Employment Guide: Most Pitt graduates either stay or move to east coast cities

No matter how fantastic their four years in Oakland might have been, more than half of all Pitt… No matter how fantastic their four years in Oakland might have been, more than half of all Pitt students are ready for a change of scenery by the time they graduate.

According to the Office of Student Employment and Placement Assistance, 54 percent of Pitt students who found employment after graduation did so outside of Pittsburgh and the Western Pennsylvania region. Forty-four percent of the total number of employed graduates found positions outside of the state.

After Pittsburgh, Philadelphia is the second largest city for Pitt graduates. Most graduates tend to stay on the east coast. In order, the other top cities graduates relocate to are Washington D.C., Baltimore and New York City.

Jacob Spears, the data coordinator for SEPA, said that students are drawn to those locations by “a variety of things.”

Judy Robinson, the community service coordinator at the Chesapeake and Potomac Pitt club, said the Washington-Baltimore metro area is at an ideal distance for her from Pittsburgh and its surrounding attractions.

“It is still close to home and the Stillers ([three to four and a half hours by car),” Robinson wrote in an e-mail, adding that, “Living in this area means a short drive to a big city, the beach, the mountains and the quiet countryside.”

As for Philadelphia, Timothy Pecsenye, president of the Philadelphia Pitt Club, said in an e-mail, “I suspect that since Philadelphia is in Pennsylvania, many new grads feel like it is far enough away from ‘home’ to start their new lives and careers, but yet not so far that they cannot visit family and friends in Western Pennsylvania.”

But Spears added, “I think the most important thing to consider is how big of a draw Pittsburgh is for students to stay here to start their careers or to continue their education.”

SEPA reports that about one-third of Pitt undergraduates continue their education, and more than half of those who do so attend graduate programs here at Pitt. SEPA does not track where Pitt graduates relocate to when perusing graduate degrees.

Cheryl Finlay, director of SEPA, said Pittsburgh’s predominance as a center for Pitt graduates is a sign that “the city remains a viable retainer for recent grads to either secure employment or continue their education.”

Nevertheless, some students — like Stephanie Roth, who graduated in May with a major in finance and a minor in economics — have moved on.

“I was ready for a change. I grew up in Pittsburgh and then chose to go to the University of Pittsburgh. I was ready to experience a new city, meet new people and start my career,” Roth said of her relocation to North Miami Beach following graduation.

Roth did not have a job offer before planning her move but found work in the financial services industry soon after. Still, she said that relocating was not without challenges.

“Not only was I not familiar with the city in general, but South Florida is composed of many different cultures and many different types of people. Each day I learn something new and shape myself as an individual,” Roth said.

Career and cultural adjustments aren’t all graduates must contend with — the corporal dimension can be tricky as well, as Roth discovered while moving down the entire East Coast.

“It took a lot of time and strategic packing to make the move,” she said.