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  • NACE Research

    NACE Research has a long-standing history of supporting the field with quantitative research; forecasting hiring trends in the job market; tracking starting salaries of recent college graduates; providing operational benchmarks; and driving national first-destination initiatives.

    Primary research reports are administered annually to assist professionals in the career services and university relations and recruiting fields in making data-driven decisions; identifying new opportunities; comparing progress year-over-year; and forecasting growth for the future.

    NACE research reports provide unique insight into the NACE member universe: career service professionals, who prepare students for graduation and beyond; university relations and recruiting professionals, who actively recruit college students and graduates; and business affiliates, who provide products and services relevant to these professions.

    Experts in the field of research, NACE can also analyze customized data for organizations who would like to dive deeper into a particular area of interest. Options include additional analysis of existing NACE reports, like Salary Survey, Job Outlook, and the new Recruiting Compensation Benchmark Report, as well as a separate, custom reports on diversity statistics; school selection; peer institutions; and employer branding.

    Fully-commissioned, primary research is also available to organizations interested in having NACE develop, administer, and analyze a custom research survey to a specific audience on their behalf.

    NACE Research Schedule

    Below is the schedule for NACE’s primary research studies. Special projects, quick polls, and other research efforts are undertaken on an as-needed basis.

    Who participates in NACE surveys? In general, surveys are distributed to NACE member organizations/institutions. One individual is designated to respond to the survey on behalf of the organization/institution. All members at the participating organization/institution have access to a complimentary copy of the report.

    EMPLOYER SURVEYS DATA COLLECTION APPROX. RELEASE DATES FREE TO
    Job Outlook 2022: August – September November 2022 All NACE members
    Salary Survey (Winter Report) 2022: October - November January 2023 All NACE members
    Internship & Co-op Benchmarks AND Compensation Survey 2022: October - December March 2023 Participating NACE members
    Job Outlook Spring Update 2023: February – March April 2023 All NACE members
    Recruiting Benchmarks 2023: Mid- April  – May August 2023 Participating NACE members
    Recruiting Compensation Survey 2024*: Mid- April  – May August 2024 Participating NACE members


    COLLEGE SURVEYS DATA COLLECTION APPROX. RELEASE DATES FREE TO
    First Destination Survey – Class of 2021 (Grad and undergrad) 2022: January – April (Schools report data to NACE) September 2022 All, including public
    Salary Survey (Summer Report) 2022: January – April (Based on First-Destination Survey results) August 2022 All NACE members
    Student Survey for Two-Year Schools 2022: February - May August 2022 Participating NACE members
    Student Survey for Four-Year Schools 2022: February – May September 2022 Participating NACE members
    Career Services Benchmarks Survey 2022: October – November March 2023 Participating NACE members
    Career Services Professional Staff Compensation Survey 2023*: October – November March 2024 Participating NACE members
    First Destination Survey – Class of 2022 (Grad and undergrad) 2023: January – April (Schools report data to NACE) September 2023 All, including public
    Salary Survey (Summer Report) 2023: January – April (Based on First-Destination Survey results) August 2023 All NACE members
    Student Survey for Two-Year Schools 2023: March - May September 2023 Participating NACE members
    Student Survey for Four-Year Schools 2023: March – May September 2023 Participating NACE members

    *Note: Beginning in fall 2022, benchmarks and compensation data will be collected separately and on an every-other-year basis.

    Questions?

    Contact NACE Research at research@naceweb.org, 610.625.1025.