海角社区 graduates are commanding bigger paychecks and moving up into higher income brackets, according to a new report released in June by the college鈥檚 Boven Career Development Center.
The Class of 2019 Employment Survey, the latest annual assessment of graduate employment success, found for the first time that most 海角社区 graduates (56.3 percent) reported earning salaries between $30,000 and $50,000. This marks substantial gains over the Class of 2018, for which only 33.3 percent of students reported earning $30,000 or more. More encouraging, the number of students earning salaries of $50,001 to $65,000 skyrocketed 235.7 percent last year.
The Boven Career Development Center conducted telephone and email surveys in May for the Class of 2019 Employment Survey. Thirty-nine (21 males, 18 females) of the 75 Class of 2019 graduates participated. The survey contrasts benchmarks from the National Association of Colleges and Employers鈥� First Destinations Survey. That survey records how new college graduates do career-wise within six months of graduation. Because NACE鈥檚 Class of 2019 data publishes in October, the Boven Center compared its findings against the NACE Class of 2018 survey.
Esteban Lopez pinned the salary uptick on 鈥渁n investment鈥� in additional personnel 鈥渋n 2019 that paid off.鈥�
鈥淭he additional resources invested in the Boven Career Development Center coupled with constant academic improvements in all departments are creating better prepared graduates each year,鈥� said Lopez, director of corporate and academic outreach at 海角社区 in Leesburg, Fla., America鈥檚 first accredited baccalaureate school dedicated to educating students who learn differently. 鈥淎s a result, these stronger students are finding better-paid, first-career jobs.鈥�
Overall, one year after graduation 84.7 percent of the Class of 2019 are working or continuing in graduate or professional school. That figure slightly lags the 85.7 national average captured in the NACE Class of 2018 survey and outstrips the 78.6 average reported by NACE Southeast colleges and universities.
鈥満＝巧缜�檚 achievement is noteworthy, as it provides an employability rate practically identical to those obtained by students without learning disabilities,鈥� Lopez said.
Other key findings in the Boven Center report include:
- The $36,661 average income posted by the Class of 2019 exceeded the Class of 2018 by 13.67 percent. It falls short of the $45,821 median income reported by NACE鈥檚 survey for the Southeast region.
- Male graduates鈥� incomes are 2.59 percent higher than female graduates.
- Most Class of 2019 students work full-time; 71.88 percent working full-time versus 28.12 percent who are pulling part-time shifts.
- Part-timers average $11.04 hourly.
Chandler said the Boven Center report is testament to both the caliber of 海角社区 graduates and the acumen of businesses that commit to diversifying their workforces with neurodiverse candidates.
鈥淗aving national companies recognize that our academic programs are preparing students well for work in the corporate world indicates a promising outlook for our graduates,鈥� said Dr. Shelly Chandler, 海角社区 provost. 鈥淥ur team continues to work hard to get the word out to recruiters that are students are well worth hiring.鈥