The latest yearly survey by global thought leader Universum on the ideal employers for students and young professionals has revealed changes in the goals and aspirations of young people as they increasingly seek stability and innovation, leaving the mining sector out in the cold.

The Ideal Employer Rankings, which named KPMG the ideal employer for business students across South Africa, surveyed 33 285 students from 23 accredited universities, as well as 10 830 young professionals from July to October 2013.

“As job security and stability become more important to students, they are choosing companies and industries that are considered stable,” explained Universum MD for Africa Roger Manfredsson.

And the mining sector was “losing out” on the back of prolonged labour unrest.

The majority of mining companies decreased in attractiveness for engineering students in the 2013 Ideal Employer Rankings on the back of labour unrest on the mines and extensive job cuts occurring in the sector, Universum South Africa research manager Jenali Skuse pointed out.

“Students are well aware of what is going on in the mining industry and the uncertainty of such great unrest in a traditionally stable and popular industry has resulted in mining companies decreasing greatly in attractiveness,” she added.

Mining, traditionally a popular industry for science professionals, had also taken a knock in the science rankings.

Skuse noted that science students had taken to government departments and State-owned enterprises, with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research securing the top spot.

Fast-moving consumer goods and information technology companies were increasingly becoming more attractive for students and professionals, with Coca-Cola, South African Breweries and Unilever claiming top-ten rankings for business students, while technology giants Microsoft and Google, maintained their popularity among engineering students.

“For health sciences students, ethical standards are incredibly important and emerge as the most popular attribute of employer attractiveness, whereas professional training and development is the most important attribute of employer attractiveness to students in the other areas of study,” Skuse said.

Meanwhile, State agencies Legal Aid and the National Prosecuting Authority were “proving to be veritable competitors”, claiming positions two and five respectively, among the top picks by law students.

“Students in South Africa have historically shown a preference for government agencies and law students are no different. Perceived as offering a good deal of security and also great training and development, the legal agencies of government are extremely popular with students,” Skuse said.

For students studying humanities in South Africa, government departments are extremely popular, with six out of the top ten employers in South Africa for humanities students being either government or State-owned enterprises.