Salary growth as a criterion of career progress

Abstract

As a possible improvement on absolute salary as a criterion, the authors computed the annual percentage growth of the salaries of 143 engineering graduates employed in industry. Although 1st-year salaries increased markedly from 1950 to 1955, and 1957 salaries varied with years of service, the growth rates were homogeneous. The rates for different professional groups were different 1st-year salary and salary growth were unrelated. Growth was related to academic grades, but absolute salary unexpectedly had a stronger relationship. Salary growth has some useful properties, but it is not uniformly applicable. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)