California State University, Sacramento

California State University, Sacramento College of Business Administration Report Prepared by: Bonnie Burnell, Director Business Student Services November, 2007 Graduating Business Student Employment Survey Report Undergraduate Students

Graduating Student Employment Survey Report Graduates In the spring 2006 semester, over 600 students graduated with a degree in Business Administration. We surveyed these students utilizing an online web based survey. We asked specific questions regarding their experience in the College of Business Administration, plans for after graduation, employment status, graduate school plans and internship experiences. Of those surveyed, we received a 28% response rate. Highlights from the survey tell us that: More than half graduated with concentrations in Finance and Accountancy. Over 75% of our students are transfer students. The majority of our graduates believe their business degree prepared them for a professional job in the business community upon graduation. More than half of our students graduated with a GPA above 3.0, but the majority are not involved in student organizations. Over 90% indicate a very high satisfaction level with the CBA. The majority of our graduates who begin career level employment within a year of graduating have a starting salary between $30k and $50k and nearly half also receive commissions and/or bonuses. 90% stay in California to work and of those, 58% stay in Sacramento. Over 70% report that they did not complete an internship prior to graduation. The following pages provide a full summary of the survey responses.

Graduating Student Employment Survey Report Graduates Table of Contents Slide Title Slide # Distribution of Concentrations 4 Status at Time of Enrollment 5 Preparedness for Professional Career 6 GPAs 7 Involvement in Student Organizations 8 Overall Satisfaction with the CBA 9 Satisfaction with Chosen Concentration(s) 10 Plans After Graduation 11 Job Offers 12 New Job(s) After Graduation 13 Job Relation to Concentration(s) 14 Timing of Job Acceptance 15 Annual Starting Salary 16 Commissions and/or Bonuses 17 Industry Type of New Jobs 18 How New Jobs Were Found 19 Location of Employer 20 Job Titles of Graduates Employed Full Time 21 Graduate School Plans 22 Graduate School Level 23 Sac State MBA 24 Grad School of Choice 25 Grad School Program of Study 26 Internships 27 Comparison of Performance: All Grads : Internships & Involvement 28

4 What was your concentration? IB 6% Distribution of Concentrations RE 6% AIS 3% OPM 2% Accountancy 20% HR/OB 6% RM/Ins 7% Finance 19% MIS 7% Gen Mgmt 10% Marketing 14% Of students who graduated in the spring 2006 semester, the majority were Accountancy (20%) and Finance (19%). The Entrepreneurship concentration did not begin until the Fall 2006 semester and is therefore not reflected here.

5 Did you come to Sac State a First Time Freshman, Transfer Student or to pursue a 2 nd Bachelors? Status at time of enrollment First Time Freshman 21% 2nd BA 3% Transfer Students 76% This chart illustrates the enrollment status of Business Students. The majority of students in the College of Business Administration are transfer students.

6 How much do you agree with the following statement: Overall, my education at the College of Business Administration prepared me for a professional job in the community upon graduation? 7% 37% Preparedness for Professional Career 2% 3% 1% 5% 45% Somewhat Agree Strongly Agree Very Strongly Agree Somewhat Disagree Strongly Disagree Not sure Very Strongly Disagree More than half of the spring 2006 graduates agreed in varying degrees that their education had prepared them well for a professional career upon graduation.

7 GPAs of Grads What was your grade point average 4.0 0% when you graduated? 2.00 2.492.49 7% 3.50 3.99 350399 3.99 399 27% Graduating with Academic Honors 3.00 3.49 39% 3.00 3.49 2.50 2.99 3.50 3.99 2.00 2.49 4.00 4.00 2.50 2.992.99 27% Of students who graduated in the spring 2006 semester, more than half achieved a grade point average of 3.0 or higher with more than 25% graduating with honors.

8 Were you involved in any student organizations on campus while you were a student? Yes 38% Involvement in Student Organizations No 62% More than half of business students did not participate in Student Organizations.

9 Would you recommend the CBA to a prospective student? Overall Satisfaction with the CBA No 3% Yes 97% Of the small percentage of students who would not recommend the CBA, their responses included the following comments: I didn't enjoy my time with the Business Department. The business administration department is lost. They don't guide their students and provide enough career direction. I'm a recent graduate having a hard time finding a job that pays a decent wage. It seems like I could've done better without the college education or at least, not in the field of business administration. I bl believe that some of the professors are not prepared to teach some of the courses. Plus the business advisors don't help you enough to make good choices. I felt that the standards were too low. Many students try to get away with never studying and making up excuses. The group work required was ridiculous because the same students ended up taking on all the work every time and the slackers always got a free ride. It was extremely disorganized and overcrowded. It took 6 months for me to get a counseling appointment with the CBA.

