About the Survey

Data collection begins in April prior to May Commencement and continues through the following March, usually resulting in a 95-99 percent response rate.  Surveys are emailed to graduating seniors in April, hard copies of surveys are collected at Commencement in May, follow-up emails are sent in October, Phonathon calling takes place in November and February and continued phone calls and emails round out the data collection in early March.

The resultant aggregated data includes information about percentage working or going to school, locations, a sampling of employers and graduate programs, salaries, and internship information.  For questions or more detailed information please contact pirate2pro@southwestern.edu .

Downloadable archived data is available from the links below, followed by highlights for the most recent class. For each class from 2000 through 2007 the class comprises graduates from August, December and May.  For 2008 the class comprises graduates from August 2007, December 2007, May 2008 and August 2008.  From 2009 forward the class includes December, May and August graduates.

• Class of 2017
• Class of 2016
• Class of 2015
• Class of 2014
• Class of 2013
• Class of 2012
• Class of 2011
• Class of 2010
• Class of 2009
• Class of 2008
• Class of 2007
• Class of 2006
• Class of 2005
• Class of 2004
• Class of 2003
• Class of 2002
• Class of 2001
• Class of 2000

Where are They Now? 10 Years After Southwestern

For decades the Center for Career & Professional Development has been collecting traditional first-destination data through annual surveys of new graduates within the first year after graduation. Relationships with our alumni and a growing “gap year” trend nationally, however, led us to believe that a one-year time horizon does not adequately tell the career story of liberal arts graduates. Taking a longer-term view better illustrates the impact of liberal arts education on graduates’ career development. In 2013, therefore, the Center for Career & Professional Development began conducting periodic 10-year-out surveys to gather data to support our anecdotal evidence. See what we found out:

• Class of 2003
• Class of 2006

To Take the Survey

The Class of 2021 (December 2020, May 2021, August 2021) survey takes place from April 2019 to March 2020. Click here to take the survey. For questions or problems, email Pirate2Pro@southwestern.edu   or call 512.863.1346.

Where is the Class of 2018 now?

The Class of 2018 comprises 335 graduates from December 2017, May 2018 and August 2018. The Center for Career & Professional Development obtained information on 316 (94 percent of the class). 

68.67 %    Employed

22.15 %    Graduate / professional school or advanced coursework

9.18 %      Other (seeking, volunteering, etc.)

The 33 graduates who earned two or more majors were tallied in each major for a look at responses by major and corresponding school/division.  Percentages may not total 100 due to rounding:

BROWN COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

Division of Humanities   

83.1 %     Employed

12.3 %     Graduate/Professional School or Advanced Coursework

6.2 %       Other

    

Division of Natural Sciences

52.7 %     Employed

34.4 % Graduate/Professional School or Advanced Coursework

12.9 %     Other

Division of Social Sciences

68.7 %     Employed

23.1 %     Graduate/Professional School or Advanced Coursework    

8.2 %       Other 

SAROFIM SCHOOL OF FINE ARTS            

80.0 %     Employed

15.0 %     Graduate/Professional School or Advanced Coursework    

5.0 %       Other

INDEPENDENT/INTERDISCIPLINARY MAJORS

71.4 %     Employed

7.1 %       Graduate/Professional School or Advanced Coursework    

21.4 %     Other

Employment

WHAT TYPE OF EMPLOYMENT IS IT? 

0.0 %       Military service

0.0 %       Volunteer service (e.g. AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, Teach for America, missionary work)   

5.4 %       Post-graduate internship or fellowship

2.4 %       Freelancer/Entrepreneur

7.7 %       Temporary/contract work assignment

84.5 %     All other employment

HOW DID THEY LOCATE POSITIONS? 

For employed graduates who reported the method by which they secured positions:

 

32.4 %   Other networking (e.g. family, friends)

22.9 %   Internet (other than organization’s own website, e.g. Indeed.com)

19.0 %   Directly contacted organizations

7.3 %     Other (e.g. self-employed, family business)

5.6 %   Career-related experience/internship

5.6 %     Alumnus/a

5.0 %     SU professor

1.1 %     Career fair

0.6 %     The Center for Career & Professional Development

0.6 %     Employment agency

WHERE ARE THEY WORKING? 

