april 2016 job outlook 2016 - old dominion university · college hiring college hiring to increase...

APRIL 2016

Free to NACE members

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES AND EMPLOYERS62 Highland Avenue Bethlehem, PA 18017-9085 • 610.868.1421 • www.naceweb.org

JOB OUTLOOK

2016 SPRING UPDATE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

About the Survey ...................................................................................................................................3

College Hiring to Increase 5.2 Percent ...............................................................................................4 Figure 1: Job Outlook hiring projections, 2011 – 2016 Figure 2: Hiring plans Figure 3: Job postings and applications down

Degrees and Majors in Demand .........................................................................................................6 Figure 4: Hiring expectations by degree level for 2016 Figure 5: Actual hiring by degree level for 2015 Figure 6: Hiring expectations by major

Career Readiness Competencies ........................................................................................................8 Figure 7: Employers rate career readiness competencies in terms of essential need (2016 vs. 2015)

Spring 2016 Recruiting Plans ............................................................................................................10 Figure 8: Spring 2016 recruiting

Fall 2016 Recruiting for the Class of 2017 .....................................................................................11 Figure 9: Expectations for fall 2016 compared with expectations for fall 2015 and 2014

Appendix ...............................................................................................................................................12 Figure 10: Respondents by type of organization Figure 11: Respondents by size of company Figure 12: Respondents by industry Survey Respondents

©2016 National Association of Colleges and Employers. All rights reserved.

2 | Job Outlook 2016 Spring Update | National Association of Colleges and Employers

National Association of Colleges and Employers | Job Outlook 2016 Spring Update | 3

ABOUT THE SURVEY

ABOUT THE SURVEY

The Job Outlook 2016 Spring Update survey was conducted from February 10 – March 22, 2016; the survey was sent to 944 NACE employer members; 144, or 15.3 percent, responded. The survey updates hiring projections for the Class of 2016; those projections were collected from NACE employer members from August 5 – September 13, 2015, and reported in the Job Outlook 2016 report, published in November 2015.

By region, 22.9 percent of respondents are from the Northeast, 27.8 percent are from the Southeast, 33.3 percent are from the Midwest, and 16.0 percent are from the West. For additional information about the respondents, see the Appendix.

Data are calculated based on the number of respondents to each specific question. Totals may not equal 100 percent due to rounding.

RESEARCH TEAM:Director of Research, Public Policy, and Legislative Affairs: Edwin W. KocResearch Manager: Andrea J. KonczResearch Associate: Kenneth C. TsangResearch Associate: Louisa EismannResearch Assistant: Anna Longenberger

COLLEGE HIRING

COLLEGE HIRING TO INCREASE 5.2 PERCENT

Employers expect to hire 5.2 percent more new graduates from the Class of 2016 than they hired from the Class of 2015.

While hiring activity for the college Class of 2016 is positive, the current hiring projections are down from the 11 percent increase employers originally reported through the Job Outlook 2016 survey, results of which were published in November 2015. (See Figure 1.)

0

FALL SPRING UPDATE

2011 2012 2013 2014 20162015

5

15

10

20

Figure 1 JOB OUTLOOK HIRING PROJECTIONS, 2011 – 2016*

* Please note: Classes of 2014, 2015, and 2016 projections are for U.S. locations only. Prior years’ projections are shown for informational purposes only, and should not be compared to projections for 2014, 2015, and 2016.

13.5%

19.3%

9.5% 10.2%

13.0%

2.1%

7.8% 8.6% 8.3%9.6%

11.0%

5.2%



COLLEGE HIRING

Much of the change can be attributed to a larger portion of employers reporting plans to trim hiring. Just 13.2 percent of respondents originally reported plans to hire fewer 2016 graduates than they did 2015 graduates; currently, more than one-third say that is the case. (See Figure 2.)

Figure 2 HIRING PLANS

Job OutlookPercent

Increasing HiresPercent

Maintaining HiresPercent

Decreasing HiresTotal Number of

Respondents

Spring Update 2016 40.9% 22.0% 37.1% 132

Job Outlook 2016 (Fall 2015) 40.1% 46.7% 13.2% 201

Spring Update 2015 55.9% 11.8% 32.2% 152

Figure 3 JOB POSTINGS AND APPLICATIONS DOWN

Recruiting YearAverage Number of

Job PostingsAverage Number of

Applications per Posting

2015-16 67 22.7

2014-15 148 23.4

2013-14 99 28.4

2012-13 106 18.4

2011-12 116 32.6

2010-11 105 21.1

Additionally, the average number of job postings for the 2015-16 recruiting year is down compared to the 2014-15 year, while the average number of applications per posting remains fairly consistent between the years. (See Figure 3.)

