Tuck School of Business graduates are waiting longer to accept job offers, a trend that Jonathan Masland, director of Tuck’s Career Development Office, attributed to the economy’s gradual improvement. Students, he said, can be more discerning in their job searches.
The compensation rates and employment levels for members of the Class of 2013 mirror figures seen in past years, according to data released by the school on Feb. 3.
Ninety-one percent of the class’ graduates had received job offers by graduation — the best of any peer MBA program, Masland said. Three months later, this number had risen to 95 percent.
Not all students, however, chose to accept the employment offers they received. Eighty-one percent of members of the Class of 2013 had accepted job offers by graduation. Three months later, another tenth of the class had accepted offers — meaning 4 percent of the class turned down offers.
These numbers were lower than in past years. In 2012, 86 percent of students had accepted job offers by graduation, while 83 percent of students had accepted job offers by graduation in 2011.
On average, graduates of Tuck’s Class of 2013 who reported their compensation information earned a base salary of around $115,000, similar to graduates of prior Tuck classes.
Tuck’s median base salary of $115,000 for Class of 2013 graduates falls in line with that of other business schools. Among Columbia University’s business school graduates, the median base salary was $110,000. The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania’s median was $125,000, Harvard Business School’s was $120,000 and Yale School of Management’s was $110,000.
Thirty percent of the Tuck Class of 2013 received jobs in financial services — including investment banking, investment management, private equity and venture capital. An additional 27 percent accepted offers in the consulting industry, 13 percent in the technology field and 10 percent in to consumer goods and retail-related jobs.
Other top business schools sent students into similar industries, with financial services and consulting topping their lists.
A recent incline in jobs in the technology industry, however, may signal the sector’s growing relevance.
Microsoft, Google and Amazon are some of Tuck’s strongest employers, Masland said, adding that 900 corporations specifically recruited Tuck students during the 2012-13 academic year.
Tuck’s career development office helps students find employment with one-on-one career coaching, on-campus recruiting and alumni connections.
“When most people get to their actual interview, they have already met with so many Tuck alumni and been prepped so many times, that it’s almost like a formality,” Alexander Oliver Tu’14 said.
The office also mentors students throughout the employment process. Andrew Wong Tu’14 said the office helped him determine what job fit him best.
Oliver attributed the class’s success to the institution as a whole and the preparation it provides.
“I think the product of great jobs and great salaries,” he said “is just a symptom of the good education.”
