Undergraduate Class of 2020 Sets Salary Records at McDonough
Undergraduate students in the Class of 2020 at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business achieved record career results in the months after their graduation, despite the unprecedented effects of the pandemic and other challenges to the business world.
According to the school’s 2020 Undergraduate Employment Report, 94% of graduates were employed full time, up from 91% the previous year, and their average starting salaries increased from $75,822 to $78,015. The average signing bonus was $8,848, and 72% of graduates received one.
“We are so proud to see the hard work of the Class of 2020 lead to successful career outcomes,” said Talia Schatz, director of the Undergraduate Career Development Center at the McDonough School of Business. “As we continue to monitor changes in the business world and develop innovative new career programming for our students, we expect this trend to continue.”
The top industries for graduates were finance (49%) and consulting (22%), with public accounting (7%) and real estate (6%) also gaining interest from students. The top employers included Accenture, Bain, Bank of America, Barclays, Capital One, Citigroup, Deloitte, EY, Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, JP Morgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and PwC.
Experiential learning is a key ingredient in the success of the class of 2020 with 97% of students securing internships prior to graduation.”
“Georgetown McDonough’s amazing alumni network played a huge role in the success of our students during the summer of 2020,” Schatz said. “We reached out through a campaign called Hoyas Helping Hoyas, and alumni responded with job offers, internship opportunities, and mentoring for our students to help students find their own paths to success.”
The McDonough Undergraduate Career Development Center works collaboratively with the university’s career office, but with a specific focus on supporting business undergraduates. The team offers one-on-one career coaching and a robust Peer Career Advisors group. Signature programs include 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; and Bootcamps, most recently on the topics of finance and management consulting case interviews.