WALTHAM, Mass., March 16, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bentley University's most recent graduates are off to a fast start in their careers. Six months after graduation, 99 percent of the Class of 2016 is employed, attending or planning to attend graduate school. Nearly 60 percent of the graduates credited their success to Bentley's nationally recognized Career Services Department, named #1 in the U.S. by the Princeton Review.

Eighty five percent of U.S. college freshmen say they go to college to get a better job, according to the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA. Graduates today expect that after four years of classes, internships and tuition payments, they will have the skills and experiences that employers want.

Members of the Bentley University Class of 2016 were hired by top companies and organizations including General Electric, PepsiCo, AmeriCorps, Goldman Sachs, the Pittsburgh Penguins, Bose, Conde Nast, Hill Holiday, Nestle, Liberty Mutual and Procter & Gamble. The students' median salary after graduation was $55,000, up two percent from the year before. 

Other data from Bentley's Class of 2016 include:

• 58 percent of students said they obtained jobs through Bentley career services including campus recruiting, career fairs, faculty/staff referrals and internship conversions
• 30 percent obtained jobs as a result of networking efforts
• 320 different employers hired Bentley graduates in 2016
• 88 percent of students were employed within 6 months of graduation and 11 percent were attending or planning to attend graduate school

Bentley's placement rate is based on a 92 percent "knowledge rate," which refers to the percentage of graduates for which Bentley has verifiable information about their post-graduation careers. The statistics are compiled through a survey of graduates and research by Bentley Career Services staff.

Students benefit from Bentley's HIRE education program, a customized four-year approach to developing job search skills that lays the foundation for a lifetime of career management.  At Bentley, career exploration begins freshman year with a Career Development Seminar in which students begin to discover their professional path. They create the career tools they will need including resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile and elevator pitch.

Learn more about Bentley's career education program.

BENTLEY UNIVERSITY is one of the nation's leading business schools, dedicated to preparing a new kind of business leader – one with the deep technical skills, broad global perspective, and high ethical standards required to make a difference in an ever-changing world. Our rich, diverse arts and sciences program, combined with an advanced business curriculum, prepares informed professionals who make an impact in their chosen fields. Located on a classic New England campus minutes from Boston, Bentley is a dynamic community of leaders, scholars and creative thinkers. The Graduate School emphasizes the impact of technology on business practice, in offerings that include MBA and Master of Science programs, PhD programs in accountancy and in business, and customized executive education programs. The university enrolls approximately 4,200 full-time undergraduate, 82 part-time undergraduate, 1,000 graduate and 24 doctoral students. Bloomberg BusinessWeek ranks Bentley among the top 10 undergraduate business programs in the country. The Princeton Review's Annual Best Colleges Guide names Bentley number one in the nation for career services and internship opportunities. Bentley is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges; AACSB International – The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business; and the European Quality Improvement System, which benchmarks quality in management and business education.

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SOURCE Bentley University