JOB MARKET HOT FOR TODAY'S GRADS,
1996-97 ONE OF THE BUSIEST YEARS EVER

EDITORS: C. Randall Powell, IU director of business placement, and Gordon Smith, associate director, are available for interviews by calling 812-855-5317.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Reflecting a healthy U.S. economy, 1997's job market for college graduates remains very strong and is expected to grow by 6.2 percent, according to Indiana University School of Business placement officials.

"Most employers are satisfied with the overall health and progress of the economy. As a result, we expect growth in employment opportunities in all geographical regions in the coming year," said C. Randall Powell, assistant dean for company relations and director of placement at the IU School of Business.

"This is reflected at IU's Business Placement Office, which recently hosted more than 19,000 interviews over a 16-week period during the 1996-1997 school year."

Demand for new graduates is particularly high in computer information systems, programming, systems analysis, operations management, accounting and finance, while graduates in marketing and sales are reporting "the best job market ever," according to IU.

"Demand for students in these areas is very strong because companies are cutting costs and increasing efficiencies by automating systems such as finance, production, marketing, etc. To accomplish this requires hiring individuals with strong technical competencies and/or outsourcing these functions to specialist firms," Powell said. "This bodes well for graduates in these fields because, at this time, demand still exceeds supply -- resulting in higher starting salaries."

Citing statistics provided by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, IU reported that average starting salaries for 1997 college graduates are $35,382 for computer programming, $30,693 for public accounting, $29,503 for corporate accounting, $29,381 for market research, $27,069 for sales representatives and $25,930 for management trainees.

Powell reported that IU graduates in the same areas of study were commanding starting salaries approximately $2,000-$6,000 above these national averages. Average starting salaries for IU grads are $37,711 for those who studied computer programming, $32,515 for public accounting, $33,479 for corporate accounting, $35,000 for market research, $31,029 for sales representatives and $28,778 for management trainees.

"We believe this reflects IU's top-ranked programs, which attract some of the best students in the country and from abroad, and the Business Placement Office's longstanding relationship with top employers," Powell said.

IU reported that the median starting salary for its Master of Business Administration degree graduates was $63,000, with an average of 2.25 job offers per student. By title, the highest median salaries were reported by public accountants at $72,500; management consultants at $70,000 and miscellaneous operations at $65,400.

"Professional service firms, including financial services, management consulting and accounting, are the beneficiaries of increased corporate outsourcing. As a result, they are hiring a greater number of our MBAs," Powell said.

According to Powell, several important trends and challenges likely will affect the college graduate job market over the coming years. He warned that today's graduates need a wide variety of skills and experiences to effectively compete in the job market and perform well in their new positions.

"Today's companies are relying less on 'top-down' management," said Powell. "Traditional hierarchies are being replaced by organization in teams. Workers at all levels now are making and implementing decisions. This means students entering the market will need to be excellent team workers and prepared to hit the ground running to produce immediate results."

Computer skills also continue to be vital. "Graduates in all majors will require advanced computing, multimedia and Internet skills -- or the foundation for quickly learning them -- in order to succeed in the long run. This is where the future is." Powell added, "With the Internet quickly becoming an important job search tool, computerization also will continue to dramatically affect how people go about getting a job."

A greater number of students reportedly are using the Internet to conduct research, access classified ads and submit resumes. The best advice for students who wish to succeed in the job search and today's workplace is to begin career preparation as early as possible. This means aggressively seeking information, researching companies and actively pursuing networking opportunities. Equally as important is acquiring and developing skill combinations most prized by employers. For example, overseas study programs are valuable opportunities for students to distinguish themselves.

"Career preparation is an important function of the college years," said Dan Dalton, dean of IU's School of Business. "The first step to ensuring long-term satisfaction and success in a career is finding out and doing what one enjoys. The second step is combining the broadest possible education with internships and relevant work experience. The final step is taking fullest advantage of a school's business placement office."

Graduates for whom prior work experience is particularly crucial in determining employment opportunities and starting salaries are MBA students. "Companies increasingly are requiring hard-core business skills and relevant work experience from MBA graduates," Powell observed.

After nearly a century of teaching management, the IU School of Business is considered one of the nation's most respected business education institutions. Its undergraduate program consistently is rated among the top three programs in the country, while its graduate program consistently is ranked among the top 15 programs inBusiness Week's "Guide to the Best Business Schools. "

With "probably the best placement office of any business school in the country," according to the rankings, IU attracts recruiters from more than 500 Fortune 1000 companies each year.

For more information, contact George Vlahakis, 812-855-0846 or 812-855-3911, gvlahaki@indiana.edu