Spotlight for Recruiting Professionals
In terms of the benefits they prefer, Class of 2016 bachelor’s degree graduates took a longer view of the financial aspects of their professional careers than did previous classes, according to results of NACE’s Class of 2016 Student Survey.
The benefits of most importance to job-seeking students from the Class of 2016 were a company-matched 401(k) retirement program, guaranteed annual salary increases, and two key types of health insurance—dental and medical. (See Figure 1.)
This represents a pronounced shift from even just last year when Class of 2015 graduates most valued more than two weeks of vacation in the first year of employment and tuition reimbursement for advanced education, which were also the most highly sought benefits among college graduates in the years following the recession.
NACE’s Class of 2016 Student Survey was conducted February 16 – April 30, 2016; more than 23,000 students at colleges and universities nationwide took part, including 5,600 graduating seniors. The survey report will be available in September.
Figure 1: Employee benefits preferences
| |
Extremely
important |
Very
important |
Somewhat
important |
Not very important |
Not at all important |
| % of respondents |
| Company-matched 401(k) retirement program |
28.0% |
34.5% |
27.1% |
6.5% |
3.9% |
| Dental insurance |
24.8% |
34.7% |
28.2% |
8.7% |
3.6% |
| 100% employer-paid medical insurance |
23.7% |
29.5% |
32.7% |
10.1% |
3.9% |
| Guaranteed annual salary increases |
20.8% |
30.7% |
34.3% |
10.7% |
3.5% |
| Tuition reimbursement for advanced education |
24.1% |
27.8% |
29.7% |
12.4% |
6.0% |
| Life insurance |
21.1% |
29.0% |
30.5% |
13.4% |
5.9% |
| Family-related benefits |
21.7% |
28.6% |
28.2% |
12.6% |
8.9% |
| Bonus/commission plan |
13.7% |
24.0% |
35.6% |
18.2% |
8.5% |
| 2+ weeks of vacation in the first year of work |
13.7% |
21.4% |
35.3% |
22.1% |
7.6% |
| Flextime policy |
10.3% |
23.0% |
39.3% |
18.2% |
9.1% |
| Frequent performance reviews |
8.5% |
22.4% |
40.1% |
21.1% |
7.8% |
| Employee assistance (counseling) program |
7.8% |
14.7% |
32.7% |
29.4% |
15.5% |
| Casual dress policy |
7.0% |
15.2% |
32.5% |
30.0% |
15.3% |
| Telecommuting option |
6.7% |
12.1% |
30.4% |
28.4% |
22.4% |
| On-site fitness center |
6.5% |
11.9% |
28.4% |
29.8% |
23.4% |
| On-site day care facilities |
4.5% |
7.3% |
18.5% |
26.8% |
42.9% |
Source: Class of 2016 Student Survey, National Association of Colleges and Employers