More than meets the number

OVER the past two weeks, most of us would have read news reports claiming that 22% of freshgraduates with degrees have been earning between RM1,001 and RM1,500 per month for at least thepast 10 years.
At the same time, we would have heard about Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Economy)Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed saying that graduates should be grateful to have jobs despite the lowerpay.
A local daily recently reported that based on information on graduates’ starting pay obtained from thedatabase of the Higher Education Ministry, the percentage of fresh graduates getting low pay – near theminimum wage of RM1,100 – has grown from 14% to 22% over the past 10 years.
However, the situation on the starting pay for fresh graduates is NOT as gloomy as it has been made tobe. Numbers never lie, but the percentage may give a distorted picture if the denominator or sample isnot clearly explained.
The information is based on data collected from respondents who _lled up the graduate tracer study atthe Higher Education Ministry’s special website