New Data Shows Top Companies Hiring Florida’s Online Grads

Embry-Riddle Worldwide is one of the top online schools for salary by major in Florida, and one of the few online schools for aerospace engineering degrees.

Its largest alumni employer by far is the Department of Defense. Nearly 20% work for the Air Force alone — unsurprising given Florida is home to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Eglin Air Force Base, and a number of other bases.

Aerospace and defense are also popular for Embry-Riddle online graduates, with 18% working for Lockheed Martin or Boeing. Popular jobs include pilot, computer systems engineer, and software engineer.

Given the University of Florida's size and general focus as a state school, it's not entirely surprising that alumni outcomes span a range of economically strong industries.

UF is a particularly strong school for many business majors, with high Salary Scores for accounting, business administration, finance, management sciences, and marketing. Close to 18% of graduates work in consulting services at companies like Deloitte and EY.

Graduates with degrees in aerospace engineering, chemical engineering, computer and information sciences, computer engineering, and systems engineering also tend to be highly paid for their major. Top employers include Lockheed Martin and Amazon.

Hodges University is a majority-online school in southeast Florida that largely serves students living in the area. More than 80% of students enroll online and remain in-state after graduation.

As with other colleges on this list, manufacturing is a popular industry for Hodges graduates. Healthcare manufacturing company Arthrex, headquartered in the area, hired 8.6% of alumni. Hodges graduates work in every department, from biomedical sciences and engineering to finance.

Other top employers for Hodges alumni include the Army, Collier County Government, and local healthcare system Lee Health. Graduates held positions in public administration, healthcare, and business within these organizations.

St. Petersburg College is a strong school for teaching majors, with 6.5% of alumni working for Pinellas County Schools.

Salary data shows alumni of St. Petersburg's teaching programs are highly paid for their major with Salary Scores of 84 for teaching programs by learning level and 95 for their math teaching program.

The college is also popular for healthcare majors in the area, with nearby Baycare Health System hiring more than 14% of graduates.

Many St. Petersburg alumni become registered nurses, although they are not highly paid for their field of study. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows Florida nurses tend to earn less than the national average.

Miami Dade is popular for healthcare majors with strong student outcomes in nursing.

The school's three largest employers are Baptist Health, Mount Sinai, and Jackson Health Systems. Nearly a quarter of alumni work for hospitals and other healthcare organizations.

More than 8% of Miami Dade alumni become registered nurses and tend to earn higher average salaries compared to other nursing majors across the country.

Miami Dade's strong Salary Score of 70 for registered nursing programs is particularly notable given that median salaries for Florida nurses are below the national median.

Salary outcomes are also strong for teaching majors, with Salary Scores of 88-90 for teaching and special education majors. The Miami-Dade school district is the largest education employer.

Healthcare is by far the most popular industry for Keiser graduates – 24% of alumni are employed in hospitals and healthcare systems like Baptist Health and Advent Health.

The university has strong Salary Scores in dietetics and nutrition, medical administration, health services, and public health. However, registered nurses tend to be paid average for their field of study, likely due to the lower median wages for Florida nurses compared to the national average.

Other top employers include the Army, hiring just under 7% of graduates, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Florida State alumni employment outcomes are heavily focused in business, with one-third of graduates working in finance or professional services.

Management consulting and accounting companies drew a large portion of graduates, with 13% working for EY, Deloitte, or PwC.

Florida State graduates have strong salary outcomes for specialized areas in business. Accounting, insurance, management science, and marketing majors all tend to be highly paid compared to others with the same degree.

However, business administration, finance, and general business majors earn closer to the average for their field of study with Salary Scores ranging from 50-61.

Amazon and Publix round out the list of top employers for Florida State alumni.

While primarily a community college, Florida State College at Jacksonville offers a range of online bachelor's programs across different fields of study.

Bachelor's alumni from Florida State College tend to be focused in finance and insurance, with three of the top five employers in the industry. Bank of America, Vystar Credit Union, and health insurance company Florida Blue account for 18% of alumni.

The Navy and Baptist Health, both large employers for other schools on this list, round out the top employers for Florida State College bachelor's alumni.

The college's strongest bachelor's degrees for alumni salary are business administration and communications with Salary Scores of 59 and 57, respectively. Salary data available for most other majors indicate alumni tend to be low paid for their field of study.

Alumni of public school Florida Gulf Coast are less concentrated in one sector, with top employers representing a range of different industries. Technology research and consulting company Gartner employs 10% of alumni, the largest share of any one company.

Florida Gulf Coast alumni also work for Lee Health, Publix, and Arthrex, all three of which are top employers for other schools on this list.

Canadian transportation company Scotlynn Group hires nearly 5% of alumni, with USA Division headquarters near the university in Fort Myers and two other offices in the state.