First Destination Survey

UW-Madison uses a First Destination Survey to learn about future plans of our bachelor’s degree recipients.

Schools/Colleges, Departments, Career Services Units, and other employees can click here or on the image below to access internal data via the First Destination Survey Tableau visualization with detailed summary results for campus, by school/college, by major, and by department.

Some highlights for 2021-2022

–72% of our grads plan to work, serve in the military, or participate in a volunteer/service program (such as Teach for America or the Peace Corps) after graduation.
–28% of graduates are planning to attend graduate school or other continuing education.
–71% of those planning to work, serve in the military, or participate in a volunteer/service program had accepted a position at the time of graduation.
–86% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that UW-Madison prepared them for the next step in their career path.
–62% reported completing at least one internship while at UW-Madison, 45% report volunteering during their time at UW-Madison, 81% report working while at UW-Madison, and 100% did at least one of these activities.
–top 10 employers of graduates are UW-Madison, Epic, UW Health, State of Wisconsin, Deloitte, Kohl’s, UnityPoint Meriter, Madison Metropolitan School District, Milwaukee Tool, and Amazon.
— The most common jobs titles of graduates are Software Engineer, Software Developer, Registered Nurse, Research Intern, and Actuarial Analyst
–47% of those reporting employment were working in Wisconsin, and students reported employment in 41 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties, 47 states/territories, and 22 countries.

screenshot of the visualization showing data from the First Destination Survey

The First Destination Survey meets guidelines of the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) and allows for standardized reporting around what bachelor’s degree recipients plan immediately after graduation. A copy of the questionnaire is available here.

For more detailed information contact Sara Lazenby.

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