(The Center Square) – The percentage of University of Missouri graduates still looking for work after earning diplomas in 2022 is parallel to downward trends in state and national unemployment rates.
Out of approximately 4,000 graduates who replied to a university inquiry, 183 or 4.6% were still seeking employment, according to the MU Outcomes Survey. The percentage still looking for work is down slightly from 2021 (5%) and down significantly from 2020 (6.5%) when the state and nation were recovering from the pandemic recession.
Missouri’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 2.6% in February. The March percentage will be released later this week. In April 2020, Missouri’s unemployment was 11.4%. The national unemployment rate was 3.6% in February and 14.7% in April 2020.
With 95.4% of graduates working full time, the university is positioned to achieve a strategic plan goal of 95% in 2023. The percentage is based on undergraduate and graduate or professional students employed or in graduate school within six months of graduation.
“This 95.4% is an astounding testament to the career preparation that students receive during their education at MU,” Mun Choi, president of the University of Missouri, said in a statement. “The Missouri Method works, and our students are graduating with the skills they need to be successful and positively impact the lives of Missourians and beyond.”
Graduates taking part in the survey could choose from the following responses: working full-time, continuing education, working part-time, still seeking, not seeking, military and volunteering.
Here are the percentages of those working full time after getting diplomas from the following schools or colleges, the top employers and the top industries of full-time employed graduates:
- Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources: 59.6%, University of Missouri-Columbia, agriculture and natural resources;
- Arts and Sciences: 45.2%, University of Missouri-Columbia, consumer and business services;
- Business: 84.4%, KPMG, finance;
- Education and Human Development: 85.7%, Columbia Public Schools, education;
- Engineering: 73.1%, Burns & McDonnell, manufacturing and construction;
- Health Professions: 44.7%, University of Missouri Health Care, health care and services;
- Journalism: 62.7%, TPN Retail Creative Commerce Agency, communications and media;
- Nursing: 86.7%, University of Missouri Health Care, health care and services.
