Where Do Our Students Go After They Graduate? Student Surveys Planning Group May 20, 2008 University Career Services Lonnie Dunlap, Ph.D. Introductions Selected highlights of the data

Overview of Annual Graduation Survey Purpose is to gather data on graduating students in order to better understand: 1) Career and employment outcomes 2) Academic and Career Preparation 3) Changing context of the labor market

Today 1) Overview of key findings on first destination, selected career outcomes and career patterns 2) Present results associated with academic schools/colleges to identify career pathways

How Survey is Conducted Survey is conducted in June, offers incentive, administered online. Multiple methods to contact graduates -- including through departmental support, Statistical analysis from Human Capital Research. 2007 reached all time high for bachelors’ degrees (79.4%)

Responses (N) 2005 2006 2007 N % Bach. 1,294 65.6 1,450 66.4 1,719 79.4 Masters 165 58.9 339 32.1 341 24.1 Doct. 74 49.3 140 38.8 260 62.5 Total 1,533 63.8 1,929 53.6 2,320 57.7 Note response rate difference in 2007… Previous years used number of students going through commencement (cap and gown) as baseline In 2007 used all degree awarded, resulting in lower % even thought higher “N”.. Response rate by school in in handout

What Do They Do? >75% are employed or plan to continue their education in the next year Career Status N % Employed (All Forms) 1,444 .64 Continue Education 393 .17 Unemployed 282 .12 Other (Community Service, etc.) 138 .06

Yearly Comparisons, Highlights Full time employment shows ongoing improvement over recent years, ’03=31.5%, ’06=39.8%, Fewer are going directly to graduate studies right after graduation (trending down from 2003) Fewer report they are still seeking work, highest “unemployed” was 19% in ‘03, lowest this year, 12.5% Future direction and career status remained generally consistent over last 5 years.., main difference is in unemployment rate But as we will see varies by school of enrollment…

First Destination By School of Enrollment, Bachelors degrees FT/Offer Pending Continuing Education Unemployed Comm 31.6 15.8 *21.1 Medill 35.8 6.6 15.3 MEAS *59.5 15.1 7.9 Music 17.1 *37.1 11.4 SCS 58.6 4.3 SESP 45.0 18.8 15.0 WCAS 38.7 22.4 12.6 Employed: highest MEAS, SCS, SESP Medill: largest proprtion of internships and fellowships Music: highest to continue education, and self-employment/freelance Due to hiring cycles, timing of postgraduate education, etc..

Where Do They Work? (’07 Grads reporting employment) Business, Consulting, Finance, Mgmt, Sales .33 Education, Govt, Community Service .15 Medicine/Law .10 Communication, Journalism & Media .09 Technology & Engineering .08 Geographic distribution: 92% domestic:

Geographic Distribution

How Much Do They Earn? *Self-reported Male Female Total Bachelors $51,131 $41,907 $47,111 Masters $66,544 $58,794 $62,669 Doctorate $68,264 $61,402 $64,833 Note in Full Report: Present NU salaries in comparisons with national data reported by NACE Undergraduates: SCS: 64K MEAS: 54K WCAS: 45K Medill: 44K Comm: 39K Music 38K SESP: 37K Gender and salary data in report: Largest gap in Medill, Women close but higher in MEAS and SCS

2) Job Search Method Reported Most Useful 1 2 3 Comm NU Job Listings Professional Contacts Direct Application MEAS NU Campus Interviews NU Career Fair Medill Internet Sites Music Internet Sites, NU Campus Interviews, Professional Contacts, NU Career Services and Prior Experience with Employer (tied) SCS Multiple Methods tied for 2nd. SESP Family/Friends WCAS Remote methods: job search methods that rely on remote resources such as the Internet, job advertisements, or sending in an application to a potential employer

3) What career-related experiences did they have at NU? Highest levels of involvement were in student activities, part-time employment, and community service Experiential learning (Internships) showed positive association with employment Practicum and research experiences positively correlated with graduate school attendance Highest level of sustained activity (7+ quarters).. Music and Medill highest for part time jobs SESP highest for community service Medill highest for student activities In each area of activity, women higher participation rates, biggest difference in community service

When did they make major/career choice? Choosing their majors 64% never changed major Choice in Sophomore year highest for WCAS and SESP Deciding career direction 23% prior to Freshman year 10% Freshman year 32% Sophomore/Junior years 15% Senior year Higher number changed major this year’s survey (35.7% compared to 22.8%), but most likely just once. Deciding career direction early: MEAS, Comm, Medill, Music, SCS

What are their plans for graduate or professional school? For those continuing education immediately following graduation most will seek Master’s degrees ( all schools); Medical School (WCAS); Law School (Medill) Long term aspirations: Doctorate highest for SESP; MBA highest for WCAS, MEAS; Law for Medill 78% report plan to pursue advanced degree… Future degree correlated with undergraduate area of study…,, some mixed: history 21% law, 23% mba, Those seeking MBA rose,, but

Degree Aspiration, Some Differences Gender: Higher interest in Law Degrees --6% more women, MBA -- 9% more men Race/Ethnicity: Higher Interest in Doctorates – African American, Multiracial, & Hispanic/Latino; Law – Hispanic/Latino; MBA – Caucasian, Asian-American GPA: >3.76 highest interest in Doctorates, as GPA decreased, more interest in MBA GPA: Doctorate – > 3.76 MBA – Increased interest with lower GPA

4) What influences career outcomes? Obtaining employment *p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001 NU Career Resources .55 *** Remote Job Search Methods -.48 Attending Grad/Professional School -.55 Internships * Career Decision: Junior Year .09 ** Changed Majors -.07 Hispanic-Latino -.03 Significant correlations: all 4 of NU job search based methods (career services, job listings, career fair, OCR) NU ocr the strongest ( Remote: Internet sites, direct application to employer, jobs ads in publications

What Predicts Salary Level? Predicting Post-Graduation Salaries, Regression Analysis B *p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001 NU Career Resources .31 *** Remote Job Search Methods -.15 Male .12 ** Interpersonal Contacts .1 * MEAS (WCAS) .17 SCS (WCAS) .06 Student Activities & Orgs -.11

Summary Results support -- consistency where we would expect it (proportional distribution, academic and career pathways and trajectories) & -- variation in response to external influences (labor market demand, salary levels and demographic differences)

Thank you! Questions? For further information/discussion contact: Lonnie Dunlap, Executive Director University Career Services l-dunlap@northwestern.edu 847 491 3707