10 Would you recommend your concentration to a prospective student? Satisfaction with chosen concentration(s) No 8% Yes 92% Of the small percentage who would not recommend their concentration, sample comments included the following: Haven't found a job in International Business yet. I'm still searching. The major sounds more promising than actually getting a job in International Business. I believe I didn't gain enough education from my teachers that were in my concentration. The assignments weren't relevant and didn't teach me much. Wespoke of things I don't speak of now in my job and that haven't helped me in interviews. I guess it really depends on what you want. Most students don't at the beginning. I honestly wasn't quite sure what I wanted but it was definitely in Business. However, I don't believe that the courses have really prepared me for my professional career. I majored in RE, now I don't really think that necessary because you can easily take the RE state exam. As for Finance, I think the money is in Accounting = ) It's too hard to find a job for general management b/c you don't have a real concentration. People who are looking for human resource hire human resource students. People who are looking for mgmt hire within the company and want you to start at the bottom to move up. You don't need a degree for the entry level they offer. Risk mgmt and insurance should not be allowed as a concentration on its own. It should be paired with another major such as finance. Now that I've graduated, it's very hard to get a job with this degree alone. The demand for the finance concentration is not very high and even in job fairs, there are more jobs wanting accounting as a concentration. I should have done accounting as my concentration.

11 What are your plans for your immediate future? [within the first year after graduation] Plans for After Graduation 7% 10% 50% 28% Other plans included: Seek work and grad school Begin full time career and obtain CPA license Full time employment and also plan to sit for the CPA exam. Home maker Part time work, attending culinary school 5% Continue or Begin full time career employment [I am already employed or I have been hired and will begin working soon] Continue or begin graduate school education [e.g. graduate school, law school, etc. I am already enrolled or I have been admitted and will enroll soon] I am currently employed full time and I also plan to attend graduate school Seek full time employment [Look for full time job] Other (please specify) Travel Currently working part time Half of the spring 2006 graduates planned to Stay S home with ihmy kids for continue or begin full time employment, while approximately 30% had entered or planned to enroll in graduate school. the next few years first I had been in a career for 9 years before I graduated and during schooling, just quit employment upon birth of first child (have two now)

12 How many job offers did you receive within the year you graduated? no answer 26% Job Offers One 15% Already working 7% Two 20% None 4% Ten 0% Six 1% Five 4% Four 8% Three 15% Of those who responded to the question, 63% of spring 2006 graduating seniors received between 1 6 jobs offers upon graduation. A large percentage [26%] chose to not respond to the question.

13 Is this job new since you graduated? [i.e. you did not work in this job with this company while you were a student.] New Jobs After Graduation no 30% Yes 70% Of the students who were employed full time upon graduation, 70% were in a new position after completing their degree.

14 How closely is this position related to your concentration(s) ti in the business major? Job Relation to Concentration(s) Not related at all 10% Somewhat closely related 24% Very Closely Related 40% No answer 26% Of those in a new job upon graduation, more than half [64%] are in positions related in varying degrees to their concentration in business administration.

15 When did you accept this job? Timing i of Job bacceptance Before graduation 48% After graduation 52% Of the graduates with new jobs upon graduation, slightly more found their jobs after graduation.

16 What is/was your starting annual salary? 60 50 Annual Starting Salary 49 40 36 30 20 18 16 10 6 2 2 1 1 2 0 Of those students starting a new full time job upon graduation, the majority stated an annual salary between $30k $50k.

17 Did you earn commissions and/or bonuses? Commissions i and/or Bonuses Yes 42% No 58% More than half of spring 2006 graduates report that they do not earn bonuses or commissions in addition to their annual salary.

How would you describe the industry type of your new job? 18 Accounting 22 Finance 13 Real Esate/Land Use 8 Operations Management Management Information Systems 6 6 Retail Marketing Human Resources 5 5 5 Education 4 Sales Risk Management/Insurance Health Care Government General Management 3 3 3 3 3 State Agency Investments Hospitality Health/Fitness Industry Entrepreneurship Civil Service Banking 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Other 33 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

19 How did you find your job? 60 50 50 How did you find your job? 40 30 27 20 23 17 10 11 10 9 0 4 3 1 An overwhelming majority of business graduates report that they found their job through personal networking over any other type of job search.

Where is your employer located? 20 In/Out of State for post graduation employment Locations of Employment in CA 5% 4% In CA Sacramento Sacramento w/national or Int'l HQ Roseville Out of CA Folsom Elk Grove 91% Sac but with offices located in US/Abroad Rancho Cordova El Dorado Hills Oakland Elsewhere in CA Locations of graduates working out of CA 21% 14% 14% 15% 15% Denver, CO Tokyo, Japan Sacramento, NC Las Vegas, NV 2% 2% 2% 2% 3% 58% 14% 14% 14% Columbus, OH San Antonio, TX Seattle, WA 6% 4%