DEGREES AND MAJORS

DEGREES AND MAJORS IN DEMAND

Among those reporting plans to hire, all say they are seeking bachelor’s degrees graduates, three-fifths are looking for master’s degree graduates, and nearly one-half have positions for M.B.A. graduates. That breakdown is fairly consistent with the degrees these respondents hired from the Class of 2015. (See Figures 4 and 5.)

Figure 4 HIRING EXPECTATIONS BY DEGREE LEVEL FOR 2016

Degree LevelAverage Percent of New College Hires

Number of Respondents Hiring

Percent of Total Respondents Hiring

Associate 12.3% 16 14.8%

Bachelor’s 81.2% 108 100.0%

M.B.A. 13.2% 53 49.1%

Master’s (Other than M.B.A.) 14.1% 65 60.2%

Ph.D. 13.1% 17 15.7%

Figure 5 ACTUAL HIRING BY DEGREE LEVEL FOR 2015

Degree LevelAverage Percent of New College Hires

Number of Respondents Hiring

Percent of Total Respondents Hiring

Associate 9.0% 14 14.4%

Bachelor’s 83.4% 97 100.0%

M.B.A. 11.1% 51 52.6%

Master’s (Other than M.B.A.) 14.3% 55 56.7%

Ph.D. 6.5% 20 20.6%



DEGREES AND MAJORS

Given the mix of employers holding NACE membership, it is not surprising that respondents expressed most interest in hiring engineering, business, computer science, and accounting majors. (See Figure 6.)

Figure 6 HIRING EXPECTATIONS BY MAJOR

Academic Discipline

Number of Respondents Hiring Discipline

Percent of Total Respondents Hiring Discipline

Average Percent of Total New Recruits Within

Discipline

Engineering 83 66.9% 47.2%

Business 79 63.7% 33.5%

Computer Sciences 64 51.6% 24.6%

Accounting 64 51.6% 16.7%

Economics 34 27.4% 9.3%

Physical Sciences 30 24.2% 9.8%

Communications 30 24.2% 7.4%

Misc. Majors 23 18.5% 16.8%

Social Sciences 20 16.1% 5.9%

Humanities 18 14.5% 5.6%

Education* 8 6.5% 72.9%

Agriculture 7 5.6% 8.9%

Health Sciences 6 4.8% 16.7%

* Of the eight respondents who are hiring education degrees, six recruit education majors exclusively, and education majors will comprise 100 percent of their total new recruits.

CAREER READINESS

CAREER READINESS COMPETENCIES

NACE’s seven career readiness competencies represent those skills, experiences, and attributes that broadly prepare students for a successful transition into the work force. (See page 9 for the competencies and their definitions.) Employers of new college graduates seek such competencies in their new hires as these enable new hires to use the knowledge they have acquired through their course of study effectively in the workplace. To gauge the relative importance of each of the seven competencies to hiring organizations, NACE asked employers to rate them in terms of “essential need.”

As Figure 7 illustrates, four of the competencies—critical thinking/problem solving, professionalism/work ethic, teamwork, and communications skills—rise to the top. These results are consistent with those posted a year ago, indicating that these competencies are virtual “must haves.”

Figure 7 EMPLOYERS RATE CAREER READINESS COMPETENCIES IN TERMS OF ESSENTIAL NEED (2016 VS. 2015)

Competency

Essential Need Rating

2016 2015

Critical Thinking/Problem Solving 4.7 4.7

Professionalism/Work Ethic 4.7 4.5

Teamwork 4.6 4.6

Oral/Written Communications 4.4 4.4

Information Technology Application 3.9 3.9

Leadership 3.9 3.9

Career Management 3.6 3.6

*Weighted average. Based on a 5-point scale where 1=Not essential, 2=Not very essential; 3=Somewhat essential; 4=Essential; 5=Absolutely essential

In October 2015, NACE released its definition of and competencies associated with career readiness.

