You are here: Career Services > Post-Graduation Report > 2002-2003 Graduates > Executive Summary
 
Career Services at Virginia Tech
Post-Graduation Report: 2002-2003 bachelor's degree graduates
Executive Summary
 
  The Career Services Post-Graduation Report is the result of Career Services' annual survey to learn what Virginia Tech bachelor's degree graduates are doing after leaving the university. See methodology for details.
  The intent of the survey is to reach all graduates; the survey is not limited to a sample of the population. However, not all graduates respond to the survey, despite multiple attempts to reach them; see methodology for details.
  The survey consisted of Stage I, just prior to graduation, and Stage II, six months later. Graduates who are neither employed nor have graduate school plans in Stage I were contacted in Stage II to see if their status had changed. See methodology for details.
  Total graduates for 2002-2003 numbered 4,880. In Stage I and/or Stage II, 3,112 of those graduates responded to the survey. However, 381 reported "seeking employment" in Stage I, but could not be reached in Stage II. These 381 graduates are not reported as "seeking employment" in the final status report, but are deleted from the final "status reported" numbers and percentages.
The total for whom status is reported is 2,731, or 55.96% of the total number of graduates.
   
  POST-GRADUATION STATUS:
  With comparison between 2002-2003 graduates and 2001-2002 graduates:
  For the university as a whole:
  University-wide, there were no significant differences in post-graduation status between the 2001-2002 graduates and the 2002-2003 graduates.
  Status reported: For the 2,731 (55.96% of the total) 2002-2003 graduates whose status is reported:
  • Employed:
2002-2003: 62.7 percent (1,712).
2001-2002: 62.1 percent (1,650).
  • Attending graduate or professional school:
2002-2003: 24.5 percent (665).
2001-2002: 24.1 percent (639).
  • Seeking employment:
2002-2003: 6.3 percent (172).
2001-2002: 7.3 percent (194).
  • Part-time or other plans:
2002-2003: 6.5 percent (179).
2001-2002: 6.5 percent (174).
  • Of those employed, employment was related to their career goals for:
2002-2003: 82.0 percent (1,404).
2001-2002: 83.5 percent (1,377).
  • Reported "seeking employment" in Stage I, but could not be reached in Stage II.
These are not counted among the numbers and percentages in "status reported."
2002-2003: 381
2001-2002: 460
  See post-graduation status and career-related employment to view 2002-2003 college and major statistics.
   
  For colleges:
  Important: Several academic departments changed college affiliations effective 2002-2003.
When comparing overall college data year-to-year, note that some college compositions have changed.
  • In addition to "employment," "attending graduate school," or "seeking employment," some graduates are reported as having "part-time or other plans." They account for remaining percent in each college.
  Agriculture and Life Sciences:
  • 55.7% (83) employed. Up 1 percentage point.
  • 30.9% (46) attending graduate or professional school. Up 7 percentage points.
  • 4.7% (7) seeking employment. Down 2 percentage points.
  Architecture and Urban Studies:
  • Interior Design program joined this college in 2002-2003, departing from the former College of Human Resources and Education.
  • 63.8% (97) employed. Up 9.4 percentage points.
  • 13.8% (21) attending graduate or professional school. Down 10.3 percentage points.
  • 13.2% (20) seeking employment. Down 3 percentage points.
  Arts and Sciences:
  • Communication Studies Department left this college in 2002-2003, joining the College of Human Sciences and Education.
  • 53.1% (427) employed. Same percentage as previous year.
  • 33.7% (272) attending graduate or professional school. Up 4 percentage points.
  • 4.8% (39) seeking employment. Down 3 percentage points.
  Business:
  • Hospitality and Tourism Management Department joined this college in 2002-2003, departing from the former College of Human Resources and Education
  • 80.4% (524) employed. Up 5.6 percentage points.
  • 8.7% (57) attending graduate or professional school. Up 1 percentage point.
  • 5.7% (37) seeking employment. Down almost 4 percentage points.
  Engineering:
  • 65.5% (347) employed. Down 2 percentage points.
  • 23.2% (123) attending graduate or professional school. Down 2 percentage points.
  • 7.7% (41) seeking employment. Up 3 percentage points.
  Human Sciences and Education:
  • College name changed from Human RESOUCES and Education to Human SCIENCES and Education.
  • Communication Studies Department joined this college in 2002-2003, departing from the College of Arts and Sciences.
  • Hospitality and Tourism Management Department left this college in 2002-2003, joining the Pamplin College of Business.
  • Interior Design program left this college in 2002-2003, joining the College of Architecture and Urban Studies.
  • 50.8% (189) employed. Down 5.4 percentage points.
  • 35.5% (132) attending graduate or professional school. Up 2 percentage points.
  • 6.2% (23) seeking employment. Up 2 percentage points.
  Natural Resources:
  • 64.3% (45) employed. Up 5.8 percentage points.
  • 24.3% (17) attending graduate or professional school. Up 8.4 percentage points.
  • 7.1% (5) seeking employment. Down 2.6 percentage points.
     
  FACTS ABOUT EMPLOYED GRADUATES:
  •

States where employed:
For the past five graduating years, well over half of employed graduates were employed in Virginia.
For 2002-2003:
61.33% of the 1,712 employed graduates were working in Virginia (1,050), followed by:
Maryland (134=7.8%)
Washington, DC (86=5%)
North Carolina (64=3.7%)
Pennsylvania (41=2.3%)
New Jersey (35=2%)
New York (33=1.9%)
South Carolina (29=1.69%)
Florida and Georgia (both 21=1.2%)
California (20=1.16%)
See states where most new graduates are employed, with five year comparison.
There is only slight variation year to year.
  • Employment career-related?
82.0% of employed graduates indicated their position was related to their career goals.
See post-graduation status and career-related employment for college and major statistics.
  • How grads found their jobs:
Employed grads were asked how they found the jobs they accepted.
Personal contacts / networking (47.3%) was the top method, followed by:
Career Services programs (12.7%)
Previous experience with the employer (11.2%)
Internet (10.5%)
Job ads (8.85) and
Other methods (8.4%) (this includes career fairs / job fairs)
See how graduates found jobs to see differences between colleges and comparisons year-to-year.
  • Experience before graduation:
Employed graduates were asked if they had career-related experience during college, and if so what type. Breakdown by type was:
Internship (38.3%)
Summer job (25.8%)
Part-time job (12.2%)
Cooperative education position (9.5%) or
Other (11.5%)
See experience before graduation for college statistics and five-year comparison.
  • Salaries
The average salary for a 2002-2003 graduate was $34,230.
This is consistent with data from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) which collects data on new graduate salaries nationwide.
See salary data for charts showing university+college data, and college+major data.
     
Questions about the 2002-2003 Post-Graduation Report should be directed to Ms. Pam Herrmann: herrmann@vt.edu
Close window and return to main menu