Class of 2020 career placement report proves demand is still strong during pandemic

Published on April 9, 2021

90% of the Barcelona GSE Master's Class of 2020 seeking a job or entry to a PhD program reported success within six months of graduating.

In what has surely been one of the most unusual and difficult years for making a career move, 152 out of 169 graduates from the Barcelona GSE Class of 2020 (90% of those seeking placement) have been hired for a professional position related to their Master's studies or accepted a place in a post-graduate program.

Out of those placed, 76% chose to enter or return to the professional work force, while 24% entered a PhD or other post-graduate program of study immediately after the Master's program.

PROFESSIONAL VS. ACADEMIC PLACEMENT

Chart shows 76% entered the professional work force and 24% entered a PhD or other post-graduate program

*Placement rate and class trends are calculated from information reported by alumni to Barcelona GSE Career Services.

 

Financial Services and Consulting were the top choices for professional positions

31% of students took a job in Financial Services, and 23% chose Consulting Firms. The next most common choice were Research and Academic Institutions (17%), followed by Government and Authorities (9%), Other Industries (9%), International Organizations and Non-profits (6%) and Technology (5%).

Chart shows percentages listed in the text

 

Examples of employers hiring Barcelona GSE graduates in the Class of 2020 (# of students hired)

 
Industry Example employers
Financial Services
31%		 European Central Bank (14), CaixaBank Research (4), Banc Sabadell (2), BBVA (2), Goldman Sachs, Novum Capital, Piraeus Bank, Reserve Bank of Australia (one student each)
Consulting
23%		 Dalberg, KKS Advisors, RBB Economics, The Brattle Group (2 students each), Accenture, Arthur D Little, CEPA, Deloitte, KPMG, NERA Economic Consulting, PwC, Vivid Economics (one student each)
Research & Academic Institutions
17%		 Barcelona GSE Data Science Center (3), DIW Berlin, ESADE Business School, IESE Business School, Princeton University, Seoul National University, Stanford University (SIEPR), University of Zurich (one student each)
Government & Authorities
9%		 Turkish Ministry of Treasury and Finance (2), French Ministry of Ecology, Haitian Ministry of Economy and Finance, Norwegian Ministry of Justice and Public Security, UK Competition Market Authority, US Bureau of Labor Statistics (one student each)
International Organizations / Non-profits
6%		 OECD (3), Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO), Inter-American Development Bank, World Bank, (one student each)
Technology
5%		 ABB Group, Everis, PI Works (one student each)
Other Industries
9%		 Danone, Energy Profiles Limited, Everything Finance, Philip Morris International, Vestas (one student each)

 

97% success rate for students seeking entry to PhD or other post-graduate program

21 graduates who chose to continue their studies have entered the PhD program at Universitat Pompeu Fabra (organized jointly with the Barcelona GSE). Other graduates in the Class of 2020 accepted places in PhD programs at institutions such as:

 

The Class of 2020 is working and studying in 32 countries

30% of the class is studying or working in Spain. 49% are located in another European country. 12% of the Class of 2020 is now located in North America, 7% in Africa, Asia, or Oceania, and 2% in South America.

PROFESSIONAL AND ACADEMIC PLACEMENT BY LOCATION

Map show percentages listed in the text

 

 

Countries where 5 or more alumni from the Class of 2020 are currently working or studying:

  • Spain (46 students)
  • Germany (17)
  • United Kingdom (16)
  • United States (10)
  • Italy (8)
  • France (7)
  • Turkey (7)
  • Switzerland (6)
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