News

Aalto University graduates successfully employed

Nationwide career monitoring survey starts on 3rd of October. All 2017 master's graduates and 2019 doctoral graduates will be invited to participate in the survey.
people sitting

Aarresaari, a career services network of Finnish universities, has conducted a survey on how 2016 master's graduates and 2018 doctoral graduates were employed. 40 percent of master’s graduates and doctoral graduates participated in the survey during Fall of 2021.

Master’s graduates felt respected in work life and were happy with their careers

Master’s graduates have employed well after graduations as 90 percent had a full-time job and only two percent were seeking for a job. 79 percent worked in a large or small company. Six percent were employed by a university and five percent worked as entrepreneurs. 95 percent of the respondents felt that their degrees were valued by employers.

90 percent of the respondents were satisfied with their career at that point and 92 percent were satisfied with their degree. 82 percent felt that their studies prepared them well for work life. 93 percent were ready to recommend their degree to others.

"The employment of Aalto graduates describes our effectiveness and the quality of education significantly. Therefore, it is crucial for us to have up-dated information on it." says Petri Suomala, Vice President of Education.

Master’s graduates of Aalto University emphasized the ability to communicate own skills, previous work experience and the subject combination of the degree as the most important factors in finding employment. The respondents identified the ability to learn and absorb new things, problem-solving, thinking analytically and systematically and self-direction as the most important skills needed at work that developed during university studies.

Doctoral graduates advanced to more challenging and meaningful work duties

Compared to master’s graduates, doctoral graduates were employed more outside of private companies. 50 percent of the respondents worked in a large or small company, 34 percent worked in a university, seven percent worked for state and three percent were entrepreneurs. As much as 70 percent of the doctoral graduates worked as experts. 56 percent worked in research, 23 percent in development and planning duties. 82 percent of the respondents felt that their work duties had turned to more challenging with their doctoral degree and 77 percent felt that their degree had given them more meaningful work.

The respondents felt that they could utilize the skills they learned during their doctoral studies in their work and that the difficulty of their work matched their doctoral degree. They listed the ability to learn and adopt new information, problem-solving skills, self-management and taking initiative as the most important abilities in their current job position. The most important skills for work that developed during the doctoral studies were knowledge and skills related to the research area, analytical and systematic thinking skills, and knowledge and skills related to methodology and research methods.

Career monitoring survey is conducted at all universities

The career monitoring survey is a research model that is developed by the Aarresaari network, a career services network of Finnish universities, and used for nationwide career monitoring of people with a higher education (master's or doctoral degree) after graduation. Integration into working life is assessed from the perspective of the employment situation and the quality of employment, as well as the equivalence of work and degrees.

The next career monitoring survey will start on the 3rd of October 2022. All 2017 master's graduates and 2019 doctoral graduates will be invited to participate in the survey. The invitation to the survey will be sent by email, mail or sms. Thank you to all respondents!

Further information on the career monitoring of master's graduates in arts and design and technology:

Riikka Heinonen

Projektipäällikkö

Further information on the career monitoring of master's graduates in business:

Tanja Makkonen

Tanja Makkonen

Senior Manager, Career Services

Further information on the career monitoring of doctoral graduates:

  • Published:
  • Updated:

Read more news

A model walking the catwalk shows off an outfit created by a fashion designer, while audience sits watching the fashion show
Awards and Recognition, Studies, University Published:

Näytös24 was a celebration of creativity and personality

At the annual Aalto University Fashion Show, a total of seven prizes were awarded to fashion students' works. Innovation, high technical skills and sustainability were emphasised in the award criteria.
Noora Hautamäki
Studies Published:

Noora Hautamäki was an exchange student in Mexico and encourages everyone to go on exchange

Noora Hautamäki spent six months on exchange in Monterrey, Mexico. After her exchange, she spent a year as an exchange student advisor at Aalto University and continues to volunteer with the exchange organization through which she did her high school exchange.
SGT24, Participatory outdoor planning as a valuable tool for building trust with local people, Brazil-2024. Source: Karolin Kull
Research & Art, Studies, University Published:

Transforming interdisciplinary education: Sustainable Global Technologies (SGT) across four continents

The true impact of our actions often unfolds over time, as demonstrated by the students at the SGT FAIR’24 on May 22. Their work showcased how a single student challenge can drive significant change.
Student Guide news, illustration
Studies Published:

Call for mentors: Compassion mentoring in peer groups for doctoral students in autumn 2024

We are looking for doctoral students interested in becoming mentors in compassion-themed peer groups.