Placements

Placements

As the 3^rd class of MSBAs, the program has already been established and viewed by prospective employers, especially in Dallas as favorable. Before starting the program, the stats for job placement, especially among domestic students by graduation time was high. Moreover, the average salary was around 72k.

With regards to our class, thus far, students have received offers from consulting companies such as Booz Allen, Artis Consulting, Infosys, Enforce, IBM, and EY. Previous students have received offers from Accenture, Deloitte, and Bain and Co.

For those less inclined to pursue the consulting track, students this year have received offers from companies like Loopback Analytics, Pentaho, American Airlines, HP, Cisco Systems, PickUp, Fannie Mae, and Capital One.

Because SMU COX is based in Dallas and has a strong reputation throughout the metroplex, it is easier to receive and offer in Texas in general, and Dallas in particular. Students looking for work in the US outside of Texas have had a harder time getting interviews and offers through SMU COX’s career center.

For those looking to move from Dallas, utilizing SMUs alumni network is key. Beyond Dallas, most data/business analytics careers can be found in the Bay Area, New York, Boston, and DC.

Based on previous work experience, the starting salary for an MSBA in 2017 is between 60k and 90k.

Jason Park is our career counselor. Setting up meeting with him and Hettie early to discuss career goals and interests is vital. Beyond former MSBAs in the workforce, they both have many contacts that can prove fruitful for getting an offer. Additionally, MustangTrak, SMU’s career website is important in searching for jobs. It is important to always look at jobs posted and making sure that you attend networking and roundtable events.

Many international students have received offers as well. However, searching for jobs is sometimes more difficult as several companies that hire MSBAs do not sponsor international students. As such, for international students, it is important that when companies come to speak or you meet ones in networking events, that you ask if they sponsor. Do not be timid. It is also beneficial to get a list of companies that do sponsor, and focus your efforts on applying to, and getting contacts from those companies.

Managing Your Career

Every week MSBA students attend a Managing Your Career class where Hettie prepares students for their eventual careers. Besides going over necessary topics like elevator speeches and case interviews for example, each week a group of students present on the company that comes in to talk to MSBAs about career opportunities and analytics at their respective companies.