Career Treks & Immersion
Career Treks give Tepper School MBA students direct exposure to companies, industries, and alumni networks in key markets. Organized by student clubs with support from the MCC, treks combine company visits, networking, and recruiting opportunities.
Recent treks have taken students to:
- New York City for finance, consulting, and retail.
- Boston for healthcare and consulting
- Silicon Valley/San Francisco Bay Area for technology and entrepreneurship.
- Chicago for consulting.
Treks allow you to see how business is practiced in different contexts, connect with alumni in leadership roles, and gain insight into potential employers before formal recruiting begins.
Some of the Companies We've Visited
- Amazon
- Bain
- Bank of America Merrill Lynch
- Bristol-Myers Squibb
- Cisco
- HP
- JP Morgan
- Microsoft
- Philips Healthcare
- PwC
- Salesforce
- Thermo Fisher Scientific
- VMware
- Walmart.com
Career Paths
At the Tepper School, you’ll work with career counselors from the Masters Career Center who bring decades of experience across industries and functions. They will guide you through the tools, resources, and processes that help you define your goals, explore options, and pursue the career path that aligns with your skills and aspirations.
An MBA from the Tepper School provides a strong foundation for consulting and strategy careers, where you’ll apply problem-solving, analytics, and leadership skills to guide organizations through complex challenges.
Graduates often pursue roles in top consulting firms, corporate strategy groups, and general management positions. Tepper School alumni working in these areas actively recruit current students, helping to strengthen career pathways.
Consulting and Strategy Highlights
- 30.1% of the Full-Time MBA Class of 2024 entered careers in consulting.
- Mean salary: $165,134
- Top recruiters: Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, EY/ EY Parthenon, McKinsey & Company, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
Community & Activities
Students interested in consulting and strategy join a supportive network that includes the Tepper Consulting Club—one of the largest MBA clubs on campus. In collaboration with the Masters Career Center, the club offers case prep, networking events, and workshops to help you prepare for interviews and succeed in recruiting.
A Tepper School MBA helps you channel your entrepreneurial drive into real-world ventures. You’ll gain the skills, connections, and resources to launch startups, join early-stage companies, or pursue innovation roles within established organizations.
History & Campus Resources
The Tepper School was one of the first business schools in the world to offer entrepreneurship education, beginning in 1971. The Donald H. Jones Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, founded in 1989, built on that foundation. Today, the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship serves as Carnegie Mellon’s campus hub for innovation, working with MBA students on venture creation, access to capital, and startup market entry.
Entrepreneurship Highlights
- Carnegie Mellon professors and students launch an average of 15-30 new companies annually. A few you may recognize include ModCloth, DuoLingo, and Shutterfly.
- Carnegie Mellon’s innovation spurs economic growth and has helped to launch more than 500 companies and 9,000 jobs in the past 20 years.
Career Development
Students in the Entrepreneurship track collaborate across Carnegie Mellon’s strengths in engineering, computer science, robotics, design, and product development. This interdisciplinary approach equips you with the tools and experiences needed to lead and innovate in technology-driven industries.
Fellowship Opportunities
Select students may apply to become Swartz Fellows, a program that accelerates careers through a mentored internship with a top VC-backed startup in Silicon Valley.
Community & Activities
Entrepreneurship-focused MBA students engage in clubs, competitions, and speaker events throughout the year. These activities foster partnerships with industry experts, venture capitalists, and business leaders, offering practical insight into startup growth and venture capital careers.
Tepper School MBA graduates build careers across corporate finance, investment banking, investment research, and finance leadership development programs. Alumni are well-represented in senior positions at global investment banks and on Fortune 500 finance teams in industries such as technology, healthcare, and manufacturing.
Finance Highlights
- 21% of the Full-Time MBA Class of 2022 entered into finance careers after graduation.
- Mean salary: $144,941
- Top recruiters: Bank of America Corporation, Citi Bank, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Guggenheim Partners, Jefferies, LLC.
Community & Activities
Finance students engage in professional clubs that expand knowledge and connections, including the Graduate Finance Association, Alpha Asset Management Club, and the Entrepreneurship & Venture Capital Club. These groups host competitions, networking events, and speaker sessions to support recruiting and career growth.
Tepper School MBAs apply strategy, analytics, and leadership skills to marketing roles across industries. More than 90 percent of graduates who pursue marketing careers enter product management and marketing leadership development programs after graduation. Recruiting partners include Fortune 500 companies in technology, healthcare, and consumer packaged goods.
Marketing Career Highlights
- 19.1% of the Full-Time MBA entered careers in marketing after graduation.
- Mean salary: $145,873
- Top recruiting partners: Amazon, Capital One Financial Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, Procter & Gamble, and Yahoo!
Career Development
The curriculum covers disciplines such as branding, pricing, B2C and B2B marketing, and strategic optimization. Students can further shape their path through concentrations and tracks.
Community & Activities
Marketing-focused students engage in clubs that expand networks and experience, including the Marketing Club, Biopharma Healthcare Club, Business and Technology Club, and Organizational Leadership Club. These groups host case prep, speaker events, and competitions to support recruiting and professional development.
Tepper School MBA graduates in operations pursue careers in supply chain management, logistics, purchasing, production management, and general management programs. The Tepper School is consistently ranked among the top schools globally for operations, supply chain, and production management, and alumni build successful careers across industries including technology, healthcare, energy, and manufacturing.
Operations Highlights
- 10.3% of the Full-Time MBA entered into operations careers after graduation.
- Mean salary: $129,860
- Top recruiting companies: Amazon, Apple, Eli Lilly & Company, Microsoft Corporation, PepsiCo
Community & Activities
Students interested in operations careers engage with clubs including the Operations & General Management Club, Healthcare Club, Business and Technology Club, Consulting Club, and Energy Club. The Operations & General Management Club also hosts one of the longest-running international case competitions in the U.S., a tradition spanning more than three decades.