The MBA Class of 2025 employment report from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business is here. Darden is upholding its positive track record of post-graduate employment outcomes despite economic uncertainty and international headwinds.
Out of the 352 graduates, 93 percent were pursuing full-time employment. Twelve students have opted instead to launch a new business. By the three-month post-graduation mark, 90.2 percent had received at least one job offer and 89.3 percent had accepted an offer.
This class continued the five-year-running high median salary of $175,000, with a median signing bonus of 30,000. The average salary was reported as $162,578 while the average signing bonus was a hefty $36,906.
Over 70 percent of graduates found employment through school-facilitated activities, which includes job fairs, conferences, employer events, faculty referrals, alumni referrals, classmates, campus speakers, treks, club events, and class projects. Nearly 60 percent earned their roles through internships.
Industry and Regional Job Placement
There were slight changes in the top industries for UVA Darden MBA grads this year, but the top three industries of consulting, financial services, and technology remain the most attractive for young professionals. Consulting drew 37.3 percent of the class while the financial services industry hired 26 percent of the class. Nearly doubling last year’s showing, 16.1 percent of the class went into tech.
Consumer packaged goods and healthcare rounded out the top five with 3.8 percent and 3.1 percent, respectively.
| Consulting | 37.3% | $184,809 |
| Financial Services | 26% | $165,680 |
| Technology | 16.1% | $137,965 |
| Consumer Packaged Goods | 3.8% | $135,182 |
| Healthcare | 3.1% | $135,125 |
Ninety-eight percent of the MBA Class of 2025 found work in the United States, though the two percent who went overseas secured employment in Asia, Central America, and South America.
Just over a quarter of the class (25.3 percent) remained in the Mid-Atlantic region, where the average base salary was reported to be $160,477, while exactly one quarter moved to the Northeast for the higher-average base salary of $172,556. A little over 14 percent moved to the South where average salaries came in at $168,012. The Midwest region saw the smallest cohort find employment with just 7.9 percent of the class. It’s also where the lowest average base salaries were reported at $153,000.
| Mid-Atlantic | 25.3% | $160,477 |
| Northeast | 25% | $172,556 |
| South | 14.4% | $168,012 |
| West | 13.4% | $163,657 |
| Southwest | 12.3% | $167,110 |
| Midwest | 7.9% | $153,000 |
Top employers for the class included Amazon, Bain & Company, Bank of America, Barclays, BCG, American Express, and McKinsey & Company.
