Find a Job You Really Want In
The decision to go to college is a big one.
There are so many options and no matter what college you choose, you’ll always wonder if you had gone to a different school what your career would have been like.
Since you’ll be working until you retire, you shouldn’t just make decisions willy nilly when it comes to your career. You’re going to want to be completely happy with your decision.
Which is why choosing the right college is important. By looking into the highest listed job placement ratings, we discovered the best large colleges for getting a job after graduation.
10 Best Large Institutions
- James Madison University, Virginia
- Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Virginia
- University of Delaware, Delaware
- University of Iowa, Iowa
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin
- University of Missouri-Columbia, Missouri
- Iowa State University, Iowa
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois
- Illinois State University, Illinois
Are you ready to build a great future? These colleges are prepared to help you into the best and brightest future you can imagine. If you’re not impressed with these colleges, be sure to check out the full list of colleges below.
How We Determined This
Using information found on the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) , we searched for the 4-year colleges in each state with an enrollment level over 20,000 students.
We then cross-referenced the small colleges with data from College Scorecard to find the highest listed job placement ratings, looking at employment levels 10 years after students have graduated.
From there, we selected the institution with the highest job placement rate in each state. For the purposes of readability, we rounded each school’s placement to the nearest decimal point.
1. James Madison University
State: Virginia
Job Placement: 94.35%
We’ll give an A++ to this first school. James Madison University makes the top of our list with a 94.35% job placement rate. With that high of a job placement rate, you’re almost handed a job along with your diploma.
2. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
State: Virginia
Job Placement: 93.83%
Virginia seems to have a grasp on colleges that are great for finding a job after graduation. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University is the second on our college list. With the school’s job placement rate of 93.83%, it’s easy to see why.
3. University of Delaware
State: Delaware
Job Placement: 93.82%
The University of Delaware comes in as the third-best college. Not that far behind second place, the school features a job placement rate of 93.82%. With that percent, you shouldn’t have any trouble at all finding a job after you graduate.
4. University of Iowa
State: Iowa
Job Placement: 93.72%
At No. 4, the University of Iowa should be on your radar when considering attending college. If you’re wanting to find a job after graduation, this school boasts a job placement rate of 93.72%. It can’t get much easier than that to start a career.
5. University of Wisconsin-Madison
State: Wisconsin
Job Placement: 93.38%
The University of Wisconsin-Madison comes in as the fifth-best college. You’re sure to find a job sometime after graduation from here, especially with the school’s 93.38% job placement rate.
6. University of Missouri-Columbia
State: Missouri
Job Placement: 93.31%
The University of Missouri in Columbia fills the No. 6 spot of best colleges to attend for starting a career. The high grade the school received stems from its job placement rate of 93.31%. Just by applying to go to school here, you’re already on your way to securing a job.
7. Iowa State University
State: Iowa
Job Placement: 93.29%
Iowa State University makes starting a career look easy. With a 93.29% job placement rate, it’s no wonder that the college made it to No. 7 on our list.
8. University of Nebraska-Lincoln
State: Nebraska
Job Placement: 93.16%
Our next college is a solid choice to consider attending. At No. 8, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln makes the grade. This college makes securing a job after graduation look easy, especially since it has a solid job placement rate of 93.16%. Try those odds on for size.
9. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
State: Illinois
Job Placement: 93.14%
The University of Illinois, located at Urbana-Champaign, finds itself ninth on the list. With a job placement rate of 93.14%, it’s not that far behind No. 8. This just means you can’t go wrong choosing this college as your college.
10. Illinois State University
State: Illinois
Job Placement: 93.13%
As we round out this list, we’re going to stick with Illinois. Apparently, the education there is top-notch. Illinois State University is 10th best, but not far from being ninth best. With a job placement rate of 93.13%, it’ll be easy for you to secure a job after accepting your diploma.
Summary of the Best Large-Sized Colleges
The decision of where to go for college is a tough one to make.
There are so many factors to consider. But probably the most important one is if the education from the college will lead to a job after graduation.
So we set out to find the best large institutions dependent on their job placement rates. You’ll find that any of the top 10 that we mentioned above are top-notch, solid choices.