81 %    Texas

15 %    20 other states, including:

             1.4 %   California

             1.4 %   Colorado

             1.4 %   Washington, DC

             1.4 %   Georgia

             1.4%    Massachusetts

 4 %       Internationally (Argentina, Canada, China, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, Tanzania, and Thailand)

WHEN DID THEY BEGIN THEIR SEARCH? 

Graduates employed or seeking employment who responded about their job search process reported beginning:

 

21.9 %    Before senior year

20.0 %    Fall semester of senior year

20.5 %    Beginning of spring of senior year

20.9 %    End of spring of senior year

16.7 %    After graduation

WHAT DO THEY EARN?

Respondents working full-time who reported annual salaries earn:

 

34.9 %    less than $30,000

46.7 %    $30,000 to $50,000

18.4 %    more than $50,000

Since a liberal arts education prepares students broadly for many kinds of work, majors do not typically correlate directly with specific job titles.  Instead, employed graduates evaluated their satisfaction with their outcomes, and how well their outcomes match their expectations and meet their interests.  Those who reported on these questions stated:

IS THE WORK IN THEIR FIELD OF INTEREST? 

57.4 % Completely

32.4 % Somewhat

10.1 %    Not at all

HOW SATISFIED ARE THEY WITH THEIR OUTCOME? 

39.4 % Very happy

47.0 % Satisfied

10.6 % Slightly unsatisfied

3.0%       Completely unsatisfied

HOW WELL DOES THEIR OUTCOME MATCH THEIR EXPECTATIONS? 

37.7 % Meets expectations

31.2 % Close to meeting expectations

26.6 % Does not match but is happy

4.5 %  Does not match and is unhappy

SELECTED ORGANIZATIONS AND POSITIONS 

Accenture Federal Services, Technology Analyst

Allergan , Inside Sales Representative

Alltech, Quality Assurance Technician

Animal Hospital of Georgetown, Vet Technician

AnyTickets, Buyer

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Communications Specialist

Barrington Stage Company, Development Intern

Behavioral Innovations, Inc., Registered Behavior Technician

Berklee College of Music, Human Resources Coordinator

BioIQ Inc., Inside Sales - Strategic Growth

Casarona Law Firm, PLLC, Chief of Staff

Center for Autism and Related Disorders, Board Certified Autism Specialist

Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, Teacher

Decode Digital, Account Executive

Dell Seton Medical Center, Patient Care Technician

Enterprise Products Partners L.P., Distribution Analyst

Ernst & Young, Business Consultant

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Frisco ISD, Special Education Teacher

Gulf Coast Big Brothers Big Sisters, Match Support Specialist

Gusto, Payroll Onboarding Specialist

HomeAway, Inc., Partner Success Manager

IDEA Public Schools, Teacher

Impero Software, Regional Account Manager

Insys Therapeutics, QC Chemist

Kalil Commercial, Commercial Real Estate Agent

Kemper Corporation, Associate Paralegal

Kennemer, Masters, & Lunsford LLC, Staff Accountant

Latham & Watkins LLP, Project Assistant

Launch Marketing, Marketing Specialist

Lawson Chiropractic, Chiropractic Technician

Leander ISD, Teacher

Ledcor Technical Services, Communications Assistant

MFS Investment Management, Inbound Sales Team

Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Research Assistant

Ovation Fertility, Andrologist

Petro-Hunt LLC, Staff Accountant

Quarter Circle 10, Sales & Marketing

Raptim Humanitarian Travel Inc., International Travel Consultant

Road Warrior Creative, Digital Content Specialist

RODE Advertising, Assistant Account Executive

ScribeAmerica, Medical Scribe

Southwestern University, Fine Arts Coordinator

St. Michael’s Episcopal School, 1st and 2nd Grade Teacher

Tejas Ear, Nose and Throat, PA, Marketing Liaison

Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Policy Analyst

The Center for Child Protection, Data Specialist

Therapeutic Alliance LLC, In-Home Clinician

Umuse, Software Engineer

United States Marshall Service, Financial Analyst

University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Research Assistant I; Neuro-Oncology

Williamson County Juvenile Services, Juvenile Supervision Officer

Workers Defense Project, Membership Organizer

YES Prep Public Schools, Algebra 1 Teacher

Zoo Atlanta, Great Ape Cognition Research Assistant

Graduate / Professional School and Advanced Coursework

WHAT KIND OF PROGRAMS ARE THEY PURSUING? 

