Fresh IBA graduates get 12% higher pay this year

Fast-moving consumer goods and IT sectors remain the best paymasters.

KARACHI:

Recent graduates of arguably the top business school of Pakistan received on average a starting monthly salary of Rs48,480 in 2013.

Armed with a four-year Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree, the average starting salary of 2013 graduates of Karachi’s Institute of Business Administration (IBA) was 12.2% higher than last year’s figure of Rs43,200, IBA’s employment data shows.

Out of 248 BBA graduates this year, 210 sought employment in the job market while 21 proceeded abroad for higher education. The remaining graduates are self-employed, getting married or taking time off the studies.



Almost 80% of those seeking jobs were already employed by November 26 – the day the survey was conducted – while 43 graduates were still looking for jobs.

“Some of them have received job offers, but they are seeking better opportunities,” IBA Dean and Director Dr Ishrat Husain said while speaking to The Express Tribune. He added many graduates have been employed since the completion of the survey last month.

While the mean salary for IBA’s BBA graduates of 2013 was Rs48,480 a month, the median monthly salary for the same batch was Rs45,000.

Average monthly salary of IBA’s fresh BBA graduates was Rs33,462 in 2010, Rs36,700 in 2011, Rs43,200 in 2012 and Rs48,480 in 2013. This means their starting salaries have increased on average by 13.1% annually since 2010.



Husain said absence of foreign direct investment, a decline in private-sector investment and persistent energy shortages have made the overall business environment highly onerous with job opportunities becoming too limited.

“We are also conscious that we are putting out more than 300 graduates every year into the market since the BBA at IBA was transformed into a terminal degree,” he added.

The fast-moving consumer goods sector (FMCG) absorbed the highest number of BBA graduates this year (25). Other major employers include banking, advertising and media and financial institutions. The FMCG sector along with the IT sector remained the best paymasters this year by paying on average a monthly salary of Rs61,000.

Manufacturing (Rs59,000) and pharmaceutical (Rs54,000) sectors also absorbed IBA graduates at a relatively better monthly remuneration package on average.

Only 21 IBA graduates entered the job market with an MBA degree in 2013. According to Husain, the MBA class of 2013 was smaller than usual because IBA has now enforced two-year compulsory work experience condition.

Average monthly salary of a fresh MBA was Rs61,000, which is 8.1% lower than the last year’s average of Rs66,400.



Husain admitted that IBA’s MBAs are still being inducted into entry-level positions despite their two-year work experience. “But after six to 12 months, they are promoted to mid-level positions that pay much higher than the average starting salary,” he said.

As opposed to the mean salary, the median salary that the 2013 batch of MBA received was Rs72,000 a month, which is 25.2% higher than the median salary of the 2012 batch.

“We are now getting a larger intake in the MBA class compared to the previous years. However, the starting compensation issue is of concern to us,” Husain said.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 23^rd, 2013.

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