Best Places To Launch A Career Special Report

Best Places to Launch a Career 2007

To determine which employers are best for entry-level workers, BusinessWeek used a three-part method. First, we surveyed career services directors at U.S. colleges to learn which employers were tops on their list. We then asked those employers to complete a survey on their hiring, pay, benefits, and training programs, which we then compared with others in the same industry. Finally, we obtained from Universum Communications, a Philadelphia research company, the results of its 2007 survey of 44,000 U.S. undergraduates who were asked to identify their five most desirable employers. The employer survey counts for 50% of the final ranking, while the career services and student surveys count for 25% each.

Click column heading once to reorder from highest to lowest. Click twice to reorder from lowest to highest.

2007 Rank	2006 Rank	Employer	Ticker	Industry (1)	2006 Entry Level Hires	Top Degree Among Entry-Level Hires	Most Desirable Trait	Employer Survey Rank	Career Services Survey Rank	Student Survey Rank⁽²⁾	Average Pay (thousands)	Management Training program⁽³⁾

1	3	DELOITTE & TOUCHE (4)	Private	ACCOUNTING	1995	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	3	1	12	$50-$55	YES
2	New	PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS (5)	Private	ACCOUNTING	3744	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	9	2	6	$50-$55	NO
3	12	ERNST & YOUNG	Private	ACCOUNTING	3250	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	25	3	10	$50-$55	NO
4	New	IBM (6)	IBM	TECHNOLOGY	1962	COMPUTER SCIENCE	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	4	12	21	$60-$65	YES
5	13	GOOGLE	GOOG	INTERNET	NA	COMPUTER SCIENCE	COLLEGE MAJOR	62	7	1	NA	NO
6	New	MICROSOFT	MSFT	TECHNOLOGY	1350	COMPUTER SCIENCE	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	10	14	7	$70 AND ABOVE	NO
7	1	WALT DISNEY (7)	DIS	HOSPITALITY	NA	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	43	11	2	$50-$55	NO
8	20	ACCENTURE	CAN	CONSULTING	1040	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	4	15	28	$55-$60	NO
9	2	LOCKHEED MARTIN	LMT	MANUFACTURING	4573	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	15	13	15	$50-$55	YES
10	43	TEACH FOR AMERICA	Private	NONPROFIT/GOVERNMENT	2503	LIBERAL ARTS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	27	10	8	$35-$40	YES
11	15	KPMG	Private	ACCOUNTING	2962	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	18	5	20	$50-$55	YES
12	8	GENERAL ELECTRIC (8)	GE	MANUFACTURING	723	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	29	6	19	$55-$60	YES
13	4	GOLDMAN SACHS	GS	INVESTMENT BANKING	663	BUSINESS	COLLEGE GPA	45	9	9	$60-$65	NO
14	New	BOEING	BA	MANUFACTURING	1016	ENGINEERING	WORK EXPERIENCE	14	28	11	$50-$55	YES
15	10	ABBOTT LABS	ABT	PHARMACEUTICAL	980	ENGINEERING	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	2	48	47	$50-$55	YES
16	New	MERRILL LYNCH	MER	INVESTMENT BANKING	321	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	13	29	17	$55-$60	NO
17	9	JPMORGAN INVESTMENT BANK (9)	JPM	INVESTMENT BANKING	252	BUSINESS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	20	16	18	$60-$65	NO
18	31	BP AMERICA	BP	ENERGY	259	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	1	NA	45	$55-$60	YES
19	6	U.S. STATE DEPT. (10)		NONPROFIT/GOVERNMENT	764	LIBERAL ARTS	JUDGMENT	35	29	3	$55-$60	YES
20	New	GENERAL MILLS	GIS	CONSUMER GOODS	265	OTHER	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	8	33	35	$45-$50	YES
21	New	HYATT	Private	HOSPITALITY	330	HOSPITALITY,CULINARY, FACILITY MGMT.	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	7	37	NA	LESS THAN $35	NO
22	New	CAPITAL ONE (11)	COF	FINANCIAL SERVICES	190	ENGINEERING	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	6	68	NA	$55-$60	YES
23	38	PEACE CORPS		NONPROFIT/GOVERNMENT	4095	NA	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	78	8	3	LESS THAN $35	NO
24	New	JOHNSON & JOHNSON	JNJ	PHARMACEUTICAL	479	BUSINESS, ECONOMICS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	51	17	13	$55-$60	YES
