SS-14 Do Internships, GPA, and University Ranking Really Influence Job Offers? An In-Depth Analysis

Many believe that academic performance, internships, certifications, and soft skills are crucial for securing employment and determining salary. However, it is essential to explore whether these factors significantly impact real-world career outcomes. This research examines various influencing factors to identify which aspects contribute most to career success and job satisfaction. The dataset "Education & Career Success" by Adil Shamin, available on Kaggle, contains records of 5,000 students from seven fields of study: Computer Science, Medicine, Business, Engineering, Arts, Law, and Mathematics. Using Python, this study explores the relationships between variables through methods such as mean, mode, bar charts, line graphs, and proportions. The results show that university GPA significantly influenced the number of completed internships, with top-ranking students (1-400) completing the highest number of internships. On the other hand, students ranked 600-1000 tended to receive more job offers. Interestingly, university GPA, internship completion, certifications, and project experience did not have a significant effect on job offers overall, but were more beneficial for specific fields. For instance, certifications were particularly valuable for Mathematics majors, while a higher number of projects benefited Arts, Engineering, Medicine, and Business majors. Additionally, job offers tend to decline after age 25, with the highest potential for job offers occurring between ages 22-24. The study also found that graduates in Art, Engineering, and Law majors had a higher proportion of entrepreneurial aspirations. Mathematics graduates received the highest number of job offers and reported the highest career satisfaction, while Art majors had the highest starting salaries, and Business majors reported the best work-life balance. The findings suggest that career success is not solely determined by internship completion, certifications, and project experience, as often assumed. Instead, factors such as university ranking, age, and field of study are more influential in determining the number of job offers.