US News data: Job rates, starting salaries for MBA grads
U.S. News released the 2017 Best Business Schools today, giving prospective students information on class sizes, tuition and fees, and more for 129 ranked business schools.
Aspiring MBAs often want to know how soon they'll be employed once they get their degree and how much they'll make – and U.S. News has data on both.
A full-time, two-year MBA program can cost six figures, making it critical that applicants weigh how much debt they're willing to incur and what kind of salary they'd like to have when they graduate before enrolling in school. The sooner they get a job, the faster they can start rebuilding their finances.
At two schools – Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina and the University of South Florida – 100 percent of 2015 MBA graduates were employed three months after graduation. Among all ranked MBA programs, the average was 84 percent.
VIEW: US News Top Business Schools of 2017
One part of getting that first job is negotiating salary. MBA grads often work in finance, marketing, consulting and supply chain management. These fields can vary in terms of how much they pay, but business school graduates usually command a competitive salary across the board.
Harvard Business School's 2015 graduates had the highest average starting salary and bonus: $149,784. Alumni from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, however, were close behind. Its 2015 graduates had an average starting salary and bonus of $148,025.
Almost half of the 128 ranked schools that submitted salary data to U.S. News had an average starting salary and bonus of more than $90,000 for their 2015 graduates.
The average for all schools was $91,940.
Follow the MBA Admissions: Strictly Business blog for advice on getting into school, and visit our Best Jobs for MBAs section to learn about career options for graduates.
Copyright 2015 U.S. News & World Report
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