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University Career Services Graduation Survey Report Class of 2009
2 T able of Contents
Introduction and Survey Results………………………………………………………..3 Summary H ighlights Profile of Respondents C areer Status at T ime of G raduation…………………………………………………..4 Undergraduate E mployment by Industry and Job F unction…………………………7 Salary Outcomes………………………………………………………………………..12 Geographic Distribution
3 Introduction and Survey Results The Northwestern University Career Services Graduation Survey provides a profile of the career directions of undergraduate and graduate students of the class of 2009 and a perspective on their career planning and job search process. The 2009 survey had a very high response rate of 82% (92.7% for undergraduates). The survey data offers insights about this year’s graduating population as well as prepares us for the coming year as the full extent of the nation’s economic rebound emerges. Northwestern is committed to helping students proactively plan for their futures and develop new strategies for internship and employment planning.
Summary H ighlights First destination data describes the specific career plans of graduates immediately following graduation. The following are key highlights: For respondents at all degree levels 72.5% were employed or planning to attend graduate school, down from 86% last year. The mean starting salary for 2009 undergraduates was $42,853, lower than the 2008 mean salary of $48,094. Graduate student salaries were mixed - Doctoral students had an $8,000 decrease in mean salary since last year but Master’s degree salaries remained consistent. Overall, more undergraduates in 2009 are indicating plans to continue their education immediately after graduation when compared to 2008 (2009,19.7%; 2008,18.3%). The Bienen School of Music had the greatest number of students planning to continue their education. The top four long-term career interests cited by respondents were the same as in 2007 and 2008: business, medicine, communication, and art/performance. A significant portion of undergraduate 2009 respondents (75.0%) indicated intentions to pursue an advanced degree. This portion was consistent with respondents in 2008 and 2007 (74.2%, 75.7%). Students who utilized the different career resources offered by Northwestern were significantly more likely to have employment upon graduation than students who used the career services less frequently. Likewise, these students earned significantly higher salaries on average.
4
Profile of Respondents A total of 2,616 NU graduates completed surveys, for an overall survey response rate of 82.0 percent, with the strongest rate attained by undergraduates (92.7%), as shown in Table 1. The overall response rate increased dramatically in 2009. Table 2 shows the survey response rate for the last three years. T able 1. C lass of 2009 Response Rates by T ype of Degree Class of 2009 Surveyed N 2,050 782 358 3,190
Bachelor’s Master’s Doctorate Totals
Class of 2009 Respondents N 1,901 471 244 2,616
Class of 2009 Response Rate Percent 92.7 60.2 68.2 82.0
T able 2. H istorical Response Rates by T ype of Degree Class of 2007 Respondents Bachelor’s Master’s Doctorate Totals
N 1,719 341 260 2,320
Percent 79.4 24.1 62.5 57.7
Class of 2008 Respondents N 1,430 316 161 1,907
Percent 70.2 28.3 39.4 47.6
Class of 2009 Respondents N 1,901 471 244 2,616
Percent 92.7 60.2 68.2 82.0
C areer Status at T ime of G raduation As indicated in Table 3, the future direction and career status for graduates has experienced a shift with the 2009 graduating class, which can be attributed greatly to the economic downturn that has affected employment across several industries. There was a decrease in the full-time employment rate compared to 2008, as well as a decrease in pending offers. The percentage of graduates continuing their education directly after graduating has remained relatively stable from 17.5 percent to 16.6 percent over the past four years. Similar to last year, there is a significant number of students pursuing a post-graduate internship or fellowship.
5 T able 3. A ll Respondents C areer Status A fter G raduation First Destination/ Career Status at Graduation
2006 N %
2007 N %
2008 %
%
2009 N %
Full Time Employment
760
39.8
866
38.4
721
37.8
801
31.1
Continue Education
334
17.5
393
17.4
290
15.2
426
16.6
Unemployed
267
14.0
282
12.5
269
14.1
559
21.7
Full time Offer Pending
106
5.5
116
4.9
132
6.9
118
4.6
Post Grad: Intern/Fellowship
97
5.1
182
8.1
148
7.8
219
8.5
Temporary or Contract
96
5.0
133
5.9
87
4.6
113
4.4
Employed Part Time
71
3.7
81
3.6
70
3.7
90
3.5
Self-Employed
70
3.7
58
2.5
60
3.1
89
3.5
Other
54
2.8
74
3.3
60
3.1
87
3.4
Voluntarily Unemployed
27
1.4
29
1.2
13
0.7
26
1.0
Community Service
23
1.2
35
1.5
25
1.3
38
1.5
6
0.3
8
0.3
10
0.5
7
0.3
Military Service Full time Total
1,911
2,257
1,885
2573
F igure 1. 2006-2009 All Respondents’ Career Status After Graduation by Year 2006
2007
2008
2009 39.8 % 38.4 % 37.8 %
31.1 %
21.7 % 17.4 % 17.5 % 14.0 % 14.1 % 12.5 %
8.1 % 7.8 % 6.9 % 5.5 % 4.9 % 4.6 %
F ull time O ffer Pending
16.6 % 15.2 %
8.5 %
5.1 %
Post G ra d: Intern/F ellowship
Unemployed
Continue Educa tion
F ull Time Employ ment
6 Table 4 shows career status by type of degree. Advanced degree graduates experienced a higher rate of full-time employment while a higher percentage of Bachelor’s graduates were actively pursuing employment.
