NYU Stern MBAs Shattered School Pay Records In 2022

A third top-15 business school in the United States is reporting record salaries for MBAs who graduated earlier this year.

NYU Stern School of Business released its MBA Class of 2022 employment report today (October 18) showing record-high compensation, including the highest-ever median base salary and the highest-ever average total compensation. Stern joins the University of Michigan Ross School of Business and UC-Berkeley Haas School of Business in reporting outcomes that emphasize the continued strong ROI of the degree — and that vindicate the choice of a cohort that began their degree in the worst possible circumstances, when the coronavirus pandemic had shut down most in-person instruction, networking and experiential opportunities were severely curtailed, and there was no end in sight to the crisis and no guarantee that they would ever return to the physical classroom.

“NYU Stern’s two-year, full-time MBA Class of 2022 fully embodies Stern’s ethos around not only embracing, but also leading change,” Associate Dean of Career Services Brian Ruggiero says. “This resilient cohort began their MBA journey after the pandemic began and adapted quickly to the resulting paradigm shifts.”

2 OR MORE STERN MBAs WHO WENT INTO INVESTMENT BANKING MADE $225K

The Stern School reports that median base salaries grew $15,000 to $170,000, the highest ever reported by a Stern graduating class, while median signing bonuses were $35,000, matching last year’s record high. Average salary numbers were no less impressive, with base salary growing by more than $10K to $161,475 from $149,524, an 8% jump. Average total compensation — salaries plus bonuses, weighted by the percent of job seekers who reported getting a bonus — grew $14,340 to $196,143, a nearly 8% increase and another school record.

This year's highest reported base salary — $225,000 for at least two Stern MBAs who went into investment banking in New York — is lower than last year's high by just $5K, but the top signing bonus of $92,800 eclipses last year's high bonus by more than $7K. U.S. citizens in the class reported a slightly higher average base salary and slightly lower average signing bonus than their international colleagues (see table above), while foreign grads had a higher median base salary ($175K) by $5K.

The lowest reported base salary for a Stern grad this year was $90K, reported by an MBA who went into insurance and another who went into tech (see next page for details); that's $30K higher than last year's low. For U.S. citizen Stern grads, the low salary was $115K — $55,000 more than the U.S. low in 2021.

JOB OFFERS UP AT GRADUATION TIME, DOWN AFTER 3 MONTHS

Placement rates for the 238 Stern MBAs seeking jobs this year were stronger at graduation time than their 2021 colleagues, but slightly down compared to that class after three months. Class of 2022 grads who received offers at graduation time were 87.4% of the class, up from 86.2% last year, while those who had accepted by the time they donned a mortarboard cap and gown were 86.6%, up from 85.9%. By three months after graduation, 94.1% of Stern MBAs had received job offers, and an identical number had accepted; the former is down from a school record 95.8%, and the latter is down from a record 95.2%.

Top hiring industries remained consistent, with 31.2% of the class finding jobs in consulting, nearly identical to last year's 31.3%; 27.2% finding work in investment banking, down from 28.3; and 17% going into tech, down from 19.2%. Amazon was the top employer of Stern MBAs this year, hiring 12, while EY-PArthenon and Boston Consulting Group hired 11 and 10, respectively (more details on page 2).

Ruggiero says demand for the kind of skills demonstrated by the Class of 2022 — resilience foremost among them — "is clear, with the accepted rate for jobs three months after graduation on par with what we saw pre-pandemic and our highest compensation on record. Our team consistently hears from corporate partners that they choose Stern MBAs because of their analytical mindset and because they are problem solvers with strong leadership skills and personal integrity.

"These qualities explain why Stern grads are sought across employers, industries, and job functions.”

MEDIAN INTERN SALARIES GROW BY A THIRD

The Class of 2023, meanwhile, batted a thousand, with 100% who were seeking a summer internship securing one. Median weekly salaries of $3,173 were up 34% over last year's record number.

McKinsey was the top employer of summer hires, with 23, followed by Strategy& and Deloitte with 17 each and JPMorgan and Amazon with 13 each.

“For the Class of 2023, our early data shows strong demand for Stern talent remains high," Ruggiero says.

See the next page for more data from the NYU Stern School of Business MBA Class of 2022 employment report.