Postcollegiate Outcomes Project

PCO Logo

The University of Minnesota Postcollegiate Outcomes (PCO) project tells a more complete story of our graduates' paths after receiving their undergraduate degree. By linking multiple non-survey data sources, we capture data on a large share of alumni across the system and at all degree levels. This integrated data allows us to paint a systemwide portrait of what our graduates are doing for further education and employment 5, 10, and 15 years after leaving the University.

Data Sources

This project analyzes the journeys of University of Minnesota graduates by combining internal university records with two external data sources.

Source 1: Minnesota Unemployment Insurance (UI) Wage Data
This data, from the Minnesota Statewide Longitudinal Education Data System (SLEDS), allows us to track employment and earnings for alumni working in Minnesota.

  • Coverage: Includes approximately 95% of all jobs in Minnesota.
  • Limitations: The data does not include everyone working in the state. Key exclusions are:
    • Self-employed individuals and independent contractors
    • Federal government employees
    • Those employed by certain religious non-profits

Source 2: National Student Clearinghouse (NSC)
The NSC provides information on further college enrollment for our alumni after they graduate from the U of M.

  • Coverage: Includes enrollment data from nearly all U.S. higher education institutions.
Notes

Project Scope & Methodology
We track cohorts of graduates over time to understand how they establish themselves in their careers and educational paths.

  • Alumni Tracked: Over 239,000 alumni who earned degrees or certificates between 2006 and 2022.
  • Degrees Included: The project follows graduates who earned bachelor's, master's, doctoral research, and professional degrees and certificates.
  • Currently Available Data: At present, public dashboards only show results for bachelor's degree alumni. Data for graduate and professional alumni will be added in the future.

Earnings

  • Earnings for UMN graduates are calculated using quarterly earnings records from Minnesota’s Unemployment Insurance database and aggregated on a calendar-year basis. These earnings are inflation-adjusted to 2024 dollars utilizing the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Annual Average Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). Earnings are reported by year after graduation to facilitate meaningful comparisons across cohorts entering the workforce in different years.
  • The earnings of UMN baccalaureate graduates are not adjusted for additional education; therefore, earnings are reported for a baccalaureate degree or higher attainment, if applicable.

Industry

  • The industries of employment for UMN graduates are tracked quarterly using Minnesota Unemployment Insurance (UI) records. Employment changes involving shifts between industries are recorded and account for the discrepancy between the number of graduates and the higher number of jobs reported. 

Further Education

  • Further educational attainment of UMN graduates is tracked through National Student Clearinghouse records, capturing up to four additional credentials. This accounts for the discrepancy between the number of graduates and the higher number of degrees/certificates reported.

Data Governance

  • The Postcollegiate Outcomes Project follows the Minnesota Unemployment Insurance Program’s data governance policies and is aligned with the University’s Enterprise Data Management & Reporting policies.
  • To ensure confidentiality, cells with fewer than 10 graduates are suppressed in the employment outcomes dashboards, preventing results from being displayed for such groups.
Glossary

Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) Code
A federal numeric (6-, 4-, and 2-digit) code assigned to a specific academic program.

ACS Earnings
The ACS median earnings used in the benchmarking dashboards are estimates based on the American Community Survey Subject Table B15014, Median Earnings in the Past 12 Months (in 2022 Inflation-Adjusted Dollars) by Age by Field of Bachelor’s Degree for First Major, ACS 1-Year Estimates Detailed Table, 2022, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce. The ACS reports median earnings for the overall Minnesota population aged 25 to 64, as well as for a subset aged 25 to 39, with earnings and a Bachelor's degree or higher. In this Tableau report, the ACS salary estimates are reported in 2024 inflation-adjusted dollars to allow for a more direct comparison with the UMN PCO data.

Degree Conferred Year
Degree Conferred Year is based on the actual calendar year (January-December) in which a degree was awarded. This differs from the traditional academic year and serves to align UMN cohorts with MN UI wage records. 

Employment Calendar Year
Employment Calendar Year is the 12-month period from January through December that MN UI employment data corresponds to.

Employment Definitions

  • Full-Time Employment: Working at least 1,820 hours in a calendar year (averaging 35+ hours per week).
  • Part-Time Employment: Working fewer than 1,820 hours in a calendar year (averaging 1-34 hours per week).
  • Partial Employment Record: An incomplete record from the state UI system that contains wage data or hours worked, but not both.

Field of Degree (ACS)
To benchmark UMN graduates against national data, we use 6-digit CIP codes to map UMN's majors to the detailed ACS Field of Degree description categories. These detailed categories are then grouped into broader ACS Fields of Degree for higher-level analysis and reporting. The 15 Fields of Degree used by the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) also correspond to 2-digit CIP codes. The ACS Fields of Degree are based on self-reported majors from Minnesota ACS respondents.

1. Computers, Mathematics, and Statistics

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 11 (Computer Science), 27 (Mathematics & Statistics)

2. Biological, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 01 (Agriculture), 03 (Natural Resources), 26 (Biological Sciences)

3. Physical and Related Sciences

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 40 (Physical Sciences)

4. Psychology

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 42 (Psychology)

5. Social Sciences

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 05 (Area & Ethnic Studies), 45 (Social Sciences)

6. Engineering

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 14 (Engineering)

7. Multidisciplinary Studies

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 30 (Multidisciplinary Studies)

8. Science and Engineering Related Fields 

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 4 (Architecture), 15 (Engineering Technologies), 49 (Transportation), 51 (Health Professions)

9. Business

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 52 (Business, Management, Marketing)

10. Education

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 13 (Education)

11. Literature and Languages 

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 16 (Foreign Languages), 23 (English), 

12. Liberal Arts and History

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 24 (Liberal Arts), 38 (Philosophy),  39 (Philosophy), 54 (History)

13. Visual and Performing Arts

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 50 (Visual & Performing Arts)

14. Communications

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 09 (Communication & Journalism), 10 (Communications Technologies)

15. Other. This is a general category for fields not classified elsewhere.

  • Examples (by CIP Code): 12 (Personal Services), 19 (Family & Consumer Sciences), 31 (Parks & Recreation),  43 (Security & Protective Services), 44 (Public Admin & Social Service), 46 (Construction Trades)

Industry: North American Industry Classification System (NAISC)
The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), is the standard used by federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments. Its primary purpose is to collect, analyze, and publish statistical data related to the U.S., Canadian, and Mexican business economies.

College State
College state refers to the U.S. state of the institution where UMN graduates earned further credentials.

Related Resources
Dashboard Tips

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