(See www.naceweb.org/knowledge/career-readiness-competencies.aspx.) The competencies are based, in large part, on information employers

provided through the annual Job Outlook survey over more than a decade.



CAREER READINESS

NACE Career Readiness Competency* Definition

Critical Thinking/Problem SolvingExercise sound reasoning and analytical thinking; obtain, interpret, and use knowledge, facts, and data to analyze situations, make decisions, and solve workplace problems; and demonstrate originality and inventiveness in work.

Oral/Written Communications

Articulate thoughts, ideas clearly and effectively with persons inside and outside of organization; demonstrate public speaking skills; and communicate new ideas to others; write/edit memos, letters, and complex technical reports clearly and effectively.

Teamwork/Collaboration

Build collaborative relationships with colleagues and customers representing diverse cultures, races, ages, genders, religions, lifestyles, and viewpoints; be able to work within team structure; and be able to negotiate and manage conflicts.

Information Technology Application Select and use appropriate technology to accomplish a given task and apply computing skills to problem solving.

Leadership

Leverage the strengths of others to achieve common goals; use interpersonal skills to coach and develop others; demonstrate ability to assess and manage one’s own emotions and those of others, using empathetic skills to guide and motivate; and prioritize and delegate work.

Professionalism/Work Ethic

Demonstrate personal accountability, effective work habits, e.g. punctuality, working productively with others, and workload management, and understand impact of non-verbal communication on professional work image; demonstrate integrity and ethical behavior; act responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind; and be able to learn from one’s mistakes.

Career Management

Identify and articulate one’s skills, strengths, knowledge, and experience relevant to position desired and career goals; identify areas necessary for professional growth; be able to navigate and explore job options and how to take the steps necessary for pursuing opportunities; and understand how to self-advocate for opportunities in the workplace.

*See www.naceweb.org/knowledge/career-readiness-competencies.aspx.

SPRING RECRUITING

SPRING 2016 RECRUITING PLANS

Although the overall increase in college hiring is smaller than was originally predicted, most respondents expect to recruit this spring.

Almost 86 percent of respondents have plans to be on campus to hire interns/co-ops and/or full-time hires. (See Figure 8.) As this and other results shown in Figure 8 suggest, current respondents seem to have been more cautious about their overall hiring than were their counterparts last year, as they were somewhat more likely to leave a portion of their hiring to the spring (86 percent in 2016 versus 80 percent in 2015).

Figure 8 SPRING 2016 RECRUITING Number of 2016

RespondentsPercent of 2016

RespondentsNumber of 2015


Respondents

Full-time, Only 12 9.6% 12 7.5%

Intern, Only 14 11.2% 25 15.6%

Both Intern & Full-time 81 64.8% 91 56.9%

On-campus Presence – Not Hiring 7 5.6% 13 8.1%

No Presence – Hired During Fall 10 8.0% 18 11.3%

Not Hiring This Year 1 0.8% 1 0.6%

Total 125 100.0% 160 100.0%



FALL RECRUITING

FALL 2016 RECRUITING FOR THE CLASS OF 2017

What is ahead for the Class of 2017?

Many employers “front load” their recruiting, concentrating much of their recruiting in the fall to secure hires who will graduate later in the year (typically December and May). Asked to project their fall 2016 recruiting plans, responding employers appear to be proceeding with caution.

Nearly half expect to hire the same number of Class of 2017 graduates in fall 2016 as they did in fall 2015, while less than one-third think they will hire more. In contrast, employers reporting their plans for fall 2015 and in fall 2014 reported more aggressive hiring plans. (See Figure 9.)

Figure 9 EXPECTATIONS FOR FALL 2016 COMPARED WITH EXPECTATIONS FOR FALL 2015 AND 2014 Number of 2016


RespondentsNumber of 2015


Respondents

Hire More 37 29.6% 35.8% 42.9%

Hire Fewer 9 7.2% 8.6% 3.2%

Hire Same 60 48.0% 37.0% 37.0%

Unsure 19 15.2% 18.5% 16.9%

Total 125 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%

Later this summer, NACE will collect data from employers on their initial hiring plans for the upcoming Class of 2017. Those hiring projections will be reported in late fall 2016.


