A Third of Grads In The Class Of 2018 Will Earn More Than $50,000 To Start

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CHICAGO and ATLANTA (CBS13) - 80% of employers plan to hire graduates from the Class of 2018, according to a new CareerBuilder survey, up from 74% who planned to hire graduates from the Class of 2017. In 2008 only 58% planned to hire new graduates.

As for those employers hiring- 47% will offer recent grads a higher salary than they did last year, with a third paying graduates more than $50,000 a year.

As for asking for more money? 74% of employers say they would be willing to negotiate starting salaries with graduates.

Starting Salaries:

21%- under $30,000
23%- $30,000-$39,999
22%- $40,000-$49,999
33%- $50,000 and higher

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Careers:

31%- Information Technology
26%- Customer Service
20%- Business Development
18%- Sales
18%- Finance/Accounting
15%- Human Resources
14%- Production
10%- Marketing/Public Relations
9%- Clinical
5%- Legal

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Majors Most In Demand:

35%- Business
22%- Engineering
18%- Computer/IT
13%- Engineering Technologies
11%- Communication Technologies
11%- Health professions/Clinical Studies
9%- Math & Statistics
7%- Science Technologies

When it comes to applying for and interviewing for a position- hiring managers say recent college graduates make some critical errors.

37%- Didn't send thank you note
35%- Didn't know anything about the company
31%- Didn't submit cover letter
29%- Didn't ask questions during interview
26%- Didn't have professional references
26%- Poor grammar on resume
21%- Had unprofessional pictures on social media
19%- Checked phone during interview

The Harris Poll conducted the survey with 1,012 hiring/human resources managers between April 4 and May 1.

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