T able 4. All Respondents’ Career Status by Type of Degree Career Status FT Employed or Offer Pending Continuing Education Unemployed, Seeking Work Temporary or Contract Job Internship/Fellowship Employed Part-Time Other Voluntarily Unemployed Community Service Self-Employed/Freelance Military Service
Bachelor’s N Percent 611 371 424 90 131 66 70 24 37 49 6
32.5 19.7 22.6 4.8 7.0 3.5 3.7 1.3 2.0 2.6 0.3
Master’s N Percent 198 52 109 18 18 20 18 1 0 36 1
42.0 11.0 23.1 3.8 3.8 4.2 3.8 0.2 0.0 7.6 0.2
Doctorate N Percent 117 7 27 5 71 4 3 1 1 4 0
48.8 2.9 11.3 2.1 29.5 1.7 1.3 0.4 0.4 1.7 0.0
7 Undergraduate E mployment by Industry and Job F unction On the 2009 survey, respondents who were employed or had accepted a position were asked to name their job titles and employers. An additional question asked respondents to choose from a list of 9 long-term career interest categories, including finance, public administration, computer science, social services, healthcare, engineering, marketing, communications, and other functional categories. In assembling Figure 2, job titles were re-categorized along these longterm career interest categories to allow for a meaningful assessment of the fields that 2009 graduates were planning to enter. Figure 2. Undergraduate Employment by Industry Community, Public or Social Service, 5%
Arts, Performance, Music, 1%
Law, 1%
Government, Public Policy, Politics, 5% Medicine/Health, 6%
Research/Academia, 7%
Business, Consulting, Fin. Mgmt, Sales, etc., 37%
Communication, Journalism, Media, 8%
Technology or Engineering, 15% Education/Teaching, 14%
The largest segment of this population is employed in consulting, finance, management and other business-related fields (37%). Engineering and technology, which includes computer science jobs, was the second largest segment (15%), which education/teaching right behind with 14% of the full-time employed graduates.
8 T able 5. 2009 Undergraduate E mployment – by Industry
The following table provides a more detailed breakdown of employment outcomes by Industry.
Jobs % of
Sales
17
Securities/Trading
18
Total 33.43% 3.93% 1.97% 10.74% 0.91% 4.69% 0.15% 0.91% 0.76% 1.97% 0.91% 1.21% 2.57% 2.72%
Communications M ar keting and/or M edia
78
11.80%
Advertising
19
Business and Related
221
Banking - Investment
26
Banking - Commercial
13
Consulting
71
Economics
6
Financial Services
31
Human Resources
1
Insurance
6
Organization Change/Development
5
Management/Administration
13
Pharmaceuticals
6
Real Estate
8
Film
3
Performing Arts - Drama, Music, Theater
5
2.87% 0.15% 1.06% 0.15% 0.30% 0.30% 2.27% 0.91% 2.42% 0.45% 0.76%
Visual Arts
1
0.15%
48
Arts Management
1
Broadcasting TV and Radio
7
Design - Fashion, Web
1
Event Planning
2
Fundraising
2
Marketing Public Relations Writing/Journalism/Publishing
15 6 16
Biomedical/Biotechnical
6
Chemical Engineering
4
Civil/Transportation Services
8
Computer Engineering
2
Electrical Engineering
6
Engineering Management/Project Management
6
7.26% 0.91% 0.61% 1.21% 0.30% 0.91% 0.91%
Environmental Engineering
0
0.00%
E ngineering and Science
9 Information Technology
4
Industrial Engineering
1
Life Sciences
6
Material Sciences
1
Mechanical Engineering
4
Non-Profit/E ducation/Government
227
Education
62
Government
24
Healthcare/Public Health
29
Higher Education
9
International/Teaching Overseas
6
Law
18
Medical
11
Politics
2
Public Policy
10
Social Services/Counseling/Community Development
19
Teaching - Elementary, Secondary
19
Research
18
O ther
87
Other
87
0.61% 0.15% 0.91% 0.15% 0.61% 34.34% 9.38% 3.63% 4.39% 1.36% 0.91% 2.72% 1.66% 0.30% 1.51% 2.87% 2.87% 2.72% 13.16% 13.16%
10 F igure 3. Undergraduate E mployment by Job F unction
Social Services, 5%
Computer Science, 3%
Public Administration, 5% Finance, 17%
Healthcare, 6%
Academia, 7%
Education, 14%
Communications, 7% Engineering, 12% Marketing, 10%
Consulting, Other Business, 12%
Jobs % of
T able 6. 2009 Undergraduate E mployment by Job F unction – Discipline The following table provides a more detailed breakdown of employment outcomes by Job Function.