25	33	MACY'S (12)	Private	RETAIL	435	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	16	23	59	$35-$40	NO
26	5	ENTERPRISE RENT-A-CAR	Private	TRANSPORTATION	7500	BUSINESS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	56	4	60	LESS THAN $35	NO
27	New	NORTHROP GRUMMAN	Private	MANUFACTURING	1704	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	30	19	27	$50-$55	YES
28	7	RAYTHEON	RTN	MANUFACTURING	1082	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	17	41	32	$60-$65	YES
29	49	EXELON	EXC	ENERGY	NA	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE GPA	12	51	NA	$55-$60	YES
30	New	PRUDENTIAL	PRU	INSURANCE	102	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	11	83	NA	$45-$50	YES
31	22	LEHMAN BROTHERS	LEH	INVESTMENT BANKING	447	BUSINESS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	36	19	25	$55-$60	NO
32	27	ELI LILLY	LLY	PHARMACEUTICAL	574	NA	COLLEGE GPA	21	41	31	$55-$60	NO
33	25	VANGUARD	VFH	FINANCIAL SERVICES	1250	LIBERAL ARTS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	24	27	51	NA	YES
34	24	UPS	UPS	TRANSPORTATION	3723	ENGINEERING	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	28	25	51	$50-$55	YES
35	16	L'OREAL USA	Private	CONSUMER GOODS	55	ENGINEERING	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	41	47	22	$50-$55	YES
36	New	HARRAH'S ENTERTAINMENT	HET	HOSPITALITY	2270	HOSPITALITY, CULINARY, HOTEL OPERATIONS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	23	NA	44	$35-$40	NO
37	New	TRAVELERS	Private	INSURANCE	NA	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	25	40	NA	$35-$40	YES
38	11	VERIZON	VZ	TELECOMMUNICATIONS	35072	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	19	73	NA	$35-$40	YES
39	New	CHUBB	CB	INSURANCE	458	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	22	64	NA	$45-$50	NO
40	New	INTEL	INTC	TECHNOLOGY	1425	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	40	53	24	$55-$60	NO
41	23	WELLS FARGO	WFC	FINANCIAL SERVICES	196	BUSINESS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	48	21	40	$40-$45	NO
42	New	UBS	UBS	INVESTMENT BANKING	263	ECONOMICS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	38	39	41	$55-$60	NO
43	29	PHILIP MORRIS (13)	MO	CONSUMER GOODS	288	BUSINESS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	37	31	50	$50-$55	YES
44	New	ST. JUDE MEDICAL	STJ	PHARMACEUTICAL	175	ENGINEERING	TEAMWORK	31	59	NA	$65-$70	YES
45	New	MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL	MAR	HOSPITALITY	269	HOSPITALITY	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	49	41	26	$35-$40	NO
46	New	SPRINT	S	TELECOMMUNICATIONS	150	ENGINEERING	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	33	73	56	$50-$55	YES
47	New	NEW YORK LIFE (14)	Private	INSURANCE	2518	BUSINESS	COLLEGE GPA	32	81	55	$40-$45	NO
48	47	KOHL'S	Private	RETAIL	131	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	34	59	NA	$40-$45	NO
49	18	MERCK	MRK	PHARMACEUTICAL	887	NA	COLLEGE MAJOR	59	25	23	$60-$65	NO
50	32	CIA		NONPROFIT/GOVERNMENT	NA	LIBERAL ARTS	NA	85	18	5	NA	NO
51	New	WACHOVIA	WB	FINANCIAL SERVICES	275	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	58	22	46	$45-$50	NO
52	40	BOOZ ALLEN HAMILTON	Private	CONSULTING	240	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	47	64	48	$50-$55	NO
53	37	PROGRESSIVE	Private	INSURANCE	2858	OTHER	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	38	70	57	LESS THAN $35	YES
54	New	LIBERTY MUTUAL	Private	INSURANCE	667	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	46	53	54	$45-$50	YES
55	New	NIKE	NKE	CONSUMER GOODS	NA	OTHER	COLLEGE GPA	73	67	14	NA	YES
56	New	AETNA	Private	INSURANCE	NA	NA	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	41	62	NA	$40-$45	YES
57	New	HEWLETT-PACKARD	HPQ	TECHNOLOGY	257	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	52	64	43	$70 AND ABOVE	YES
58	19	AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL	AMP	FINANCIAL SERVICES	2335	NA	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	43	79	NA	$35-$40	YES
59	26	AT&T (15)	T	TELECOMMUNICATIONS	212	UNDECLARED	COLLEGE MAJOR	52	34	NA	NA	YES
