Recent college grads seeing uptick in salaries and outcomes

Class of 2019 college graduates who earned bachelor’s degrees found 2019 to be a very good year as they saw increases in both positive outcomes and salaries, according to new data collected by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).

Overall, nearly nine out of 10 bachelor’s degree graduates (86%) from the Class of 2019 had either landed in a job or were enrolled to further their education, according to results of NACE’s Class of 2019 First-Destination Survey.

Although that is only slightly higher than the 85.7% posted by the Class of 2018, it is the highest positive outcome rate reported since NACE first began reporting with the Class of 2014. (See Figure 1.)

While 2019 graduates saw just a small increase in their employment rate compared to their 2018 counterparts, their gains in salary were substantial: The median salary for 2019 bachelor’s degree graduates employed full time was $52,714, a 6% increase from the median of $49,725 in 2018.

Figure 1: Class of 2019 bachelor’s degree results

Total Graduates	549,972
Knowledge Rate	65.6%
Career Outcomes Percentage	86.0%
Percent Employed Overall	64.6%
Percent Employed Full time	59.7%
Percent Employed Part time	4.9%
Percent Service	0.8%
Percent Military	0.9%
Percent Continuing Education	18.6%
Percent Seeking Outcome	13.8%
Percent Seeking Employment	11.1%
Percent Seeking Continuing Education	2.7%
Not Seeking	1.3%
Mean Starting Salary	$54,488
Median Starting Salary	$52,714