Marquette University class of 2021 reports 94% full-time employment, graduate school or other service position

March 21, 2022

Marquette HallMILWAUKEE —Marquette University reports that 94% of its 2020-21 bachelor’s degree recipients are either employed full-time or enrolled in graduate/professional school, part of a service program or are active military, according to the annual Undergraduate First-Destination Survey conducted by the Office of Institutional Research and Analysis.

Marquette’s employment rate 10 years after graduation is 95.55%. Based on Department of Education College Scorecard data, Marquette was ranked the 6th best college nationally and the best college in Wisconsin for job placement.

Graduates reported a five-year high of 66% full-time employment by the survey date, an 11 percentage-point increase over the 2020 report (55%), which had been in line with previous years despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Twenty-five percent of respondents report full-time enrollment in a graduate/professional program. One percent of reporting graduates entered post-graduate service, such as Jesuit Volunteer Corps. or Teach for America, and an additional one percent are active military.

“The results from this year’s First-Destination Survey are very exciting for our graduates and a reflection of the level of preparation students find with a Marquette education,” said Courtney Hanson, director of Marquette’s Career Services Center. “To see the rebound from what was a challenging and unknown 2020 to levels that exceed the previous five years is tremendous to see. Also, 97% of our full-time employed 2021 graduates reported securing positions related to their career goals, which is one reason why Marquette is among the best in the nation on 10-year employment rates.”

Among the 54% of respondents that reported salary information, the median starting salary was $60,000, a 5% increase from the year before and a jump of over 15% from 2016-17. Graduates settling in Wisconsin continued a five-year upward trend, with 52% of respondents reporting from within the state, while 25% are in Illinois.

Some other notable trends include:

  • Graduates of the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences reported 90% full-time employment, education, service program or military. That includes a 51% full-time employment figure that increased by 17 percentage points over 2020 and over 11 points from the last pre-pandemic survey.
  • The Diederich College of Communication saw 78% of its respondents employed full-time, 12 percentage points better than the next-best figure over the last five years. The Opus College of Engineering (six percentage points better) and the College of Business Administration (five points) also had notable highs, while the College of Nursing’s 91% full-time employment figure matches its best of the last five years (2018).
  • The College of Education saw 19% of its graduates continue their education full-time by enrolling in a graduate or professional program, more than twice the rate of any year since 2017.

Over 1,400 of the 1,905 graduates from between December 2020 and June 2021, completed the survey, which concluded Dec. 31, 2021.

Data collection procedures for this survey follow the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) standards and protocols for the collection of graduating student initial career outcomes information for undergraduates. Marquette’s Career Services Center submits Undergraduate First-Destination Survey outcomes data, aggregated at the major level, to NACE for inclusion in NACE’s yearly report on first destination outcomes, including national hiring and continuing education trends.

About Kevin Conway

Kevin Conway

Kevin is the associate director for university communication in the Office of University Relations. Contact Kevin at (414) 288-4745 or kevin.m.conway@marquette.edu.