60	52	PROTIVITI	Private	CONSULTING	333	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	50	NA	58	$50-$55	NO
61	New	DELL	DELL	TECHNOLOGY	NA	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	63	53	30	$55-$60	NO
62	New	NESTLE	NESN	CONSUMER GOODS	28	ENGINEERING	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	64	45	39	$40-$45	NO
63	New	WALGREEN	WAG	RETAIL	17359	NA	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	54	59	NA	NA	NO
64	New	SHERWIN-WILLIAMS	SHW	CONSUMER GOODS	780	BUSINESS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	55	56	NA	LESS THAN $35	NO
65	New	DEUTSCHE BANK	DB	INVESTMENT BANKING	278	NA	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	66	51	33	$60-$65	NO
66	New	PROCTER & GAMBLE	PG	CONSUMER GOODS	323	ENGINEERING	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	83	31	16	NA	NO
67	New	BEAR STEARNS	BSC	INVESTMENT BANKING	NA	NA	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	66	46	49	$60-$65	NO
68	New	UNION PACIFIC	UNP	TRANSPORTATION	NA	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	61	41	NA	$40-$45	NO
69	New	CALIF. STATE AUDITOR		NONPROFIT/GOVERNMENT	29	INTL RELATIONS, PUBLIC POLICY, POLI. SCI.	COLLEGE MAJOR	56	80	NA	$35-$40	NO
70	39	IRS		NONPROFIT/GOVERNMENT	NA	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	72	56	34	$35-$40	NO
71	New	BLUECROSS BLUESHIELD	Private	INSURANCE	46	OTHER	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	60	73	NA	$45-$50	NO
72	30	WOLSELEY (16)	WOS	MANUFACTURING	1250	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	74	24	NA	$35-$40	NO
73	34	GRANT THORNTON	Private	ACCOUNTING	570	BUSINESS	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	65	62	NA	$50-$55	YES
74	New	UNILEVER	UN	CONSUMER GOODS	NA	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	69	81	53	$45-$50	YES
75	35	SUNTRUST BANKS	STI	FINANCIAL SERVICES	211	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	70	56	NA	$45-$50	NO
76	New	INGERSOLL RAND	IR	MANUFACTURING	NA	NA	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	68	76	NA	$50-$55	YES
77	New	CISCO	CSCO	TECHNOLOGY	343	ENGINEERING	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	78	50	37	NA	YES
78	New	DHL	Private	TRANSPORTATION	420	NA	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	71	NA	63	$40-$45	NO
79	46	SOUTHWEST AIRLINES	LUV	TRANSPORTATION	2304	NA	FUN-LOVING ATTITUDE	80	70	29	LESS THAN $35	NO
80	New	DUKE ENERGY	DUK	ENERGY	NA	SCIENCE	LEADERSHIP SKILLS	76	70	NA	$35-$40	NO
81	New	AIG (17)	AIG	INSURANCE	87	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	75	84	NA	$45-$50	NA
82	New	NATIONWIDE	Private	INSURANCE	NA	NA	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	77	68	NA	LESS THAN $35	NA
83	55	BEARINGPOINT	BE	CONSULTING	1344	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	81	35	62	$45-$50	NO
84	45	NORTHWESTERN MUTUAL (18)	Private	INSURANCE	1619	BUSINESS	ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT	84	36	NA	$45-$50	YES
85	New	ARAMARK	Private	HOSPITALITY	425	CULINARY, FOOD SVC. MGMT., HOSPITALITY	WORK EXPERIENCE	82	76	60	$40-$45	NO
86	36	SHELL	Private	ENERGY	157	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	87	48	38	NA	NO
87	New	MOTOROLA	MOT	TECHNOLOGY	NA	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	88	37	35	$50-$55	NO
88	54	C.H. ROBINSON	Private	TRANSPORTATION	1058	OTHER	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	86	NA	64	LESS THAN $35	NO
89	44	KRAFT FOODS	Private	CONSUMER GOODS	NA	NA	NA	89	78	42	NA	YES
90	New	NORFOLK SOUTHERN	Private	TRANSPORTATION	277	BUSINESS	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	NA	NA	NA	$50-$55	YES
91	New	CAREERBUILDER.COM	Private	INTERNET	1050	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	NA	NA	NA	LESS THAN $35	YES
92	51	U.S. PATENT & TRADEMARK OFFICE		NONPROFIT/GOVERNMENT	1275	ENGINEERING	COLLEGE MAJOR	NA	NA	NA	$60-$65	YES
93	New	CONSTELLATION ENERGY	CEG	ENERGY	42	BUSINESS	COLLEGE MAJOR	NA	NA	NA	$50-$55	NO
94	53	NAVIGANT CONSULTING	NCI	CONSULTING	99	BUSINESS	ANALYTICAL SKILLS	NA	NA	NA	$50-$55	NO
95	New	METLIFE (19)	MET	INSURANCE	4253	NA	COMMUNICATION SKILLS	NA	NA	NA	LESS THAN $35	YES

