For families weighing the cost of a college degree against its payoff, one number tends to take priority over the rest. How many graduates actually land somewhere after they walk across the stage?
High Point University in North Carolina has posted a result most institutions cannot match.
Ninety-nine percent of HPU’s Class of 2025 were employed or enrolled in graduate school within 180 days of graduation. For reference, this figure ranks the university first in North Carolina for career placement and sits 13 points above the national average.
High Point University has worked hard and methodically to arrive at this number. Below, we take a look at the structured career model behind one of the best placement figures in higher learning.
A Number Built to Last
HPU’s 99% rate was calculated in accordance with standards set by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), the body that governs how schools report graduate outcomes.
According to NACE’s most recent data, HPU’s result is 13 percentage points higher than the national average.
This is not a new outcome. The graduating classes of 2022, 2023 and 2024 also posted 99% placement rates, reflecting a consistency that one good year cannot explain.
That track record is why the university frames the number as the output of a system rather than a marketing line.
As President Nido Qubein put it, “Our successful placement rate at High Point University is a result of our commitment to educating students with life skills that endure technological change, such as emotional intelligence, motivation, adaptability and effective communication.”
Life Skills as the Foundation
HPU brands itself as the Premier Life Skills University. The placement data provides clear evidence that the school points to in defense of that identity.
The argument is that technical knowledge ages quickly, but the human capacities employers consistently ask for, including communication, adaptability, motivation and emotional intelligence, do not.
By building those skills into the student experience rather than treating them as extracurriculars, the university aims to produce graduates who stand out in a hiring market increasingly reshaped by automation.
“At HPU, we combine the best of a liberal arts education with real-world learning opportunities, all underscored with the life skills that prepare students to stand out,” Qubein said.
That blend of rigorous academics, hands-on experience and deliberate life-skills training is the recipe the university credits for the outcome.
A Career Office That Ranks Among the Nation’s Best
The structure behind the numbers runs through HPU’s Office of Career and Professional Development, headquartered in Cottrell Hall.
Here, students regularly meet with staff including Dr. Doug Hall, the university’s vice president of career and professional development. The Princeton Review ranks HPU’s career services office #9 in the nation, a recognition that reflects how central professional development is to the student experience.
Students engage with that office across all four years to ensure career readiness come graduation. The result is a pipeline that begins early, builds steadily and is supported by professionals whose full-time job is helping students translate their education into a career.
Real Companies, Real Offers
HPU Class of 2025 graduates have been hired by major organizations including Morgan Stanley, Coca-Cola, KPMG, UBS Financial, Stryker, Marriott International, Bloomberg, Under Armour and the NBA.
Not only are graduates finding positions but they are thriving within them. The Chronicle of Higher Education has highlighted HPU specifically for the success its graduates achieve early in their careers.
Those outcomes are reinforced by direct exposure to employers. Through the HPU in the City program, students travel to major metropolitan regions.
There, they receive facetime with companies such as Goldman Sachs, ABC News, Visa, Morgan Stanley and the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks headquarters to network with executives and alumni. Those visits frequently open doors to internships and jobs that students would not otherwise have encountered.
Access to Innovators
HPU students also benefit from the Access to Innovators program, which brings a deep roster of industry leaders to campus to mentor students directly.
The lineup includes Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak, who serves as HPU’s Innovator in Residence, and Netflix Co-Founder Marc Randolph, the university’s Entrepreneur in Residence.
Regular contact with leaders of that caliber gives students both practical guidance and the kind of professional network that ordinarily takes years to build.
That access, paired with twice-yearly career expos that draw recruiters from companies like Morgan Stanley, Northwestern Mutual, Boeing, Gartner and Xerox, keeps students in front of employers throughout their time on campus.
What Families Should Take From It
It’s hard not to be impressed by a 99% placement rate. What really makes HPU special, however, is the infrastructure behind that figure.
The university is built from the ground up with professional development as an institutional priority. They execute on this through several core features.
Atop-ranked career office. A four-year professional-development model, repeated exposure to real employers and mentors, and a curriculum organized around the life skills employers say they value most.
For anyone asking whether a college investment will translate into a career, that is exactly the kind of evidence worth weighing, and it is the case High Point University makes to every family that visits.