Searching for a job can be difficult amid lingering effects from the pandemic, increased competition and current economic uncertainty. Through it all, recent University of Dayton graduates report a record 98% success rate and 10.5% jump in average salary.

"Success," as defined in the annual UD Career Services Flyer First Destination Survey, means being employed, pursuing a graduate degree or participating in a service program within six months of earning their degree, according to Jason Eckert, executive director of UD career services.

Other items of note from the survey of graduates from August and December 2021 and May 2022 include:

• The average starting salary was reported at $57,808, up from $52,336 last year. 
• 96% reported they are finding success in their chosen fields or in a job that's a first step toward a position in their field.
• The success rates by school are 99% for the School of Education and Health Sciences, 98% for the School of Business Administration and the School of Engineering, and 95% for the College of Arts and Sciences. 
• Top employers include the U.S. military, GE Aerospace, Fifth Third Bank and Deloitte. 
• The Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University, the University of Notre Dame and Johns Hopkins University are among the top graduate schools. 
• Forty-four percent of the graduates who reported being employed found employment in Ohio while others found opportunities in at least 44 states and nine countries.
• A record 91% of those graduates responded to this year's survey. 

"This group certainly has had its share of trials and tribulations in college, so I'm very pleased with the career outcomes achieved by these resilient graduates," Eckert said. "A hallmark of UD's Marianist education is educating for adaptation and change, and our graduates the last two years definitely have done that with much success."

Click here for the complete Flyer First Destination Survey.

For interviews, contact Shawn Robinson, associate director of news and communications, at srobinson1@udayton.edu.