MBA Pay: Finance

It’s just a 10-minute drive from Stanford University to Sand Hill Road, the VC capital of the world. Not surprisingly, Stanford GSB grads land the highest pay in Finance. According to MBA CSEA data, GSB graduates earned $200,000 in starting base when they enter Finance, with the Class of 2022 featuring a 26% share of graduates entering either venture capital or private equity. Overall, just a third of the class entered Finance, 13th-best among business schools reporting data. Two Chinese institutions – Shanghai University of Finance and Economics and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology – ranked 1st and 3rd for the percentage of hires entering Finance (54.8% and 48.1% respectively). At the same time, three programs located in New York – Fordham Gabelli, Columbia Business School, and Cornell Johson – ranked among the Top 5 in percentage of hires in Finance too. Yes, location matters – with Cornell just four hours from Wall Street – and #6 Wharton (percentage-wise), two hours from Manhattan. One number that sticks out: INSEAD grads average just $133,329 in Finance – and just 11.9% of new grads ultimately enter the field.