F inance
Total 60 17.00%
Accounting Commercial Banking (Consumer) Commercial Banking (Lending) Financial Analysis Investment Banking (Corporate Finance) Investment Banking (Mergers & Acquisitions) Investment Banking (Real Estate) Sales & Trading Portfolio Management/Brokerage
2 2 3 20 6 4 3 17 3
0.57% 0.57% 0.85% 5.67% 1.70% 1.13% 0.85% 4.82% 0.85%
M ar keting Advertising Brand/Product Management
37 9 10
10.48% 2.55% 2.83%
11 Buyer/Merchandising Customer Service Marketing Research Purchasing Sales
5 2 3 1 7
1.42% 0.57% 0.85% 0.28% 1.98%
Consulting, O ther Business Consulting Management Trainee (Entry-Level Management)
42 36 6
11.90% 10.20% 1.70%
E ngineering Bioengineering Design/Construction Environmental/Sanitation Field Engineering Hardware Design & Development Manufacturing/Industrial Power Systems Production Engineering Project Engineering Quality Control Research & Development Software Design & Development Systems/Programming Testing Other engineering (NEC)
43 1 10 1 2 2 2 1 1 2 2 5 6 2 2 4
12.18% 0.28% 2.83% 0.28% 0.57% 0.57% 0.57% 0.28% 0.28% 0.57% 0.57% 1.42% 1.70% 0.57% 0.57% 1.13%
Computer Science Computer Programming Computer Systems Analysis Network Administration Technical/Computer Support Other computer related
12 4 3 1 2 2
3.40% 1.13% 0.85% 0.28% 0.57% 0.57%
H ealthcare Administrative (Healthcare) Medical Technology Paramedic Physical Therapy Other health related (NEC)
21 10 2 1 1 7
5.95% 2.83% 0.57% 0.28% 0.28% 1.98%
Public A dministration Executive, Legislative, & General Policy Law Enforcement Military
19 2 7 3 5
5.38% 0.57% 1.98% 0.85% 1.42%
12 National Security Urban/Regional Planning
1 1
0.28% 0.28%
Social Services Administrative (Social Services) Counseling Fundraising/Development Social Work
17 7 2 4 4
4.82% 1.98% 0.57% 1.13% 1.13%
Communications Design/Graphic Arts Media Planning Public Relations Reporting Writing/Editing
26 1 3 10 7 5
7.37% 0.28% 0.85% 2.83% 1.98% 1.42%
Academia Research (Nontechnical) Research (Technical/Scientific)
25 9 16
7.08% 2.55% 4.53%
E ducation Teaching
51 51
14.45% 14.45%
Salary O utcomes Table 7 shows the distribution of salary levels by type of degree. As expected, graduate students reported higher salaries than undergraduates. From 2008 to 2009, mean salaries decreased by approximately 11 percent for undergraduates and 11.5 percent for doctoral level students. For Master’s level students, the mean salary remained very stable compared to 2008. T able 7. Starting Salaries by Degree T ype and Y ear Bachelor’s Master’s Doctorate
2007 Responses Mean 639 $46,694 151 $63,765 126 $64,979
2008 Responses 482 135 103
2009 Mean $48,094 $61,175 $68,826
Responses 1936 482 247
Mean $42,853 $60,954 $60,919
13 Table 8 indicates the variance in mean starting salaries across the different employment categories. T able 8. Undergraduate Mean Starting Salaries- C hange from 2008 2008 Job Title Category Business, Consulting, Fin. Mgmt, Sales, etc. Technology or Engineering Medicine/Health Government, Public Policy, Politics Law Arts, Performance, Music Research/Academia Education/Teaching Communication, Journalism, Media Community, Public or Social Service
2009
N
Mean
N
Mean
Percent Change
235 66 17 15 19 5 14 45 30 17
$55,511 $54,891 $40,429 $45,708 $37,447 $31,400 $36,500 $34,314 $34,018 $27,812
133 55 21 19 3 5 25 51
$51,398 $54,868 $47,678 $35,392 $37,000 $17,800 $34,360 $27,298
-7.4% 0.0% 17.9% -22.6% -1.2% -43.3% -5.9% -20.4%
Change in Mean Salary ($4,113) ($23) $7,249 ($10,316) ($447) ($13,600) ($2,140) ($7,016)
27 17
$26,199 $21,007
-23.0% -24.5%
($7,819) ($6,805)
The Medicine/Health industry was the only area that experienced an increase (+ $7,249) in salary while the largest decrease was seen in Arts, Performance, Music (- $13,600).