But if you’re wanting more options, the table below has a complete list of the best schools across the U.S.
| State | Institution | Job Placement |
|---|---|---|
| VA | James Madison University | 94.35% |
| VA | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 93.83% |
| DE | University of Delaware | 93.82% |
| IA | University of Iowa | 93.72% |
| WI | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 93.38% |
| MO | University of Missouri-Columbia | 93.31% |
| IA | Iowa State University | 93.29% |
| NE | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 93.16% |
| IL | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | 93.14% |
| IL | Illinois State University | 93.13% |
| NY | Syracuse University | 93.11% |
| MA | Northeastern University | 93.06% |
| CT | University of Connecticut | 93.04% |
| MI | Michigan State University | 92.80% |
| PA | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 92.65% |
| SC | Clemson University | 92.51% |
| GA | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 92.51% |
| MD | Towson University | 92.48% |
| MN | University of Minnesota-Twin Cities | 92.47% |
| KS | University of Kansas | 92.31% |
| PA | Drexel University | 92.25% |
| MA | Boston University | 92.17% |
| MI | Western Michigan University | 92.17% |
| VA | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 92.14% |
| IN | Ball State University | 92.13% |
| NY | Cornell University | 92.09% |
| MA | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 92.07% |
| IN | Indiana University-Bloomington | 92.02% |
| PA | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 92.02% |
| MI | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 91.93% |
| NC | North Carolina State University at Raleigh | 91.92% |
| MI | Grand Valley State University | 91.91% |
| LA | Louisiana State University and Agricultural Mechanical College | 91.87% |
| IL | Northwestern University | 91.87% |
| IN | Purdue University-Main Campus | 91.87% |
| TX | The University of Texas at Austin | 91.79% |
| KY | University of Kentucky | 91.68% |
| WI | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 91.63% |
| NY | University at Buffalo | 91.62% |
| MD | Johns Hopkins University | 91.60% |
| NJ | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 91.58% |
| MS | University of Mississippi | 91.42% |
| AL | Auburn University | 91.39% |
| OH | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 91.34% |
| DC | George Washington University | 91.27% |
| SC | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 91.26% |
| FL | University of Florida | 91.23% |
| KS | Kansas State University | 91.17% |
| CA | University of Southern California | 91.17% |
| NC | East Carolina University | 91.16% |
| CA | University of California-Santa Barbara | 91.09% |
| WV | West Virginia University | 91.03% |
| TX | Texas Tech University | 90.92% |
| VA | Virginia Commonwealth University | 90.88% |
| NC | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 90.86% |
| CA | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 90.84% |
| FL | Florida State University | 90.79% |
| TX | Texas A M University-College Station | 90.79% |
| MD | University of Maryland-College Park | 90.79% |
| GA | University of Georgia | 90.65% |
| TN | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 90.52% |
| IL | University of Illinois at Chicago | 90.50% |
| MO | Missouri State University-Springfield | 90.48% |
| CO | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 90.46% |
| FL | University of Central Florida | 90.42% |
| GA | Georgia Southern University | 90.39% |
| AL | The University of Alabama | 90.37% |
| TX | Texas State University | 90.36% |
| PA | University of Pennsylvania | 90.28% |
| NJ | Montclair State University | 90.25% |
| CA | University of California-Riverside | 90.21% |
| CA | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 90.20% |
| TX | The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | 90.16% |
| PA | Temple University | 90.14% |
| WA | Washington State University | 90.11% |
| NY | St John’s University-New York | 90.10% |
| VA | Old Dominion University | 90.05% |
| MS | Mississippi State University | 90.02% |
| OR | Oregon State University | 89.95% |
| TX | The University of Texas at Arlington | 89.92% |
| TX | Sam Houston State University | 89.90% |
| NC | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 89.88% |
| CA | University of California-Irvine | 89.77% |
| CA | University of California-Davis | 89.74% |
| NC | University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 89.59% |
| TX | University of North Texas | 89.59% |
| NY | New York University | 89.57% |
| TX | University of Houston | 89.56% |
| CO | University of Colorado Boulder | 89.52% |
| CA | California State University-Fresno | 89.46% |
| CA | California State University-Long Beach | 89.44% |
| CA | California State University-Sacramento | 89.40% |
| CA | San Jose State University | 89.39% |
| NH | Southern New Hampshire University | 89.38% |
| VA | George Mason University | 89.33% |
| CA | San Diego State University | 89.30% |
| FL | University of South Florida-Main Campus | 89.30% |
| TX | The University of Texas at El Paso | 89.28% |
| OH | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 89.23% |
Author
Amanda Postma is a writer for the Zippia Career Advice blog with a focus on creating entertaining content to help you through your job search. She received her BA from the University Of Missouri-Columbia.
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