Understanding where students are going after they graduate is critical for developing the best strategies to recruit them.
Handshake Network Trends' State of the Graduate | Class of 2025 report found that several factors can influence where a graduating student wants to work and live.
For example, 69% of Class of 2025 students say finding a job near family is a moderate to high priority, and 47% say the same of finding a job that allows them to live near friends.
Handshake looked at full-time job applications from Class of 2025 students in their senior year to gauge candidate interest in locations across the US.
While some locations may experience faster or slower growth year-over-year, the total number of applications submitted to jobs in a given city is still a strong indicator of where students are most interested in living and working after graduation.
Which cities receive the most applications from students and recent grads?
Big Apple, big interest 🍎
New York City alone accounted for 15% of all applications across the US. What’s more, over the last year, New York City received twice as many applications as Chicago, the next most popular city.
Top 15 cities with the most applications in the US
The top cities for graduating seniors remained largely consistent over the past year. New York City, Chicago, and Washington, DC topped the list for the Class of 2025, followed by Boston, San Francisco, and Dallas. Phoenix, Seattle, and Philadelphia gained ground at the lower end of the list, while San Jose and Charlotte dropped in the ranking.
Are more applications submitted in state or out of state?
59% of applications are submitted out of state
For the Class of 2025, 59% of applications, on average, have been submitted to jobs outside of the state where the candidate’s school is located.
What does this mean for talent attraction?
Early talent today does not necessarily attend school in the same area where they plan to work, and the most qualified talent for your roles might not be located where you expect. New grads are considering jobs outside of the state where they’re attending school.
How do in state application patterns vary by state?
In general, the share of applications submitted in-state is strongly correlated with in-state job availability, but there are some notable exceptions.
Students in some locations are significantly more likely to apply to in-state jobs. New York has the highest share of in-state applications, at 61%, closely followed by Texas and California at just over 60%. At the other end of this spectrum, only 16% of applications from students in Virginia, and just 11% of those from students in Indiana, are submitted in-state.
What do regional job application patterns look like across the US?
Understanding where candidates are interested in working is top of mind for many, as employers often partner with Handshake Insights for guidance on location strategy. But no matter where you're based, you have an opportunity to attract top early talent with a national strategy.
Which cities are candidates in the Northeast applying to?
Of all applications from Class of 2025 students at schools in the Northeast, 76% were to jobs in that region. Despite the density of cities in the region, New York City is the top city drawing applications in the Northeast, accounting for 38% of all applications.
Top 15 cities college students and recent grads in the Northeast are applying to: #1 New York City, NY #2 Boston, MA #3 Washington, DC #4 Philadelphia, PA #5 San Francisco, CA #6 Chicago, IL #7 Baltimore, MD #8 Stamford, CT #9 Pittsburgh, PA #10 Dallas, TX #11 Los Angeles, CA #12 Madison, WI #13 San Jose, CA #14 Miami, FL #15 Atlanta, GA
Which cities are candidates in the Midwest applying to?
Of all applications from Class of 2025 students at schools in the Midwest, 55% were to jobs in the region. But Chicago is the main draw: 17% of all applications from candidates in the Midwest are submitted to jobs in Chicago.
Top 15 cities college students and recent grads in the Midwest are applying to: #1 Chicago, IL #2 New York City, NY #3 Detroit, MI #4 Washington, DC #5 Minneapolis, MN #6 Cincinnati, OH #7 San Francisco, CA #8 Columbus, OH #9 Naperville, IL #10 Boston, MA #11 Madison, WI #12 Cleveland, OH #13 Dallas, TX #14 Indianapolis, IN #15 Milwaukee, WI
Which cities are candidates in the West applying to?
Of all applications from Class of 2025 students at schools in the West, 61% were to jobs in that region. Unlike other regions, a single city did not capture a sizable share of applications. Student location interests from those in the West were more varied with Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City each accounting for about 10-12% of all applications.
Top 15 cities college students and recent grads in the West are applying to: #1 San Francisco, CA #2 New York City, NY #3 Los Angeles, CA #4 San Jose, CA #5 Irvine, CA #6 San Diego, CA #7 Phoenix, AZ #8 Seattle, WA #9 Washington, DC #10 Chicago, IL #11 Sacramento, CA #12 Boston, MA #13 Denver, CO #14 Madison, WI #15 Salt Lake City, UT
Which cities are candidates in the South applying to?
Of all applications from Class of 2025 students at schools in the South, 54% went to jobs in that region. New York City again was the top city drawing applications from candidates in the South, accounting for 12% of all applications.
Top 15 cities college students and recent grads in the South are applying to: #1 New York City, NY #2 Washington, DC #3 Atlanta, GA #4 Dallas, TX #5 Miami, FL #6 Austin, TX #7 Houston, TX #8 Chicago, IL #9 Boston, MA #10 Charlotte, NC #11 San Francisco, CA #12 Fort Worth, TX #13 Richmond, VA #14 Nashville, TN #15 Madison, WI
Three key takeaways & next steps
While you can draw inferences for your specific location, hiring needs, and strategy, the following recommendations can help you get started on updates you might want to make:
1. Use data to inform your location strategy.
The case for employers to source candidates nationwide is strong: candidates are keeping their options open beyond their current location. Leverage Handshake data to uncover qualified candidates for your roles and use more modern sourcing strategies to engage them.
2. Adjust your school strategy.
This data shows that candidates are more open now than in the past to applying to locations beyond where they attend or attended school. Why limit your recruiting strategy to partnerships with schools that are local? Engage top talent regardless of their school’s location.
3. Attract more qualified candidates with a hybrid strategy.
Leverage hybrid tactics to engage candidates outside of your traditional parameters. For example, host virtual events with schools outside your region, use messaging Campaigns to promote your brand and job opportunities to targeted cohorts of students, and maximize ROI by going in person to a select number of campuses that are strategic for your business needs.
Talent is everywhere
The data in these charts, maps, and graphs can help you make informed decisions about where, how, and whom you’re recruiting for entry level roles at your organization.
From finding the right school partnerships to attract the talent you need, to learning how you can use Handshake to expand access to opportunities for students who might not be where you typically look for them, you can use this data to inform your early talent programs.
Want more data-driven insights about early career talent? Head to the Handshake Network Trends hub for the latest reports on what students want, industry impact, and thought leadership to evolve your talent attraction strategy and hire the future.
Methodology
Data in this article is based on full-time job applications from Class of 2025 bachelors degree students on the Handshake platform. Applications submitted between July 1, 2024 and March 31, 2025 were included in the analysis. Fully remote jobs, as well as jobs associated with more than 10 locations, were excluded, as were applications from students attending primarily online institutions. In-state and in-region application shares are based on jobs associated with a single location.