pi-chan]

I see your point(would do so as an recruiter as well ), but that wont help me finding a job. i would work for local salary - no problem, but i cant reach an S-Pass level and for lower than 1.8 i cant be employed - so i have to wait until we become PR - if we become so ... (if become a pr will be so easy than finding a job with my "qualification" than i wont work here the next 3 years and we wont become PR)
Before moving we were looking for jobs, were talking to people and nearly everybody (even HR people) said i should found sth for a salary between 1.8 - 2.5
If we had stayed in Germany i would have had the same problems finding a job, because of the fact that i am a married women. My friend are payed 35- 40000 EUR a year.
My job offers started at 25 EUR a year ( so much i would have earned directly after my bank apprenticeship). Most job interviews had been very bad, so a HR guy from a well known german company asked me what i will do with my 2 kids during work. I told him, that we dont have children and they are not planned the next years. Than his answer was, why are you married if you are not having children, only for fun, or what?
And why i want to work if i can stay at home and shop (because my husband would earn enough in his job, or if money is not enough i should buy less)
that was the worst one but all other in Germany were very similiar.
And if i wont find an employment in the next time, my gap in my cv will be too long, so no job here and never a job in Germany - because i stayed at home for 3 years, after 3 years i would have to study tax and audit again, because it is changing a lot.

[ksl]

I see your point(would do so as an recruiter as well ), but that wont help me finding a job. i would work for local salary - no problem, but i cant reach an S-Pass level and for lower than 1.8 i cant be employed - so i have to wait until we become PR - if we become so ... (if become a pr will be so easy than finding a job with my "qualification" than i wont work here the next 3 years and we wont become PR)
Before moving we were looking for jobs, were talking to people and nearly everybody (even HR people) said i should found sth for a salary between 1.8 - 2.5
If we had stayed in Germany i would have had the same problems finding a job, because of the fact that i am a married women. My friend are payed 35- 40000 EUR a year.
My job offers started at 25 EUR a year ( so much i would have earned directly after my bank apprenticeship). Most job interviews had been very bad, so a HR guy from a well known german company asked me what i will do with my 2 kids during work. I told him, that we dont have children and they are not planned the next years. Than his answer was, why are you married if you are not having children, only for fun, or what?
And why i want to work if i can stay at home and shop (because my husband would earn enough in his job, or if money is not enough i should buy less)
that was the worst one but all other in Germany were very similiar.
And if i wont find an employment in the next time, my gap in my cv will be too long, so no job here and never a job in Germany - because i stayed at home for 3 years, after 3 years i would have to study tax and audit again, because it is changing a lot.

Well just to make you feel a little better, I can say, that i did find out, that a Company in Bedok have actually hired an accountant, with experience and no degree, on a part time basis, and is paid over 1000$ a month, and she has been employed for over 2 years now, she is a pr although from mainland China.

So I wouldn't give up hope altogether....

[sundaymorningstaple]

As a PR one can work as little or as much as one desires, especially if not the "primary" breadwinner in a household.

Pi-chan does have a valid point regarding too much time gap in her CV (without children that is). I think the bad interview she had really sucks and the HR interviewer should be shot! Unfortunately, here, most local HR types are like that. If you are a female they want to know if you are going to get pregnant, whether or not they are on contraceptives, and all other type of BS. Primarily due to the company having to pay up to 3 months worth of Maternity Benefits! One more thing RE: keeping the cost centre costs down.