T able 9. Undergraduate Salary by Job F unction The following table shows the number of reported offers by undergraduates and average salary by job function.
Finance Job Function Accounting
# of Graduates 2
Mean Salary $ 15,000
Commercial Banking (Consumer)
2
$
99,000
Commercial Banking (Lending)
3
$
59,333
Financial Analysis
20
$
52,050
Investment Banking (Corporate Finance)
6
$
59,333
Investment Banking (Mergers & Acquisitions)
4
$
62,500
Investment Banking (Real Estate)
3
$
50,000
Sales & Trading
17
$
48,853
Portfolio Management/Brokerage
3
$
88,333
14
Consulting, Other Business-Related, Etc. Job Function
# of Graduates
Mean Salary
Consulting Management Trainee (Entry-Level Management)
36
$
57,514
6
$
51,833
Engineering Job Function Bioengineering Design/Construction Environmental/Sanitation Field Engineering Hardware Design & Development Manufacturing/Industrial Power Systems Production Engineering Project Engineering Quality Control Research & Development Software Design & Development Systems/Programming Testing Other engineering (NEC)
# of Graduates 1 10 1 2 2 2 1 1 2 2 5 6 2 2 4
Mean Salary $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
57,980 43,521 28,600 61,750 64,000 50,000 60,000 28,000 60,000 49,400 64,750 55,000 53,350 54,379
Marketing Job Function Advertising Brand/Product Management Buyer/Merchandising Customer Service Marketing Research
# of Graduates 9 10 5 2 3
Purchasing Sales
1 7
Mean Salary $ 44,889 $ 36,300 $ 46,600 $ 30,000 $ 36,000
$ $
38,000 37,286
15
Healthcare Job Function Administrative (Healthcare)
# of Graduates 10
$
Mean Salary 42,978
Medical Technology
2
$
55,500
Paramedic
1
$
30,000
Physical Therapy
1
$
25,000
Other health related (NEC)
7
$
23,577
Public Administration Job Function Executive, Legislative, & General
# of Graduates 2
Mean Salary $ 35,500
Policy
7
$
25,414
Law Enforcement
3
$
42,852
Military
5
$
46,400
National Security
1
$
41,000
Urban/Regional Planning
1
$
22,000
16
Communications Job Function
# of Graduates
Mean Salary
Design/Graphic Arts Media Planning Public Relations Reporting
1 3 10 7
$ $ $ $
12,000 40,867 27,727 24,786
Writing/Editing
5
$
24,400
Academia Job Function Research (Nontechnical) Research (Technical/Scientific)
# of Graduates 9 16
Mean Salary $ 33,056 $ 35,094
Education Job Function Teaching
# of Graduates 51
Mean Salary $ 27,298
17 T able 10. Undergraduate Salary by Industry The following table shows the number of reported offers by undergraduates and average salary by industry.
