Sheryar Shah Predicts Major Decline in Hong Kong Graduate Entry-Level Jobs by 2028
Sheryar Shah, Head of AI Growth at sher.hk, highlights a 55% year-on-year drop in Hong Kong graduate entry-level vacancies — the lowest in five years — as companies adopt AI for routine junior tasks.
Hong Kong S.A.R., 9th Mar 2026 – Sheryar Shah, Head of AI Growth at sher.hk, has drawn attention to a notable trend in Hong Kong’s graduate employment market: full-time entry-level graduate vacancies have fallen by approximately 55% year-on-year — reaching the lowest level recorded in five years — as companies increasingly adopt generative AI and automation tools for routine junior tasks.
“The entry-level pathway that Hong Kong graduates have traditionally relied on is undergoing visible change,” Shah noted. “We are seeing a clear 55% reduction in advertised graduate positions through the public university portals, and AI is already handling many of the basic starter tasks that used to be managed by new hires. Current trends suggest this shift will continue in the coming years.”
Current data indicates ongoing change in the market
Hong Kong’s graduate recruitment environment is showing clear movement:
- Full-time graduate vacancies through the eight public universities declined approximately 55% year-on-year in the most recent reporting period — the lowest figure in five years.
- Generative AI is now commonly used for functions previously assigned to new graduates: basic email drafting, data entry, customer-service responses, simple translation, content generation, junior administrative support, and routine compliance monitoring.
- Surveys of employers from late 2025 into early 2026 show many companies planning continued adjustments to graduate intake, with AI often identified as an alternative for repetitive entry-level work.
Shah points to the 55% drop as evidence of a broader structural shift, supported by international workforce analyses (McKinsey, Goldman Sachs, IMF 2023–2025) that expect continued automation in administrative, clerical, and service-oriented sectors. “When AI reliably performs 70–80% of a junior role’s output at significantly lower cost, the economic rationale for retaining the human equivalent becomes more challenging,” he explained. “Across many Hong Kong businesses, this reasoning is contributing to the changes we observe in traditional graduate entry opportunities.”
A changing job market structure
Shah highlighted an important distinction:
- Overall employment levels in Hong Kong are not expected to decline sharply. New roles will continue to emerge.
- Emerging demand is increasingly focused on positions that require immediate AI fluency combined with specialised human judgment — a combination that most current graduates are not yet fully prepared to meet from day one.
“The graduate entry market is shifting noticeably,” Shah observed. “Premium opportunities now often require AI proficiency from the outset. The large volume of ‘learn-as-you-go’ starter positions that historically served as the bridge is contracting. The middle ground is narrowing.”
This observation comes as Hong Kong experiences a pronounced contraction in graduate employment in recent years, with ongoing youth unemployment pressures and companies placing greater emphasis on AI solutions for routine functions.
(The 55% figure reflects reported year-on-year vacancy data from Hong Kong’s public university job portals. Future developments will depend on upskilling initiatives, economic conditions, and policy responses. The observed direction is consistent with current trends and international analyses.)
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