| Executive Summary |
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- The Career Services Post-Graduation Report is
a study of Virginia Tech graduates and reports what bachelor's degree recipients are doing
after they leave the university.
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- 96% of the 1998-1999 bachelor's degree
graduates responded to the annual follow-up survey.
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- Compared to the 1997-98 graduates, the
1998-99 graduates experienced a 3% increase in employment and a 4% increase in graduate
school attendance. Those graduates still seeking employment dropped 5%.
Generally, this was the picture across the colleges, with the percentages ranging between
three and six with the following exception: A significant change in the College of
Agriculture and Life Sciences status showed a 9% increase in employment, an 8% increase in
graduate school attendance, and a 10% decrease in graduates seeking employment.
Likewise, the College of Human Resources and Education reported a 9% decrease in graduates
seeking employment.
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- Eighty-four percent of those surveyed
reported having a plan following graduation. This reflects a 5% increase compared to 1998.
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- Of those employed, 87.6% said they were in
career-related positions (no significant difference from 1998).
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- Students are discovering that some form of
experiential education (i.e., summer job, internship, cooperative education) during
college is important in obtaining employment after graduation. Eighty-four percent
of the Class of 1999 reported having relevant experience (an 11% increase from 1998).
A sharp increase was reported among all colleges in the internship category.
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- Personal contacts/networking (35.2%) was the
primary method students said they used in finding employment, followed by Career Services
(19.3%), Job Advertisements (12.7%), Previous Experience (11.7%), and Career Fairs
(11.4%). These job search methods varied among colleges.
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- The average salary for a 1998-99 bachelor's
degree recipient from Virginia Tech was $32,326 -- a 2.9% increase over last year.
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- Most Virginia Tech graduates are employed in
Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania, followed by
New York and Florida.
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| Bottom Line for the Class of 1999: |
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- 84.4% indicated a post-graduation plan; 16.4%
were still seeking employment
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- 87.6% of employed students indicated
positions were career-related
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- 84% of Virginia Tech students participated in
experiential education opportunities (i.e. internship, Cooperative Education Program,
summer job)
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