Learning Objective II
Graduates will be successful in their career, finding a job, and progressing in their field.
We developed a brief Qualtrics survey to ask 160 graduates from Fall 2015 - Summer 2021 how their graduate degree affected their career. This survey was sent on September 22nd, 2021. We received 85 responses (53.125% response rate). Below is the summary of the responses for each of seven survey questions in bar graphs and tables.
Q1 - Upon receiving your graduate degree from USU, what were your job prospects?
| Answer | Percentage | Count |
|---|---|---|
| I was already employed outside of USU while completing my degree | 38.54% | 37 |
| I had accepted a job offer and began work immediately after graduating | 32.29% | 31 |
| I didn't have an employment offer, but had begun searching before graduation | 14.58% | 14 |
| I began actively searching for employment upon graduation | 8.33% | 8 |
| I planned to pursue a Ph.D., post-doc, or other education | 4.17% | 4 |
| I was not searching for employment or education opportunities | 2.08% | 2 |
The total number of responses was 96 and is greater than the number of respondents because alumni were allowed to give multiple responses to Question 1.
- Three replied both “I didn't have an employment offer, but had begun searching before graduation’ and “I began actively searching for employment upon graduation.”
- One replied both “I had accepted a job offer and began work immediately after graduating” and “I began actively searching for employment upon graduation.”
- One replied with 3 choices “I was already employed outside of USU while completing my degree”, “I didn't have an employment offer, but had begun searching before graduation”, and “I planned to pursue a Ph.D., post-doc, or other education.”
- Three replied both “I was already employed outside of USU while completing my degree” and “I had accepted a job offer and began work immediately after graduating.”
- One replied both “I was already employed outside of USU while completing my degree” and “I planned to pursue a Ph.D., post-doc, or other education.”
- One replied both “I was already employed outside of USU while completing my degree” and “I was not searching for employment or education opportunities.”
Q2 - Did you continue on to a PhD or post-doctoral program?
| Answer | Percentage | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 10.59% | 9 |
| No | 89.41% | 76 |
The total number of respondents was 85.
Q3 - If you took employment, in which sector did you take work?
| Answer | Percentage | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Faculty/University Position | 14.43% | 14 |
| Teaching in Secondary/Vocational Education | 1.03% | 1 |
| Industry/Corporate | 51.55% | 50 |
| Federal Research Agencies | 5.15% | 5 |
| Military/Defense | 8.25% | 8 |
| Local/State/Federal Government | 8.25% | 8 |
| Other | 4.12% | 4* |
| Not Applicable | 7.22% | 7 |
The total number of responses was 97** because of the ability to indicate multiple employment sectors.
* In a follow-up question, “Other sectors” where alumni took work included: Software, Networking, Computer Science, and Health Insurance.
** Respondents could indicate multiple employment sectors.
- Three replied both “Faculty/University Position” and “Industry/Corporate.”
- One indicated these three sectors: “Faculty/University Position,” “Industry/Corporate” and “Military/Defense.”
- One indicated both “Faculty/University Position” and “Local/State/Federal Government.”
- One replied both “Federal Research Agencies” and “Local/State/Federal Government.”
- One replied both “Federal Research Agencies” and “Military/Defense.”
- One indicated these three sectors: “Industry/Corporate”, “Federal Research Agencies” and “Military/Defense.”
- One replied both “Industry/Corporate” and “Local/State/Federal Government.”
- One replied both “Military/Defense” and “Local/State/Federal Government.”
Q4 - Was your job after you graduated full- or part-time?
| Answer | Percentage | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time | 98.80% | 82 |
| Part-time | 1.20% | 1 |
The total number of respondents was 83.
Q5 - Given your training to obtain a Graduate Degree, how would you describe your job?
| Answer | Percentage | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Definitely beneath my level | 7.23% | 6 |
| Too advanced for my level | 1.20% | 1 |
| Somewhat beneath my level | 16.87% | 14 |
| Appropriate for my level | 74.70% | 62 |
The total number of respondents was 83.
Q6 - How well did the USU Graduate program prepare you for your career?
| Answer | Percentage | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Not well | 1.20% | 1 |
| Slightly well | 15.66% | 13 |
| Moderately well | 25.30% | 21 |
| Very well | 42.17% | 35 |
| Extremely well | 15.66% | 13 |
The total number of respondents was 83.
Q7 - If I had to make my graduate program choice over again, I would choose to attend USU.
| Answer | Percentage | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly Disagree | 1.20% | 1 |
| Disagree | 2.41% | 2 |
| Indifferent | 16.87% | 14 |
| Agree | 39.76% | 33 |
| Strongly Agree | 39.76% | 33 |
The total number of respondents was 83.
Survey answers show
- 89.41% of the 85 respondents (see answers to Q2) decided to work after graduating from graduate school.
- 95.29% of the 85 respondents (see answers to Q1) started working right after graduation. Among these,
- 43.53% were already employed outside USU while completing their degrees), and
- 58.82% of the 85 respondents (see answers to Q3) worked in industry and corporate.
- 74.70% of the 83 respondents (see answers to Q5) described their jobs to be appropriate for their levels.
- 57.83% of the 83 respondents (see answers to Q6) ranked our graduate program as a very well or extremely well program.
- 79.52% of the 83 respondents (see answers to Q7) would choose to attend USU if given the graduate program choice over again.
The results of the survey clearly show that graduates were satisfied with their experience at USU and that their degree was a worthwhile pursuit.