First Destination Report: 2023-2024 Undergraduate Degree Recipients for College of Engineering

View results by whole university, by college, or by major

Response Rate

Number of Respondents %
Category
2201 Not Applicable Total Graduates
1435 65% Reported first destination / respondents
766 35% Unreported / non-respondents

Outcome

What are you primarily doing after graduation?
826 58% Working
49 3% Military
0 0% Volunteering
276 19% Continuing Education
0 0% Fellowship
267 19% Still Seeking Employment
14 1% Still Seeking Continuing Education
3 0% Not Seeking (traveling, gap year, taking time off, other)

Continuing Education Details

Respondents who indicate continuing education are asked to report their institution and location, and their degree level and program of study.

View list by undergrad major of continuing education degrees, institution, and locations

Working Details

Respondents who indicate working are asked to report their employer, position title, and location.

View list by undergrad major of employers, job titles, and locations

Salary and Bonus

Question for working and military respondents Note
Medians are shown when four or more individuals reported salary or bonus.
See Salary Detail Report which includes 25th and 75th percentiles where sufficient Ns were reported.
See Bonus Detail Report which provides more detail on numbers and percentages reporting.
541 62% Number and percent of working and military who reported salary.
Not Applicable Not Applicable Salary median for full-time working and military: $77000
244 28% Number and percent of working who reported receiving a bonus above $0.
Not Applicable Not Applicable Bonus Median: $5000

Job Source

Question for working respondents.

Regarding the job you accepted: Which best describes the way you first made contact with this employer?

112 14% Worked / volunteered with this employer in the past.
111 13% Knew / met the employer through someone I know (networking).
33 4% Career fair.
30 4% Handshake.
14 2% On-Campus Interviewing Program (employer interviewed in Smith Career Center).
65 8% Went directly to employer website.
45 5% Used job-seeker website, other than Handshake.
11 1% Information posted or messaged from my academic department.
8 1% Employer spoke at a presentation I attended.
160 19% Did not answer

Job related to Career Goals

Question for working respondents.

Do you consider your job to be related to your career goals?

538 65% Very
137 17% Somewhat
6 1% Not
145 18% Did not answer

Job Related to Major

Question for working respondents.

Do you consider your job to be related to your major?

561 68% Very
106 13% Somewhat
14 2% Not
145 18% Did not answer

Number of Job Offers

Question for working respondents.

As best as you recall, how many job offers have you received?

269 33% One
169 20% Two
100 12% Three
43 5% Four
63 8% Five or more
145 18% Did not answer

Career Planning and Preparation

Learned Job Search Skills | Source of Learning

Questions for working and still seeking employment respondents.

Which best describes the extent to which you learned job search skills during college?

297 27% Learned most that I needed.
509 47% Learned some, but not all, that I needed.
105 10% Learned nothing, or very little
182 17% Did not answer

If you learned job search skills, where did you learn them? Check all that apply.

332 30% Career & Professional Development; advising, presentations, website, resource center.
55 5% Career Planning Guide; booklet free to VT students from CPD.
52 5% Other books, magazines, print materials.
341 31% Websites external to Virginia Tech.
283 26% Academic-credit course in my major or college.
41 4% Not-for-credit program in my major or college.
343 31% Advisors, staff, professors in my major or college.
88 8% Other VT advisors, staff, professors, NOT in my major or college.
498 46% Employers, mentors at jobs, internships.
562 51% Parents, adult relatives, family friends.
483 44% Peers.
258 24% Did not answer

Advising on Continuing Education

Question for continuing education respondents only.

Where did you get advice about graduate or professional school? Check all that apply.

176 64% Professors at Virginia Tech.
129 47% Academic advisors at Virginia Tech.
4 1% Pre-professional school advisors at Virginia Tech.
0 0% Career center advisors at Virginia Tech.
77 28% Professionals working in the field I want to pursue.
58 21% Faculty or staff at the graduate or professional schools I considered.
86 31% Websites of the graduate or professional schools I considered.
0 0% Websites about professions and graduate schools.
129 47% Parents, adult relatives
136 49% Peers.
3 1% Print information: books, magazines, etc.
17 6% Did not answer
Experience during College
Questions for all respondents.

Did you have any type of career-related experience during college?

995 69% Yes
183 13% No
257 18% Stated prefer not to answer OR did not answer
TYPES OF EXPERIENCE OTHER THAN INTERNSHIPS
Questions for all respondents.

If you had any of the following types of experience, check all that apply.

121 8% Volunteer work
319 22% Part-time job
687 48% Summer job
152 11% Co-op
343 24% Undergraduate research
31 2% Field study
499 35% Did not answer
INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE
Questions for all respondents.

Did you have any type of internship during college (including paid, unpaid, or both)?

918 64% Yes
75 5% No
389 30% Stated prefer not to answer OR did not answer

Question asked to those who responded “yes” to had internship:
How many unpaid internships did you have?
("unpaid" meaning no monetary compensation, such as wage, salary, or stipend)

819 57% None
66 5% One
16 1% Two
12 1% Three or more
522 36% Did not answer OR question not applicable

Question asked to those who responded “yes” to had internship:
How many paid internships did you have?
("paid" meaning monetary compensation, including wage, salary, or stipend)

20 1% None
358 25% One
344 24% Two
196 14% Three or more
517 36% Did not answer OR question not applicable
NO INTERNSHIPS; REASONS
Question asked to those who responded “no” to had internship:

You said you did not have any internships during college. Please check any of the following that are applicable to you.

60 4% I did not need an internship. I had other forms of experience relevant to my career goals and/or major
54 4% I did not know all the possible sources to find an internship
89 6% I did not have all the job search skills I needed to secure an internship
83 6% I did not have all the qualifications employers required
12 1% Unpaid internships are the norm in my field, and I could not afford to work without pay
63 4% I could not find an internship in the geographic location I wanted
65 5% I could not find an internship with timing that worked for my schedule
10 1% I was offered an internship, but it was cancelled by the employer (due to economic issues, such as the pandemic, or other causes)
8 1% I was offered an in-person internship at a location to which I could not relocate due to costs
1195 83% Did not answer OR question not applicable

Used Career Center

Question for all respondents.

As you recall: During college, did you use any resources provided by the Virginia Tech career center? (could include advising, books, workshops, publications, website, Handshake, employment interviews, etc.)

269 19% Never
218 15% Don't recall or unsure
653 46% Yes, but not often
100 7% Yes, often
195 14% Did not answer

Regrets

Question for all respondents.

If you could start over in college, is there anything you would do differently related to career planning

563 39% No. Mostly I did what I needed to achieve my goals.
671 47% Yes. I would do something differently.
201 14% Did not answer

If yes, please check all that apply.
I wish I had...

499 35% Learned more, or earlier, about career options.
221 15% Learned more, or earlier, about graduate or professional school.
389 27% Asked advisors, staff, professors for advice, earlier, or more often.
461 32% Gotten more experience related to my major or career goals.
433 30% Started my job search earlier.
270 19% Used more or different job search resources.
643 45% Did not answer