Note: All data are self-reported by employers. Eight employers ranked in 2006 were not ranked this year. Bain & Co. declined to participate; National Instruments, Pepsi Bottling, MTV Networks, NASA, CapGemini, the Comptroller of the Currency, and Progress Energy were not selected by career services directors as top employers for new college graduates.
(1) Comparison group for employer survey.
(2) Data provided by Universum Communications.
(3) Only training programs of more than a year, excluding analyst programs at investment banks and financial services companies.
(4) Entry-level hires for fiscal year (July 1-June 31); excludes 5-year accounting students working toward BS and MS simultaneously. Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified Deloitte Consulting as a top employer for entry-level hires.
(5) Entry-level hires for fiscal year (July 1-June 31).
(6) Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified IBM Consulting as a top employer for entry-level hires.
(7) Walt Disney footnote: Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified ESPN and ABC as top employers for entry-level hires.
(8) Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified GE Healthcare as a top employer for entry-level hires.
(9) Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified JPMorgan Chase as a top employer for entry-level hires.
(10) Entry-level hires include Foreign Service Officers, Foreign Service Specialists, and Civil Service employees.
(11) Entry-level hires for campus recruiting only; based on academic year.
(12) Ranked as Federated Department Stores in 2006. Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified Bloomingdale's and Federated Department Stores as a top employer for entry-level hires.
(13) Entry-level hires includes salaried employees only; unionized hourly employees excluded.
(14) Top degree for agents only.
(15) Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified BellSouth and Cingular as a top employer for entry-level hires.
(16) Ranked as Ferguson Enterprises in 2006; Wolesely is Ferguson's parent company. Career services survey rank also reflects respondents who identified Ferguson Enterprises as a top employer for entry-level hires.
(17) Entry-level hires includes only those hired into entry-level training programs.
(18) Entry-level hires are independent contractors affiliated with branch offices; their compensation is commission-based.
(19) Pay data for non-sales positions only.

Data: BusinessWeek, Universum Communications Inc., Cambria Consulting. Research by: Lindsey Gerdes, Louis Lavelle, Frederick F. Jespersen, Sophia Asare, Jenna Goudreau, Ben Levisohn, and Erica Pelzek.