2023 MBA Pay: Other Occupations

Not everyone follows the traditional career paths like Consulting, Finance, Marketing, Management, or Operations. Make no mistake: MBA graduates can make a pretty good living early on outside these paths. Exhibit A: The MBA Class of 2023. Here, there were graduates from four programs that averaged $200,000 or better to start away from these traditional occupations. The group is led by the University of Virginia’s Darden School, where three graduates averaged $221,667. At NYU Stern, six graduates made $216,667, while eight Chicago Booth graduates reached $215,625. That doesn’t count Columbia Business School, where nine graduates averaged $200,889. These may be relatively small samples, but they do reflect that MBA graduates possess appeal and leverage regardless of the path they pursue.