This article was originally reported in April 2025. Results for the class of 2024–25, released in March 2026, are in the latest update at the end.
On April 8, 2025, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign released its annual Illini Success report on where its new bachelor’s graduates went after graduation. The report covered the 2023–24 cohort, students who finished undergraduate degrees in August 2023, December 2023 or May 2024, and found that 90% had reached a “first destination,” a job, further education or a volunteer or service position (Illinois News Bureau, April 8, 2025).
Key results for the class of 2023–24
- Outcomes: 50% started a job, 40% enrolled in further education and less than 1% took a volunteer or service position.
- Knowledge rate: the university had outcome information for 67% of the cohort, up from 65% the year before. The percentages describe graduates whose outcomes are known.
- Pay: the average salary for employed graduates was $75,373, with a median signing bonus of $5,000.
- Experiential learning: 91% took part in an internship, research, study abroad, service learning or a clinical program, and 42% of those students received a job offer through that experience.
- Where they went: 80% of graduates from Illinois found a first destination in the state, 2 percentage points more than the previous cohort, and 69% of the whole cohort stayed in Illinois. Graduates landed in 46 states, including Illinois, and 17 other countries.
- Employers that hired at least 10 graduates: AbbVie, Amazon, Capital One, Caterpillar, Deloitte, Epic Systems, EY, Google, Grainger, JPMorganChase, KPMG, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, PwC and RSM.
- Graduate schools: besides Illinois itself, graduates went on to Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Georgia Tech, New York University, Northwestern, Princeton, Rush University, Stanford and the University of Chicago, among others.
Then-Chancellor Robert J. Jones described Illinois as “an engine of learning, discovery, innovation and economic prosperity.” The full results, including breakdowns by college, are published on the Illini Success website.
Three years of Illini Success results
| Cohort | Positive outcome | Employed | Further education | Average salary | Experiential learning | Knowledge rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | 91% | 56% | 35% | $75,847 | 88% | 65% |
| 2023–24 | 90% | 50% | 40% | $75,373 | 91% | 67% |
| 2024–25 | 93% | 58% | 34% | $79,516 | 91% | 65% |
Sources: Illinois News Bureau, April 10, 2024; April 8, 2025; March 24, 2026.
The 2023–24 dip in the share employed came with a rise in the share going straight to graduate or professional school; the overall positive-outcome rate stayed around 90% in all three years.
How international students can use the report
- Look at your college, not the campus average: starting pay differs widely by field. In the 2024–25 report, median salaries ranged from $52,600 to $90,000 across colleges, so check the college and major breakdowns on the Illini Success site before comparing with other schools.
- Read the knowledge rate: the figures cover the roughly two-thirds of graduates whose outcomes are known, and they are not reported separately for international students. Graduates on F-1 visas usually start work on OPT, and STEM majors can extend it, so a degree in a STEM-designated major matters for how long you can work in the U.S. after graduation (Study in the States: STEM OPT Hub).
- Use experiential learning early: more than four in ten students who did an internship or similar experience got a job offer from it. For F-1 students, off-campus internships during the degree normally require Curricular Practical Training (CPT) authorized by the international student office, and CPT is limited to training that is an integral part of the curriculum (8 CFR 214.2(f)(10)).
- Rankings: in Forward Pathway’s ranking database, Illinois is ranked No. 34 in the 2027 U.S. News national universities ranking and No. 48 in the 2027 Times Higher Education world ranking. For admission statistics, costs and international enrollment, see the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign school profile.
Latest update: the class of 2024–25
On March 24, 2026, Illinois released results for students who finished degrees in August 2024, December 2024 or May 2025. The positive-outcome rate rose to 93%: 58% started a job, 34% continued their education and less than 1% volunteered. The average salary for employed graduates rose 5.5% to $79,516, with a median signing bonus of $6,000, and median salaries ranged from $52,600 to $90,000 by college. Ninety-one percent took part in experiential learning, and 43% of them got a job offer through it. Seventy percent of the cohort stayed in Illinois; the rest went to 47 other states, Washington, D.C., and 24 other countries.
Employers hiring at least 10 graduates included Archer Daniels Midland, Amazon, Caterpillar, Chicago Public Schools, Deloitte, Echo Global Logistics, Epic Systems, EY, Google, JPMorganChase, KPMG, Microsoft, PepsiCo, PwC and State Farm. Illinois itself was by far the top destination for further study, with 865 graduates continuing there, ten times more than any other institution. Chancellor Charles L. Isbell Jr. said Illinois “continues to equip students with the tangible skills” employers need (Illinois News Bureau, March 24, 2026; Illini Success 2024–25 annual report).
References
- Illinois News Bureau: Illini Success report details high rates of employment, continuing education (April 8, 2025)
- Illini Success: 2023–24 report
- Illinois News Bureau: Illini Success report for 2022–23 (April 10, 2024)
- Illinois News Bureau: Illini Success report highlights increase in employment, starting salaries (March 24, 2026)
- Illini Success: 2024–25 annual report
- Forward Pathway: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign profile and rankings