Where do UConn grads end up?
More are staying in state, perhaps leading CT to a ‘brain gain’ rather than a drain
More University of Connecticut graduates are now finding jobs in Connecticut and choosing to stay here, despite state legislators’ worries about “brain drain” – college graduates leaving the state.
A similar jump is seen with graduates deciding to continue their education in Connecticut, with UConn as their top destination, data show.
And even those graduates who leave the state for employment don’t tend to travel far. Most end up in the Northeast, with Massachusetts and New York as the top landing spots.
The university’s Career Center reports that 75 percent of in-state UConn graduates in 2022 found jobs in Connecticut, a 13 percent increase from just two years before.
Lisa McGuire, the associate director of Corporate Partner Relations at the Career Center, works with employers looking to hire UConn talent. According to McGuire, the majority of graduates want to work and live in New England, if not Connecticut.
Lisa McGuire, associate director of Corporate Partner Relations at UConn’s Career Center. / Courtesy of Lisa McGuire
McGuire said it’s important to understand and respond to what students want, so that the Career Center can provide them with the best opportunities.
“They really want to work here,” she said, meaning the majority of employers McGuire connects with are based in and around Connecticut.
The top five majors in the Class of 2022 were psychological sciences, economics, nursing, finance, and allied health sciences. The main location for employment for each major is Connecticut, followed by Massachusetts and New York, with a focus on Boston and Manhattan.
UConn’s School of Business tells the same story: More than half of its 2022 graduates work in Connecticut, followed again by New York and Massachusetts. Eighty-seven percent of Business School graduates work in the Northeast, according to data from the School of Business Career Development Office.
UConn graduates' employment rates have slightly decreased over the last year, according to the university’s Career Center. In 2016, 63.5% of graduates were employed; in 2021, 59%.
The 4.5% decrease in employment rates among recent graduates can be linked to the increase in postgraduate education. Data from the Career Center show a 12% increase in UConn graduates choosing to further their education: In 2016, 18% of UConn graduates went on to graduate school, compared with 30% in 2021. An increase is also seen nationally, but not nearly as much as at UConn, with a 4.1% increase over five years.
Graphic by Colleen Lucey
What are employers looking for?
There are plenty of opportunities for employment post-graduation, even if students do not want to remain in New England. The staff at the Career Center works to connect employers to students searching for jobs and internships after graduation.
According to McGuire, employers are aware of UConn’s strong academic reputation and are eager to hire UConn talent.
“My team of five could spend every minute of every day just responding to employer inquiries,” McGuire said. “We have employers every day looking for all of our majors.”
McGuire, of course, does not spend all of her time responding to inquiries, she reaches out to employers as well. “Our goal is to provide as many diverse opportunities to UConn students as possible,” she said.
Kathy Hendrickson, director of the UConn Business School Undergraduate Career Development Office, described her priorities in an interview. Hendrickson’s first concern is helping students find jobs and internships that are the best fit for them. To that end, she has passed over employers seeking UConn talent.
Kathy Hendrickson of the UConn Business School. / Courtesy of Kathy Hendrickson
“It is the student first. For their safety, for their skill building and their financial strength,” Hendrickson said.
Everyone involved in post-graduate career counseling works to provide guidance and support to students at the beginning of their careers. As McGuire put it: “It is like Indeed, but it's Indeed for the college population,” referring to the job-search website.
McGuire and Hendrickson both mentioned a shift in what employers prioritize when hiring new graduates.
“Fewer employers are looking for … GPA, they are looking for competencies,” McGuire said, referring to grade-point average.
Hendrickson noted that communication is one of the most important competencies to employers, and what students are least prepared for.
“They used to call them soft skills and they realized that's a misnomer because they are not soft. … They are in fact more important than almost anything else,” McGuire said.