HEC Paris MBA: Class of 2015 Employment Report

Technology remains the largest industry of hiring for graduates of the HEC Paris MBA, according to its latest employment report, ahead of consulting and finance.

Approximately one in five (19%) graduates from HEC Paris’s class of 2015 have taken post-MBA jobs with technology firms, the same proportion as a year prior. Amazon offices in Europe as well as those of Uber and Apple in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, all feature highly among the school’s list of the year’s top 16 recruiters.

Consulting industry second to technology at HEC Paris

Consulting is now the second most-favored destination for HEC Paris MBAs, trading places with finance over the past year. One consulting firm to feature in the school’s new list of top recruiters is A.T. Kearney and, specifically, its offices in Italy, UAE and the US. Among those graduating in 2014, 16% took jobs at finance firms and 15% joined consulting companies. By comparison, the consulting industry’s share has now risen to 18%, while that of finance has slipped to 14%. Consulting as a job function undertaken by the latest HEC Paris graduating class has also grown in stature – 22% of post-MBA jobs now fall under this bracket, putting it ahead of the 18% proportion of roles that slot under the ‘business development’ function. 

Elsewhere, the energy sector’s share of hiring from HEC Paris has halved. In 2014, 8% of graduates took positions with energy firms, but this number has fallen back to 4% among the class of 2015. The luxury goods industry, an area in which HEC Paris offers an MBA specialization (concentration), has increased its class-hiring share, from 5% in 2014 to 7% of the latest class. Richemont, the Switzerland-based holding company whose subsidiaries include Cartier and Montblanc, makes this year’s list of the school’s top employers.

Industry switches popular among the class of 2015

Applicant research tells us that the vast majority of prospective students are open to the idea of changing their industry through enrolling and graduating from an MBA program. In the new HEC Paris MBA employment report, you can see this open-mindedness translate to actual career outcomes. The 19% class of 2015 proportion who now work in technology, for instance, is considerably higher than the 11% who came to the program from technology firms. This means that at least 8% of graduates switched to technology (of the original 11%, some may have chosen to leave technology).

The difference is even higher for consulting – while 8% joined the HEC Paris MBA from consulting firms, 18% have now accepted positions in that industry. In addition, the 7% class proportion joining luxury goods firms is a substantial rise on the 2% who came to the program with a background in this area. These industries are essentially gaining numbers through this process which, by extension, leads to some industries experiencing losses. For instance, one in 10 members of this class came from backgrounds in the government or nonprofit sectors, yet only 4% of graduates took post-MBA jobs in this industry. Construction also held a significant 9% stake in the backgrounds of the class, but only 1% of graduates chose it as an industry destination.

Post-MBA salary levels rise across finance and consulting industries  

In terms of post-MBA salary levels, the average base salary received by graduates accepting positions in the finance and consulting sectors has risen on levels seen last year by around 13 and 9%, respectively. Finance provides the class of 2015’s highest MBA salary average, at €94,500 (c. US$106k, as per exchange rates at the time of writing), compared to consulting’s €90,100 (c. US$101k). Post-MBA salary levels in all other industries, including technology, (which are grouped together as ‘Industry & Services’ for the purposes of this report), yield an average of €77,500 (c. US$87k). The overall class average (all industries) is €82,500 (c. US$93k).

61% of class members land post-MBA jobs in Europe

Of course, MBA salary levels are informed by the locations in which graduates choose to work and HEC Paris notes an upsurge in international mobility among its most recent graduates. Specifically, the proportion of class of 2015 members who have secured MBA jobs outside their home country is up by 15 percentage points, from 48% in 2014 to 63% this time round.

Central to this is the European employment market, according to the report, which notes that “recruitment in France and Europe has rebounded significantly this year from three years of small declines.” Indeed, companies in Europe have hired 61% of 2015’s class, up from 47% last year, and around half of those accepting jobs in Europe have secured them in France. Interestingly, 71% of those taking jobs in France are not existing citizens of the country and 59% hold citizenship outside of Europe – significant increases on the class of 2014’s equivalent figures of 60 and 45%, respectively.

The increase in hiring to positions in Europe means that fewer HEC Paris graduates are beginning their post-MBA careers outside the region. North America’s class share is down from 14 to 8%, for example, and Asia’s from 20 to 14%.

The full-time HEC Paris MBA operates two start dates in a calendar year (January and September), with class sizes of around 200 students. Among its class of 2015, 74% had accepted a job offer by the time they graduated and 90% had accepted an offer within three months of graduation. Approximately one in five members of the class secured their new position via an internship and 25% were hired through on-campus recruiting.