Universum’s World’s Most Attractive Employers rankings show students entering the workforce are doubling down on financial security and innovation; “high future earnings” is the number one priority when weighing a potential employer (and a bigger priority than in 2019), followed closely by “innovation” for engineering and IT students (chosen by 46%). For all students surveyed, Google, Apple and Microsoft were the top three employer brands.
“This year we witnessed interesting shifts in industry preferences among students across the globe,” explains Richard Mosley, chief strategist at Universum. “Careers in professional services, banking and strategic consulting all dropped in prestige, while careers in IT, automotive and even manufacturing rose significantly. What we are witnessing is a strong desire among students to work for industries which are more associated with tech innovation which are shaping the future.”
Universum, which specializes in employer branding, surveyed over 235,273 students in business, engineering and IT from the 12 largest economies between September 2019 to April 2020. The survey asked students which employer characteristics are most influential as they consider future employment, and which employer brands they most admire.
