Georgetown’s 2023 MBAs Report Big Gains In Average Salary & Bonus

Job offers and acceptances for MBAs: down. MBA salaries: up. Sound familiar?

Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business has released its MBA Class of 2023 employment report, becoming the latest top B-school in the United States to show that while the job market for MBAs has undeniably tightened after years of record offer and acceptance rates, the jobs that are available are paying better than ever.

Offers for Georgetown MBAs this year were down 2.3 percentage points, and acceptances were down 2.5 points, from the previous two years, years that saw the McDonough School set new school records in both categories. But pay has continued its steady climb, albeit a bit more gradually: The Class of 2023 salary average grew 7.7% from the previous year and is up more than 18% from 2021, to $149,256, while the class’s average signing bonus jumped big to $43,325 from $36,342, a 19.2% increase in one year. The school’s bonus average is up more than 27% in two years.

Altogether, calculating total average pay by including the percentage of grads reporting receiving a bonus (84.6% this year), 2023 Georgetown MBAs made nearly $186K this year, up nearly 12% from 2022 — a year-over-year rate of increase greater than the 10.3% between 2021 and 2022, when the job market was roaring — and more than 23% in two years.

GEORGETOWN McDONOUGH MBA EMPLOYMENT 2021-2023

Data	2023	2022	2021	1-Year Change	2-Year Change
Offers at 3 Months	93.3%	96%	96%	-2.3	-2.3
Accepts at 3 Months	92.5%	95%	95%	-2.5	-2.5
Average Starting Salary	$149,256	$138,552	$126,107	+$10,704 (7.7%)	+$23,149 (18.4%)
Average Signing Bonus	$43,325	$36,342	$34,073	+$6,983 (19.2%)	+$9,252 (27.2%)
Average Total Pay*	$185,909	$166,354	$150,776	+$19,555 (11.8%)	+$35,133 (23.3%)
Jobs Facilitated By School	80%	88%	78%	-8	+2
Internships Converted To Jobs	59%	43%	48%	+16	+11
Positions With Leadership Development Programs	15%	14%	17%	+1	-2
Jobs In The Mid-Atlantic	39%	43%	42%	-4	-3
Jobs In The Northeast	31%	26%	30%	+5	+1
Jobs In The West	10%	11%	10%	-1	Even
Jobs In The South	6%	8%	4%	-2	+2
Jobs In The Southwest	3%	7%	5%	-4	-2
Jobs In The Midwest	5%	3%	5%	+2	Even

*Calculated by (Salary average x 100) + (bonus reporting percentage x average bonus) / 100.

CONSULTING THE TOP INDUSTRY AT McDONOUGH FOR THE SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR

Georgetown’s outcomes — mild declines in job offers and acceptances amid steady salary growth — mirror those at the other U.S. B-schools that have released their 2023 employment data, including Duke Fuqua School of Business, Michigan Ross School of Business, Virginia Darden School of Business, NYU Stern School of Business, and Chicago Booth School of Business. Each of these schools reported hits to their placement rates, attributable generally to economic uncertainty as well as anticipated fluctuations in the job market, while salaries continued to go up.

Like most of these B-schools, Georgetown makes no mention of widely reported hiring delays and salary freezes in the consulting industry. If they have impacted the McDonough School, it’s a small impact: For the second year in a row, consulting was the school’s top sector, at 35% of the class, up 6 points in one year and 9 in two. The industry salary average has grown 19% from 2021, to $163,930, but is up just 3% from last year. Once again this year, top consulting firms Bain, Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, EY, and McKinsey were among the top employers hiring multiple McDonough graduates.

The industry that saw the biggest salary average increase in 2023 was Manufacturing/Transportation/Energy, which accounted for 5% of the class of 283 students; its average salary was up 25% to $126,000. Only one industry saw a decline in salary from 2022: healthcare, which dropped 9.5% to $119,519 while dipping to 3% of the class from 5%.

GEORGETOWN MBA INDUSTRIES & SALARY AVERAGES 2021-2023

Industry	2023	2022	2021	1-Year Change	2-Year Change
Consulting	35%	29%	26%	+6	+9
Average Starting Salary	$163,930	$159,391	$137,750	+$4,539 (2.8%)	+$26,180 (19%)
Finance	25%	25%	32%	Even	-7
Average Starting Salary	$150,383	$142,714	$131,795	+$7,669 (5.4%)	+$18,588 (14.1%)
Tech	18%	18%	17%	Even	+1
Average Starting Salary	$144,556	$134,287	$121,258	+$10,269 (7.6%)	+$23,298 (19.2%)
Consumer Goods/Retail	5%	7%	7%	-2	-2
Average Starting Salary	$126,667	$109,769	$108,192	+$16,898 (15.4%)	+$18,475 (17.1%)
Manufacturing/Transportation/Energy	5%	2%	2%	+3	+3
Average Starting Salary	$126,000	$100,786	$114,451	+$25,214 (25%)	+$11,549 (10.1%)
Real Estate/Hospitality	5%	5%*	6%	Even	-1
Average Starting Salary	$124,583	$115,714	$115,000	+$8,869 (7.7%)	+$9,583 (8.3%)
Healthcare	3%	5%	4%	-2	-1
Average Starting Salary	$119,519	$132,063	$112,145	-$12,544 (9.5%)	+$7,374 (6.6%)
Social Impact/Nonprofit/Government	4%	7%	7%	-3	-3
Average Starting Salary	$100,623	$99,872	$94,396	+$751 (0.8%)	+$6,227 (6.6%)

*Real estate only

MORE GEORGETOWN MBAs MOVE TO NYC & BOSTON

As usual, most Georgetown MBAs stayed put in the Mid-Atlantic region, but the number shrank this year to 39% from 43%. An increasing number are moving to the Northeast, mainly New York City and Boston — 31%, up from 26%. West Coast-bound MBAs were the other significant cohort, at 10%.

Notably, jobs converted from internships ballooned to 59% from 43% in one year — which is good news for the Class of 2024, 99% of whom secured an internship this summer if they were seeking one. They made an average monthly cash compensation of $9,803. A total of 81% of internships were facilitated by the school.

“We are proud of the Class of 2023 for their hard work and dedication in securing impactful roles across a range of industries and sectors,” says Christy Murray, associate dean and managing director of the McDonough Career Center. “This year’s employment outcomes are a testament to our talented students who remained focused on their academic and career-related goals, embraced the job search process, and supported one another throughout the program.”

DON’T MISS MEET GEORGETOWN McDONOUGH’S MBA CLASS OF 2024 and GEORGETOWN  McDONOUGH’S DEAN: 4 AMBITIOUS GOALS FOR THE NEXT 4 YEARS