So these lists mean almost nothing to me. Location, location, location plus… Getting pretty much any of these jobs in California will pay you more then Iowa… Cost of living is also key. These kids are all getting crazy and great benefits but it’s the other stuff also. My son’s in a 4 year rotational program for engineering that takes him overseas for 3 years. Everything is paid for including room /board once overseas. So how much is that worth? So instead of paying for an apartment/car and all that goes with it he will bank /invest that money. @eyemgh stated as his son is doing mine is maxing out all investments that he can plus…
So every situation is different, cost of living is key and location needs to be factored in. The outliers are just that.
I appreciate every input as online resources have limited value, just like college EFC where you get a deceiving pic of average cost which makes poor families think they can’t afford it (even though they may qualify for full ride) and upper middle class think they can easily swing it (and end up getting bill for $60K per year).
My D graduated last year, age 21 , had two NYC finance job offers, both over 100k base plus bonuses, ended up with a large HF ( larger than Citadel) , sign in bonus 35k, base about 110k.
With the rare exception of the founders of successful start ups, (that received angel funding upon or before graduation), that is the high water mark I have heard of.
I think it’s because all benefits are more or less the same. 401k matching and mega back door IRA might be the only variable but even 50% company matching is only under $10k per year which is not very material for total compensation of about 200k
There can be considerable variation in benefit quality across employers. For example, in medical insurance benefits, the offered plans at one employer may have different available PPO/HMO networks, deductible options, HSA availability and quality for high deductible plans, employee contribution, etc. compared to those at another employer.
To many college graduates during their first years post college the quality of health benefits is not as important as to people who are older. As long as they have health coverage many of them just go for preventative visits which are covered under any insurance. As we get older, quality of health insurance becomes more important.
Facebook used to offer engineers up to $100k in sign-up bonuses. There were many news stories about this $100k figure. However, bonuses this large were rare… typically for returning interns with a “rockstar” rating. if you look at average/median type self-reported stats, most report bonuses that are a small fraction of that amount – more on the $10k to $20k level. Sign-up bonuses are variable, depending on many factors They can also be negotiated.
I previously listed self-reported on Glassdoor median earnings for Google and Cisco SV software engineers with <1 year experience. Numbers below are for Facebook, which are quite similar.
Google SV Software Engineers with <1 Year Experience
25th to 75th range for base salary – $123k to $159k
Average base salary – $131k
Average total pay – $144k
Average Total Pay
Cisco – $149k
Google – $148k
Facebook – $144k
That must be base earnings. I have 2020 grad who got job in CA and everyone she knows got base between $110k to $140k as return interns. Her friend who joined FB got total compensation equal to hers, just his sign up bonuses were at $65k and hers were at $20k. His RSU and annual bonus target was lower then hers. His relocation was higher then hers, but hers 401k match was 50% of the limit. In total compensation they both got north of $200k for the first year and $185 for the next 3 years since RSU grant was for four years. That doesn’t include annual raises and RSU refreshers.
My post separated base salary and total pay. You mentioned in your sample of 2, one person got a $20k sign-up bonus and the other $65k. This is not inconsistent with my post.
With this kind of starting package right out of undergrad, do they earn more (over the length of an average career) than their pre-med friends spending lot of money and an extra decade before starting a high paying job?
Depends what type of physician one becomes. Primary care physicians (PCP, IM, FM, DO, Peds) average salary is in the $200Ks-$250K range…so some business and engineer types would likely earn more over their careers than these types of specialties. The debt load some of these physicians have is also an issue for many of them.
I work for an org that employs all kind of people. Top earners in just about every division have advanced degrees – PhD, JD, MBA etc. We even have several MDs. The only ones who make good money minus advanced degrees are engineers (PE), accountants (CPA) and software engineers. Most PhDs I know got a free education but their paths were just as long as MDs minus school debt. Caveat is they start around $75-90K at the age of 32/33. JD and MBA folks have quite a bit of debt too.
With most others with gen ed degrees (STEM and non-STEM), I rarely see starting salaries over $50-52K. No bonus to start and ~$2K relocation. This includes all natural sciences.
When my D when she was considering medicine as a career, I told her to do that only go if she loved doing so, and not with the expectation of making good money. I then ran the numbers for her showing how little doctors can take home if they have medical school debt. It was sobering to her.
That wasn’t the only reason she gave up on the idea of medicine (we could fund her medical school if she went to Alabama on scholarship), but it was a consideration.