APPENDIX

APPENDIX

Figure 10 RESPONDENTS BY TYPE OF ORGANIZATION

Organization TypePercent of

Respondents

For Profit, Publicly Held 50.8%

For Profit, Private 44.4%

Nonprofit 4.0%

Government Agency 0.8%

1–50

51–100

101–250

251–500

501–1,000

1,001–5,000

5,001–10,000

More than 10,000

Figure 11 RESPONDENTS BY SIZE OF COMPANY

Number ofEmployees

43.1%

15.4%

24.6%

5.4%

4.6%

3.8%2.3%0.8%


APPENDIX

Figure 12 RESPONDENTS BY INDUSTRY

IndustryNumber of

RespondentsPercent of

Respondents

Oil & Gas Extraction 4 2.8%

Utilities 6 4.2%

Construction 7 4.9%

Food & Beverage Manufacturing 4 2.8%

Chemical (Pharmaceutical) Manufacturing 11 7.6%

Computer & Electronics Manufacturing 7 4.9%

Motor Vehicle Manufacturing 7 4.9%

Misc. Manufacturing 19 13.2%

Wholesale Trade 3 2.1%

Retail Trade 8 5.6%

Transportation 5 3.5%

Information 3 2.1%

Finance, Insurance, & Real Estate 20 13.9%

Accounting Services 4 2.8%

Engineering Services 6 4.2%

Management Consulting 5 3.5%

Misc. Prof. Services 11 7.6%

Social Services 9 6.3%

Recreation & Hospitality 1 0.7%

Misc. Support Services 3 2.1%

Government 1 0.7%

Total 144 100.0%

SURVEY RESPONDENTS

SURVEY RESPONDENTS

The following organizations took part in the NACE Job Outlook 2016 Spring Update survey. (Note: Although 144 organizations responded, the list below includes 98, as 46 organizations preferred not to be listed.)

ABB Inc.

AeroVironment

Air Products & Chemicals Inc.

Alcatel-Lucent

ALCOA Inc.

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc.

ARAMARK

Ascend Performance Materials

Asurion Corporation

Baker Tilly Virchow Krause

Brady Corp.

Briggs & Stratton Corporation

Burlington Stores

Burns & McDonnell Engineering Co. Inc.

California State Auditor

Cambridge Associates LLC

Cardinal Health

Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD

Caterpillar Inc.

CGI Federal

ConAgra Foods, Inc.

ConocoPhillips Company

Dick’s Sporting Goods

Discover Financial Services

Doeren Mayhew

Duff & Phelps LLC

Duke Energy Corporation

E. & J. Gallo Winery

Ecolab Inc.

Edward Jones

Elizabeth City Pasquotank Public Schools

Emerson Climate Technologies

ENERCON Services, Inc.

Entergy Services, Inc.

Equinix

Excella Consulting

ExxonMobil Corporation

FirstBank Holding Co.

Fluor Corporation - Global Recruiting

Govig & Associates, INC - GovigU

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company

GROWMARK, Inc.

HNTB Companies

Imagine Leadership Academy

Infineum USA L.P.

International SOS Assistance Inc.

Intuit Inc.

Johnson & Johnson

kCura

Kearney & Company

Kiewit Energy Group

KPMG LLP

Lake Shore Cryotronics, Inc.

LB White Co.

Liberty Mutual Insurance Company

Macy’s, Inc.

Mars, Incorporated

MAVERICK Technologies

Medical Mutual of Ohio

Meijer, Inc.

MetroStar Systems

Modern Woodmen of America

Olin Chlor Alkali Products

Orange County Schools

Owens Corning

Pacific Gas and Electric Company

Parsons Corporation

Performance Assessment Network (PAN)

Polaris Industries, Inc.

Principal Financial Group

Protiviti Inc.

PVH

Questar Corporation

Rockwell Collins

Rosetta

Roux Associates, Inc.

Rural Sourcing Inc.

SapientNitro

Seagate Technology

Sears Holdings Corporation

Selden Fox LTD

Shaw Industries, Inc.

South Jersey Industries

Southern California Edison

Spectra Energy Corp.

SRC, Inc.

SUN Automation Inc.

Teradata Corporation

The Lane Construction Corporation

The Nielsen Company

The Northern Trust Company

The Vanguard Group

TIBCO Software Inc.

Toys “R” Us, Inc.

Turner Construction Company

Union Pacific Railroad Company

UnitedHealth Group

Walgreens


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610.868.1421 | www.naceweb.org

april 2016 job outlook 2016 - old dominion university · college hiring college hiring to increase...

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