2020 Employment Statistics

Employment by Sector

The 2020 employment statistics provide a picture of where our public administration and international affairs graduate students have been hired upon completion of their degrees. These statistics represent job placement and further education of graduates between August 2019 and December 2020.

Master of Public Administration Employment Trends

Maxwell’s Palmer Career Center sends out employment surveys to our M.P.A. graduates six months after graduation. Of the students who graduated from the M.P.A. program in 2020, information was collected on 78% of the class.

2020 Representative Job Titles

Advocacy Manager
Budget Analyst
Campaign Manager
Community Development and Outreach Associate
Data Analyst
Economist
Finance and Policy Analyst
Health Systems Specialist
Master of Cybersecurity
Policy Fellow
Program and Research Associate
Public Sector Associate
Research Analyst
Research Assistant
Senior Consultant
Transportation Analyst

2020 Representative Employers

Private Sector

Booz Allen Hamilton
Deloitte Consulting
Grant Thornton
Techstars

Legal

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Eastern District of Virginia
The Research Foundation of SUNY
Vera Institute of Justice

Federal Government

U.S. Department of Homeland Security
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. Forest Service

Local Government

Arizona Governor’s Office of Strategic Planning/Budgeting
California Department Public Health
Maryland Department of Budget and Management
New York State Department of Health

NonProfit INTERNATIONAL/NGO

Asian Development Bank
United Nations

NonProfit domestic

American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota
Jewish Family Services of Greater Hartford

Master of Arts in International Relations Employment Trends

Maxwell’s Palmer Career Center sends out employment surveys to our M.A. (IR) graduates six months after graduation. Of the students who graduated from the M.A. (IR) program in 2020, information was collected on 78% of the class.

2020 Representative Job Titles

Anti-Money Laundering Analyst
Assistant Director of Digital Communications
Data Analyst
Data Information Specialist
Emergency Food Aid Coordinator
Gender and Research Analyst
Program Associate
Program Services Coordinator
Project Manager
Research Director Research Analyst
Senior Consultant

2020 Representative Employers

PRIVATE

AT&T
Booz Allen Hamilton
Goldman Sachs
Just Results
Miller & Meier Consulting

Federal Government

Library of Congress
U.S. Air Force
U.S. Department of State
U.S. Treasury Department

Local Government

Cherokee Nation Businesses
Harris County Public Health

International Non-Profit/NGO

European Central Bank
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development
The World Bank
World Wildlife Fund

Non-Profit

Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED)
Business Executives for National Security
UNITY for the Homeless
InterFaith Works of CNY

Graduate Professional Salary Trends

According to the salary information provided by employers, starting salary paid to new graduates working in nonprofit organizations, state and local governments, federal government agencies, international NGOs or private consulting firms ranges anywhere from $40,000 to $85,000 in ascending order, respectively.

Since our graduate professional programs specifically look for applicants with a public service orientation, most of our students expect to graduate and begin their careers in one of the above professions. That said, our M.P.A. and M.A. (IR) programs include strong analytical, managerial and financial preparation, readying our graduates to move across sectors over the course of their careers. Many have gone on to serve the public good in financially lucrative private businesses including health care, financial services, disaster management, infrastructure/development, defense technologies, transportation and other fields.

Ultimately, students should pick a degree and a program based on the type of work they want to do and how well that program prepares them to be successful in both the short term and the long term. With typical placement rates between 95% - 100%, the Maxwell School’s professional graduate programs are a great fit for those who aspire to work in fields with a public service orientation.

A Career of Service Across Sectors

I was afforded incredible responsibility and accountability as a young professional [working in state budge offices] to provide leadership in finding operational efficiencies, in establishing spending and revenue priorities, and in developing new policy...Budgeting was a great experience that helped me hone financial, communication, negotiation and analytical skills, which served me well through my entire career.”

Howard “Howie” Phanstiel ’70 (PSc), ’71 (M.P.A.)

former president, CEO and chairman, PacifiCare Health Systems; Syracuse University Life Trustee