The flexibility of a management degree can be found in the foundational skills it provides that can be applied and developed in multiple careers and industries. As a result, our graduates and alumni follow diverse career paths with many pursuing professional careers in government, financial management, real estate, health care and retail sectors.

Management is a great major for two types of students. First, for students who know what they want to do in life, management coursework develops the skills needed for long-term career success and complements internships and other experiences to help launch their career. Second, for a larger group of students who are unsure of their future career, management exposes them to important ideas that can be broadly applied in pursuing employment, starting a business or continuing their education at the graduate level. 

At its most basic level, management involves creating and maintaining a competitive advantage by motivating employees and winning customers. Covering the tools needed to address business challenges, a management degree fosters interpersonal skills, critical thinking and effective decision-making. The good news is that developed skills can be applied in a variety of settings, and alumni often work in business development, sales, program management, process improvement and human resource management. 

Nearly 3,000 FSU alumni list management as their degree on LinkedIn profiles, and they primarily live in the United States, with the most living in the southeast or major metropolitan areas, such as New York, Washington, D.C., Dallas/Fort Worth, Charlotte, Houston or Los Angeles. There is not a single employer that hires management majors, nor one that management majors seek out for employment. This underscores the flexibility of a management degree; its foundational skills can be applied and developed in multiple careers and industries. As a result, alumni follow diverse career paths with many pursuing professional careers in government, financial management, real estate, health care and retail sectors.

Based on the most recent data (2017) from the FSU Career Center, 92 percent of management majors were either employed or pursuing a graduate degree within six months of graduation. Those hired earned an average starting salary of $55,000, compared to the national average of $51,000. Career and job-search support through recruitment fairs and networking opportunities are offered by the college and the FSU Career Center. A survey of recent FSU graduates suggests the majority found their first job through networking. This fall the career center and the college are launching a new mentorship platform, ProfessioNole Mentors, to link students and professionals within the management field.