Jokinen, Minna
Individual datasets contain those datasets that do not belong to any series.
The survey series charts the employment situation of polytechnic and university graduates of various disciplines after graduation. In this survey, the respondents were Bachelors of Business Administration graduated from polytechnics. The main themes included studies, current employment situation and estimates of future employment prospects.
First, the respondents were asked to give basic information about their degree, including the year when they began to study, their polytechnic, degree programme and the number of credits. The respondents' basic and vocational education was queried, as well as their work experience before beginning studies. In addition, their practical training, working and other connections to the labour market during the studies were canvassed. The respondents estimated their language skills and the extent to which various skills and abilities they had acquired during their studies (e.g. independent initiative, computer skills, research and development skills, ability to think theoretically) and different characteristics of polytechnic studies (e.g. practical training included in the studies, interdisciplinary nature of studies) support their transition to and succeeding in working life.
Next, the respondents' current employment situation was surveyed. Their economic activity was also examined, and those who were employed at the time of the survey were asked about their employer, industry of employment, job title, gross income, status in their workplace, number of employees in their workplace, and the estimated stability of their job. They were also presented with a set of attitudinal statements on their work. Those who were studying were asked what they studied. In addition, the respondents estimated what their employment situation, status and gross income will be after five years. They also estimated their future employment opportunities in various geographical regions, their future status in the labour market compared with other applicants holding other degrees, and the probability with which they will be involved in entrepreneurship in the future. Finally, the respondents were presented with a set of statements on career and life, such as "I want my job to be challenging" and "My objective is to find a stable job".
Background variables included the respondent's gender, year of birth, marital status, number of children aged under 18, and municipality of residence at the age of 15 and at present.
The survey was conducted in all but one Finnish polytechnics producing Bachelors of Business Administration between 1996 and 1997. The 14 polytechnics that participated in the survey are representative of the whole country. The respondents' personal information was retrieved from the polytechnics' student registers and their addresses from the Population Register Centre in November 2007. The addresses of 1,443 Bachelors of Business Administration were found. After two follow-up mailings, altogether 869 Bachelors of Business Administration responded.