Another point in favour of the public sector is that they will often make much higher superannuation contributions than private-sector jobs, which can be seen as an investment in itself. Public servants will often be earning more on a per-hour basis than their private sector counterparts, even well into their careers. We dug into graduate survey responses and found that on a dollar-per-hour basis public service wins - they do fewer hours for their relatively good salaries, and the conditions are very generous. ItвЂ™s not all bad news for the public sector, even long term. The salary disparity becomes more apparent the further into your career you will go, as the private sector has a much higher ceiling on your earning potential. However, at the graduate level, there really isnвЂ™t much difference between the public and private sectors in terms of salary.

When you take into account bonuses and similar financial perks, the public sector just canвЂ™t compete with the figures offered by the private sector, and this becomes increasingly true as your career goes on. The private sector pays more than public service, but public service is still quite competitive.

WeвЂ™ve pitted the public and private sectors against each other in a вЂbest of five perk-offвЂ™ to give you a better understanding of the pros and cons of each. Which sector you decide is best for you will often depend on which perks (and lows) you prioritise over others. Should I go private or public? ItвЂ™s a question we get asked a lot! ItвЂ™s not completely straightforward to answer as a lot of it depends on whatвЂ™s important to you, but there are some clear benefits to starting your career in both the public and private sectors.

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