Locust Street on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania

Penn Sends the Most Grads into Finance & Consulting

Penn grads are landing jobs in financial services and consulting at higher rates than any other Ivy League university.

A study by The Daily Pennsylvanian found that 50% of full-time jobs among Penn’s Class of 2022 are in finance and consulting. Harvard University had the next-highest rate at 40%.

In 2022, 47.5% of graduates from Penn’s College of Arts and Sciences pursued careers in finance or consulting—higher than all other Ivy League schools. Penn’s School of Engineering and Applied Science alone saw 34% go into the two industries, outperforming schools like Cornell University, Columbia University, and Yale University.

80% OF WHARTON STUDENTS WORK IN CONSULTING OR FINANCE

Consulting and finance are the industries of choice for Wharton grads. Nearly 80% go on to work in the two industries immediately after graduation.

Some students attribute that to the massive presence that finance and consulting clubs have among campus.

“In the social scene … the clout within clubs is pretty pronounced,” Erin Feng, a Wharton senior, says. “All we see are these massive clubs that are all finance and consulting related — and those are two buzzwords I think every underclassman would say that they have heard millions of times.”

Even without Wharton in the rankings, Penn still ties for the highest rate of full-time job seekers entering finance or consulting.

“I think Wharton has a very big influence on many things that people do on campus,” Michael Li, a junior at Penn, says. “[There is a] pervading culture at Penn where you tack on a business thing, even if you’re not majoring in business, for a more practical application.”

PAST DATA SHOWS SIMILAR STORY

Data collected since 2011 shows finance and consulting to still be top choices for Penn grads. Other common pursued paths at Penn include education, technology, and healthcare.

“The industries Penn students tend to go into have remained quite consistent,” Barbara Hewitt, Executive Director of Career Services at Penn, says.

Sources: The Daily Pennsylvanian, The Daily Pennsylvanian