A survey carried out by Chinese recruitment agency 51job.com showed that the finance industry offers the highest starting salaries for new college and university graduates in China, Sina English reported.
The recruitment website surveyed 2,318 respondents, including more than 600 new graduates this year, and sent questionnaires to employees of 263 companies with more than 2,000 workers.
Figures showed that employers in the financial sector are willing to offer monthly starting salaries of more than 10,000 yuan ($1,600) to both bachelor and master's degree holders.
The salary offer is higher for finance graduates with master's degrees who work in the research and development field. Their pay could reach 17,000 yuan ($2,738) per month, CRIENGLISH.com said.
Overall, majority of companies are willing to give 10 percent higher starting pay to new graduates this year compared with last year.
Data from 2013 to 2015 revealed that majority of large businesses in China offer starting salaries of 5,000 yuan or more. Some sales jobs offer lower salaries, but employees could get additional commissions depending on their performance.
In the real estate and engineering sectors, the starting salary ranges from 8,000 yuan ($1,289) to 10,000 yuan ($1,611). Fresh graduates interested in planning and management jobs, on the other hand, can expect monthly starting salaries of around 5,000 yuan ($805).
But even those with monthly pay of more than 10,000 yuan, companies still need to spend significant time and effort in training fresh college graduates, said Feng Lijuan, the chief human resources expert at 51job.com. This makes retaining employees a big challenge for companies, she said.
To keep their workers, Feng urged employers to create an interesting, innovative and flexible workplace environment, and provide development opportunities.