Job Titles of Graduates Employed Full Time Within One Year of Graduation Account Clerk/Executive Account Clerk II Accountant Accountant I Accountant Trainee Accounting Manager Accounting Officer Administrative Analyst Administration and Marketing Administrative Assistant Administrative Support Coordinator (Payroll) Admissions Advisor Analyst Area Manager Assistant manager Associate Associate Accountant Associate Auditor Associate Information Systems Analyst Assurance Associate Audit Associate Auditor Auditor I Billing Administrator Business Analyst Business Support Analyst Business Taxes Representative Car Electronics Supervisor Cash Manager Civil Engineer Claims Adjuster Client Computer Support Analyst Client Financial Management Analyst Community Director Compliance Rep (CA Tax) Computer C Operator Consultant for Online Courses Controller 21 Coordinator Corporate Event Planner Credit Analyst Credit Manager Customer Service Representative Data Entry Database Administrator Department of Motor Vehicle Technician Desktop Technician District Manager Master Craftsman Media Coordinator MedicalSales Rep Navigator Office Technician Operations Manager Payroll Technician Pension Administrator Pricing Analyst Program Coordinator Property Assistant Energy Trading Specialist Real Estate Investment Broker Finance Director Real Estate Manager Finance Operations Specialist student Recruitment Specialist loans Regional Sales Director Financial Advisor Financial Retail Manager Representative Revenue Administrator Floater at a Credit Union Fund Accountant Sales Representative Fund Accounting Analyst Senior Project Accountant Human Resources Administrator Human Resources Analyst Human Resources Assistant Internal Auditor Investment Advisor Representative Investment/Loan Officer IT Analyst IT Strategic Planner Staff ISA Labor Relations Analyst Marketing Account Assistant Marketing Coordinator Marketing M k i Specialist Marketing Trainee / Customer Data Analysis Special Projects Account Executive Special Projects Analyst Staff Accountant Staff Assistant Staff Associate Staff Auditor Staff Information Systems Analyst Supervisor Systems Analyst Systems Specialist Tax Associate Tax Auditor Team Leader Technical Account Manager Training T i i Developer Transportation Engineer

22 Please tell us about your plans for attending graduate school. l 5% Graduate School Plans I plan to attend, but not immediately I have not applied yet. 5% 4% I do not plan to attend graduate school 42% No answer 21% 23% I plan to attend immediately I have applied, been admitted and am enrolled, or will enroll soon Other Undecided at this time Nearly half of spring 2006 graduates plan to attend graduate school: 42% plan to but have not applied and 5% had applied/been admitted at the time of this survey.

23 What level of graduate school do you plan to attend? 80 70 60 Graduate School Level 50 40 30 20 10 0 Master's Degree Program Law Degree Other Teaching Doctorate Degree MBA/JD Of those who plan to attend graduate school, most plan to pursue a Master s Degree.

24 Would you consider the Sacramento State MBA or other graduate program as an option? Sacramento State MBA No 7% Yes 39% No answer 54% Approximately 39% indicate they would choose the CBA for a graduate school.

25 What graduate school do you plan to attend? California State University, Sacramento Not Sure Deciding between Sac State and another school Grad School Choice National/Phoenix San Francisco State UC Davis USC Pepperdine UC Irvine UCLA University of Oregon University of San Francisco UNLV Whittier school of law 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 When asked what graduate school they will attend, those who plan to or have applied/been admitted, the majority of responses are divided between Sac State and being undecided at the time of the survey.

26 MBA What program of study do you plan to pursue in graduate school? Finance Accounting Undecided Business Information Systems Human Resources Taxation Education Law Communications Operations Mgmt Mediated Communication and Marketing Finance & Real Estate Criminal Law CPA Construction Mgmt, Real Estate 0 5 10 15 20 Of those who plan to pursue graduate school, most plan to obtain an MBA.

27 Did you complete an internship or co op while you were a student? [with or without academic credit] Yes 19% Internships No Answer 4% No 77% Overwhelmingly, 77% of spring 2006 graduates report that they did not complete an internship while in school. Of those who did [19%], most completed only one internship and of those, 13% were paid experiences and the student received academic credit.

Comparison between all graduates and those who completed an internship and were involved in student organizations Although only 19% of spring 2006 graduates reported that they completed an internship while pursuing their degree in business, and only 38% were involved in student organizations, there are differences between these students and the entire graduating class. Most notable are stronger GPA s, higher rates of overall satisfaction and higher rates of employment and starting salaries. 28 Occurrences of higher rates of performance is indicated in bold. GPA All Grads Completed an Internship Involved in Student Organizations 2.00 2.49: 6.7% 0.0% 07.4% 2.50 2.99: 3.00 3.49: 3.50 3.99: 27.8% 38.5% 27.8% 25.7% 40.9% 34.3% 25.0% 36.8% 30.0% Agree that CBA education prepared them for professional job in business: Very Strongly Agree: Strongly Agree: 07.2% 37.2% 14.3% 42.9% 11.8% 33.8% Involved in student organizations: 37.8% 62.9% N/A Recommend concentration, Yes: 91.6% 97.1% 95.0% Recommend CBA, Yes: 97.2% 97.1% 100.0% Continue/Begin full time employment: 49.2.3% 57.1% 53.7% Received 1 or more job offers within 1 year of graduation: 84.8% 95.2% 97.9% New job very closely related to concentration: 54.1% 67.9% 75.0% Accepted job BEFORE graduation: 48.1% 67.9% 46.0% Starting Salary: Highest salary earned by most students: $30k 39k $40k $49k $40k $49k

California State University, Sacramento College of Business Administration Reports Prepared by: Bonnie Burnell, Director Business Student Services Graduating Business Student Employment Survey Reports Undergraduate d Students t For Semesters: Fall 2006