i am in the process of job search in pakistan. i did a bs in computer science from stanford university, california this year and am applying for full time it/cs/management etc jobs in multinational places in karachi right now.
i just got back last month and my first interview was today and the place i interviewed at has asked me to give them a salary figure which they can consider.
i’m not really sure though what salary packages computer science fresh graduates from good american colleges like stanford get in pakistan?
if you know of someone like that or if you have any experience in this matter and have any idea at all about what is the market value and what kind of salary i should expect, i would really appreciate it if you can give me some advice
I know GIKI grads who got first jobs between 20-40K/mo. But they were sort of cream of the crop and a couple have gone to Oxford and CMU for post grad studies.
In your case I guess you should target for something in 30+ range or heigher. This applies to multinationals only, desi orgs are a diff story altogather.
who—me, thanks! that’s what someone else told me too that the absolute minimum shud be the high 30’s…someone just told me abt someone from mit who is getting in 40’s…and then another person from mit is getting in 70’s…all cs…
hmmm
so i dono…
i’m gona try and keep talking and gathering info before i give a figure to those ppl…coz once i’ve given a figure than thats it init!!!
thanks for asking abt the interview…it went great alhamdulillah…unexpectedly..it was kind of unconventional lol…i posted details here… http://www.gupistan.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=128680#post2061061
One two ppl dont matter. I know ppl, from Pakistani Unis, who got 60+ for their first offers. But they are few odd nutcases. I am sure these mit grads were absolute gurus at what they do (they have to be to make that sum in Pakistan). Be realistic, ask around, judge your own capabilities, add 10K for the stanford name :-b and go with that. Something in 40s or even heigher sounds fair as well...but again only with a multinational.
Yer father in the interview eh?...only girls get to do that :-b
i dont think it would have been possible at some top place like citibank or something i think since this was a smallish company they let papa be there plus the guy interviewing was really nice and chillaxed and he was much younger than papa so it might have been rude for him to say no init
bas Allah ne meri madad ker di :D
hmmm....i'm still thinking abt what to say...u r right...i need to ask around more and also not expect to get too high a salary either...i'm acting like a kid who goes to a candy shop and wants all the candy :D
Something to remember. Always overstate how much you want, because they are gonna beat it down no matter what. But dont over do it. Its a basic negotiations tactic. Start outside your zone of possibility. Say you want 50 K. Go for 65 k and then get beaten down. They will start off at something like 40 k and they will move up.
Also another thing, the salary you start off with now will affect your bonuses and future pay scale increase. Btw this 50,000 a year or a month?
Interesting to know that Employers in Pak actually ask the job applicant to come up with a salary figure. Wouldn't it make sense if they offer you an amount and the negotiation (if any) starts from there?.
What if you ask for 100K a month?. Would they get offended?. What if you ask for 10K a month?. Would they say YES and don't offer you what you actually deserve?.
This sounds like buying shalwar qameez at Zainub Market than looking for a job.
funguy yes i was surprised too, i expected them to make some offer atleast but they've left it totally upto me...which is not the norm btw...i guess maybe coz the company was small...
CM thanks for the tip...will do that...
and this is in rupees per month
It should be 50+ mainly because of Stanford but I wonder if there are lot of companies that know much about Stanford excluding multinationals.
Anyways good luck
It depends at what time of the interview stage they ask you question about your salary. If this question is asked right after five minutes of your first interview then don’t be quick to give a number…Employer is not interested at that point and probably is going through formalities. However, if this question is asked at a later stage then its ok to give a figure you have in mind.
Does the fact that you are a foreign graduate mean you get paid good? What do you bring to the table for the employer? Have you got your resume checked by friends/relatives in the same field? I’m saying all this cuz sometimes fresh grads get pressured that they graduated from a foreign school and if they get a 15k job then log kya kahain gay etc. If you like the company and you don’t have any experience then don’t be too stuck up on the salary…20k or 40k...when it comes to rupees ..its all the same. You will get enough job opportunities later in your career to make lotsa money but now is the time to get your foot in the door. Good luck :-)
BoSS thanks for providing a different perspective…i dont know if anybody else realised this but u nailed it…i do feel this pressure to get a large paying job coz everyone seems to think i will…if i dont get something really great i will feel like i am selling myself too short or settling for something less than i what i should and then i’ll feel guilty for not making enough efforts to find a better job etc
or maybe the pressure is self created…i dono…
i also feel that the job i get now is going to become my barometer for all future jobs…
which maybe i shouldnt feel…
i would disagree with u in this tho that 20k or 40k is the same thing in rupees…its not if you are living and earning and spending in pakistan and ur family is settled in pakistan…20k makes a lot of difference to a normal pakistani family…
but i am not making the salary the only or even primary criteria for job selection…
thanks for your reply :k:
Aceones! i have heard different things from different ppl and it seems like some orgs r giving very high salaries…infact i was surprised but some govt orgs in islamabad r giving really good salaries…btw i’m not applying for a purely software development job…i’m looking at something that involves more management side stuff as well…coz i know that i dont want to eventually go into coding as a career…
Boss is right. At this point in time, you should be looking at organizations with good resume value (in terms of work environment, variety and nature of assignments etc.) rather than focusing on what exactly is it that you are going to get out of it in terms of monetary compensation.
I think if you are offered 25k+ it should be a decent enough beginning (yes i know you are from Stanford :~). You may actually be surprised how many MBA applications (with good experience too) i have seen who are looking for jobs here.
An MIT+Harvard graduate i know is out looking for a job in Investment Banking with a JP Morgan experience base. Think about it and this is not just a solitary example that i am quoting. We pass through similar resumes with a big wow! factor attached on a daily basis.
If the assignments are challenging providing a steeper learning curve and your work environment is good, believe me you would not really give a lot of thought to what you are actually getting in terms of pay-unless you have dependents which i am assuming you do not :~)
I agree with CM in that you should ask for atleast 10K more than what you expect. They will almost always bring it down. Nothing to feel guilty about. Even when I had zero work experience I negotiated my salary, and I highly recommend it.
Irem, have you applied at a teching post at the top universities of Pakistani.e. GIKI, LUMS, NUST?? I know NUST gives their professors about Rs. 60,000 starting, and some of them, based on seniority earned more ofcourse. LUMS probably offers more, and they would appreciate your degree more, and in your case you will end up with more money there.
btw, you know why I am forcing you to become a teacher right? :)
delve into technical manuals all the time n get suck in stupid type mismatches 