Class of 2021 Salaries Climb to New Heights in the Undergraduate Program
In the months after their graduation, the Class of 2021 reported the highest salaries ever achieved in Georgetown McDonough’s Undergraduate Program.
According to the school’s 2021 Undergraduate Employment Report, 98% of students seeking employment received an offer within three months of graduation, and their average starting salaries increased to a record $85,213, up 9% from the previous year. The average signing bonus rose from $8,848 to $9,421.
“The Class of 2021 showed immense versatility and resourcefulness in their career search process over the past year,” said Talia Schatz, assistant dean of the Undergraduate Career Development Center. “Despite ongoing challenges in the world, our students remained committed to their academic and career-related goals, and as a result, achieved record career outcomes in their internships and post-graduate jobs. We are proud to see their hard work reflected in this report.”
Graduates primarily sought employment in financial services (49%) and consulting (22%), with additional interest across public accounting (7%), real estate (6%), and consumer packaged goods and retail (5%). The top employers included Amazon, Bain, Bank of America, Barclays, Citi, Deloitte, EY, Goldman Sachs, Google, Jefferies, JPMorgan Chase, L’Oréal, McKinsey, Morgan Stanley, Peacock TV/NBC, and PwC.
An essential component of the Undergraduate Program is experiential learning, and 97% of students secured internships prior to graduation.
Students benefit from the McDonough Undergraduate Career Development Center, which is a resource solely dedicated to supporting undergraduate business students with career exploration, resume and interview preparation, networking opportunities, and leadership development. The Career Development Center offers one-on-one career coaching and a robust Peer Career Advisors group to support students through every phase of their professional journey.
Throughout the year, students have access to unique experiential career opportunities, including Career Treks to national and international locations to network with alumni and explore specific industries; Fridays in the Field, which take students on site visits to organizations throughout the Washington, D.C. area; a Sophomore Summit seminar to prepare students for the internship and career journey; Leadership Labs with young alumni who share their approach to leadership; a professional dinner to learn proper business etiquette; and Bootcamps, most recently on the topics of finance and management consulting case interviews.
Undergraduate students also have access to a robust alumni network for networking, mentorship, and career opportunities – providing direct exposure to some of the best and brightest in the McDonough community. Alumni and students are encouraged to connect on the university’s digital connection platform, Hoya Gateway, to interact, share career advice, and offer industry insights and mock interviews. Over winter break, students can also leverage Host a Hoya to job shadow with alumni in their home cities and experience a “day-in-the-life” of a particular industry.
“While Georgetown’s location is one of its strongest resources, Georgetown’s mentoring community transcends far beyond Healy Circle,” said Jacob Werden (B’21), investment banking analyst at Guggenheim Partners. “Through my time on the Hilltop and afterwards, I could always rely on peers, faculty, and alumni to support me through both the ups and downs of the undergraduate experience.”
The undergraduate program was recently ranked 1st for alumni experience and 2nd in career outcomes by Poets&Quants, further solidifying the exceptional employment opportunities available at Georgetown McDonough.
“Our Jesuit values call on us to look beyond traditional career outcomes and care for the whole person. This value inspires all of our career programs at McDonough,” said Schatz. “We encourage our students to look beyond traditional career paths and find opportunities that fulfill them personally as well as professionally, and that is an important differentiator for our undergraduate career center.”