Twenty-three percent of the Class of 2017 continued their education directly after Southwestern. Of those continuing their studies, they did so in the following ways:

 

57 %    Graduate school (e.g. Master of Arts, PhD, etc.)

11 %    Advanced coursework (e.g. teacher certification, grad school pre-requisites, second                            Bachelor’s)

10%     Law School

7 %      Medical School (MD, DO)

6 %      Theological School

9 %      Other professional school (e.g. DDS, OD, DVM, etc.)

WHERE ARE THEY STUDYING? 

57 %    Texas

40 %    16 other U.S. states

3%       Internationally (England)

SELECTED INSTITUTIONS AND PROGRAMS OF STUDY 

Auburn University, MEd in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Barry University, MS in Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology

Baylor University, PhD in Behavioral Neuroscience

Boston University School of Theology, MDiv

Carnegie Mellon University, PhD in Mechanical Engineering

Case Western Reserve University School of Law, JD

George Washington University, MA in Security Policy Studies

Johnson & Wales University, MBA in Sport Leadership

McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, MD

Miami University, MS in Conservation Biology

Northwestern University, PhD in Chemistry

Queen Mary University of London, MS in Forensic Psychology

San Diego State University, MFA in Scenic Design and Technology

Southern Methodist University, MS in Data Science

St. Mary’s University, MA in Public History

Teacher’s College at Columbia University, MA in History and Education

Texas Christian University, PhD in Social Psychology

Texas Tech Health Science Center School of Medicine, MD

Texas Woman’s University, MS in Child Life

Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, DVM

University of Buckingham, MA in Decorative Arts and Historic Interiors

University of Colorado, Boulder, MS in Computer Science

University of Denver Sturm College of Law, JD

University of Houston, Downtown, MA in Non-Profit Management

University of Illinois at Chicago, PhD in Economics

University of New England, DPT

University of Texas at Austin, Master of Science in Information Studies

University of Texas at Austin, MA in Advertising

UTHealth San Antonio, DDS

Winthrop University, MSW

Internships

TOTAL INTERNSHIPS

More than 60 percent of the Class of 2018 (69.5 percent of respondents to the survey’s internship questions) reported completing at least one internship experience. Thirty-three percent of the class (nearly 37 percent of respondents to the survey’s internship questions) reported having two or more internships. Those respondents reported on their internship experiences:

 

30.5 %        0

32.6 %        1

18.1 %        2

12.1 %        3

5.0 %          4

0.7 %      5

0.3 %          6

0.7 %          7

NUMBER OF INTERNSHIPS FOR ACADEMIC CREDIT 

(for those reporting about academic internships)

13.2 %     3 or more internships

21.1 %     2 internships

65.8 %     1 internship

NUMBER OF INTERNSHIPS FOR EXPERIENCE ONLY

(for those reporting about experience-only internships):

15.2%     3 or more internships

33.1 %     2 internships

51.7 %     1 internship

PAY FOR INTERNSHIPS

32 %        Paid

43 %        Unpaid

25 %        Both (for graduates with more than one experience: some paid, some unpaid)

HELPFULNESS OF INTERNSHIPS

65.4 %      Very helpful

30.7 %      Somewhat helpful

3.9 %        Not helpful

Evaluation

In addition to evaluating satisfaction with first-destination outcomes and the match between those outcomes and their expectations, graduates also reported on their satisfaction with the Center for Career & Professional Development interactions as well as overall satisfaction with their Southwestern University education.

SATISFACTION WITH THE CENTER FOR CAREER & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Graduates reported their responses to the question, “How satisfied are you with the Center for Career & Professional Development regarding guidance provided for securing your job/grad school acceptance?”  Interactions with the Center for Career & Professional Development can include individual advising appointments, participation in group workshops/events, etc.  More detailed evaluations of each of these components are available through the Center for Career & Professional Development. Of students who reported using the Center for Career & Professional Development, respondents were:

50 %    Very happy

41%     Satisfied

7 %      Slightly unsatisfied

2 %  Completely unsatisfied

SATISFACTION WITH SOUTHWESTERN

Graduates reported their responses to the question, “Based on your SU experience, how satisfied are you with your preparation for your [intended] job/graduate school program?” Of students who answered this question, respondents were:

47 % Very happy

40 % Satisfied

10 %     Slightly unsatisfied

2 %       Completely unsatisfied