Business and Related Job Function
# of Graduates
Mean Salary
Banking - Investment
26
$
62,577
Banking - Commercial
13
$
51,250
Consulting
71
$
57,869
Economics
6
$
38,417
Financial Services
31
$
60,417
Human Resources
1
$
3,000
Insurance Organization Change/Development Management/Administration Pharmaceuticals Real Estate Sales Securities/Trading
6 5 13 6 8 17 18
$ $ $ $ $ $ $
55,600 31,733 42,602 55,630 47,936 45,625 55,750
Communications Marketing and/or Media Job Function
# of Graduates
Mean Salary
Advertising
19
$
38,800
Broadcasting TV and Radio
7
$
23,800
Design - Fashion, Web
1
$
28,000
Event Planning
2
$
27,500
Fundraising
2
$
41,000
Marketing
15
$
33,000
Public Relations
6
$
37,200
Writing/Journalism/Publishing
16
$
23,669
Film
3
$
37,333
Performing Arts - Drama, Music, Theater
5
$
8,000
18
Engineering and Science Job Function
# of Graduates
Mean Salary
Biomedical/Biotechnical
6
$
41,800
Chemical Engineering
4
$
62,500
Civil/Transportation Services
8
$
51,574
Electrical Engineering
6
$
45,167
Engineering Management/Project Management
6
$
55,900
Information Technology
4
$
60,250
Industrial Engineering
1
$
61,000
Life Sciences
6
$
31,400
Material Sciences
1
$
35,000
Mechanical Engineering
4
$
51,675
Non-Profit/Education/Government Job Function
# of Graduates
Mean Salary
Education
62
$
29,518
Government
24
$
37,438
Healthcare/Public Health
29
$
33,000
Higher Education
9
$
22,278
International/Teaching Overseas
6
$
12,000
Law
18
$
36,679
Medical
11
$
27,630
Politics
2
$
24,175
Public Policy
10
$
21,509
Social Services/Counseling/Community Development
19
$
19,952
Teaching - Elementary, Secondary
19
$
28,197
Research
18
$
37,786
19
Geographic Distribution In addition to salary, the survey also asked Northwestern graduates where they would be residing next fall. While most graduates indicated that they would stay in the United States, eight percent reported an international location. Figure 11 presents graduates’ geographic distribution (within the U.S. and internationally) for those students who clearly indicated a location for next fall’s residency. F igure 4. Geographic Distribution of all Graduates Reporting Next Year’s Location Inter national 8.0 % Southwest 1.5 % South 3.4 %
W est 10.5 %
Mid-Atlantic 7.1 %
Nor theast 9.8 %
Midwest 59.7 %
There appears to be less geographic dispersion in 2009 with nearly 60 percent staying in the Midwest compared to 49 percent in 2008. The Northeast has the second largest domestic presence (9.8%), followed by the West (10.5%), the Mid-Atlantic (7.1%), the South (3.4%), and the Southwest (1.5%). Students’ future destination had an effect on salary. Table 17 represents graduates’ salary by region and major city. Graduates tended to cluster in major cities like Chicago, New York, Boston and Washington, DC. Students planning to reside in Chicago or the Chicago suburbs make up 45 percent of the salaried graduates. Among U.S. regions, the Southwest represents the highest mean salary ($56,800) while the Mid-Atlantic represents the lowest ($42,321). San Francisco and Los Angeles had the highest median salaries of the cities reporting at $61,500 and $57,500 respectively.
20
T able 17. Base Salary by Geographic Distribution* Region Mid-Atlantic
C ity/Region Washington DC
Midwest Chicago Greater Chicago** Ann Arbor Minneapolis Madison
N 159 37 1343
Percent 7.1 1.6 59.7
771 246 31 29 16 Northeast 221 New York City 155 Boston 40 Philadelphia 15 South 76 Southwest 33 West 237 San Francisco 22 Los Angeles 57 International 180 Asia/South Pacific 49 Europe 57 *Based on self-reporting respondents who reported a **Including Evanston, but excluding Chicago
Range ($) 3,000-150,000 24,000-150,000 1,500-182,000
34.3 30,000-175,000 10.9 5,232-120,000 1.4 25,500-182,000 1.3 36,000-120,000 0.7 23,000-130,000 9.8 12,000-170,000 6.9 30,000-142,000 1.8 5,000-170,000 0.7 38,000-65,000 3.4 24,000-103,000 1.5 30,000-110,000 10.5 4,000-170,000 0.9 36,995-80,000 2.5 11,000-103,000 8.0 1,500-110,000 2.1 1,500-110,000 2.5 10,000-100,000 city and/or state and salary
M ean ($) 42,321 58,345 49,684
M edian ($) 41,500 57,000 45,500
44,781 32,212 49,020 59,472 59,000 54,048 43,900 38,555 49,750 54,913 56,800 53,556 60,423 56,333 31,511 26,506 36,850
44,000 29,500 45,500 53,750 55,000 48,000 43,750 32,500 47,500 60,000 44,000 50,000 61,500 57,500 28,000 24,500 31,500
If you have any questions about this information please contact Wesley Thorne, Assistant Director for Business and Employer Relations, wthorne@northwestern.edu