ALUMNI SALARY SURVEY RESULTS
January 2024
Dear Brandcenter Alums,
Following, please find the most recent VCU Brandcenter Alumni Salary Survey Report. We conduct this survey every other year. The last report was shared in December of 2021.
I want to start by saying a HUGE thanks to:
• Stacy Thomas (ST, 2001), Allison Schneider (ST, 2021), and Natalie Baxter of Good Run Research & Recreation for helping me improve the survey questions and logic as well as analyze the results. If your agency or company is looking for a super talented research partner, you should check them out! They also have an amazing event space here in RVA. Contact: allison@goodrunresearch.com
• Diana Tung Ojibway (AD, 2002) for turning my boring Word document and tables into beautiful infographics.
• All of our alums who contributed to this report. I am so grateful to you all for everything you do to give back to our program, including taking our survey.
Purpose:
• To help our alumni understand average salaries for their discipline and level, and prepare them for annual reviews, salary negotiations, career shifts, etc.
• We also took a look at factors beyond salary - such as how happy our alumni are at their current job, how many hours they work each week, and what companies/ agencies they want to work for next.
What’s new this time?
• We reported salary data by concentration (like we normally do) and by role (new!) for the positions where we had enough responses to report them.
• We reported both average and median salaries.
• We reported current work modality and preferred work modality.
• We reported what employer benefits/perks our alums care about most.
Methodology: Online survey, 33 questions, fielded between September - October 2023
Response rate: 630 alumni responses
Response rate by concentration:
• 24%: Art Direction
• 24%: Copywriting
• 23%: Strategy/ Communications Strategy
• 16%: Creative Brand Management
• 13%: Experience Design/Creative Technology
Note: CBM and XD are newer concentrations. The CBM concentration started in 2005 and Experience Design started in 2008.
Response rate by graduating class:
• 7%: 1998-2003
• 12%: 2004-2008
• 21%: 2009-2013
• 21%: 2014-2018
• 39%: 2019-2023
Note: Earlier graduating classes were much smaller in class size than more recent graduating classes. For example, the Class of 1998 had 48 graduates. The Class of 2023 had 95 graduates.
Questions/Comments:
Please let me know if you have questions, comments, suggestions for future surveys/reports.
Best, Ashley Sommardahl Associate Director
New this year:
• We’ve reported salaries by both concentration and specific role (wherever possible.)
• We did not report data by major vs. non-major markets because we discovered that 30% of our alumni work virtually and don’t live in the city where their company is located. Many live in major markets while working for companies located in non-major markets or vice versa. With norms changing on where people work and live, reporting by market isn’t as demonstrative as it’s been in the past.
• In addition to reporting salary averages (the sum of reported salaries divided by the number of responses), we’re also reporting salary medians (the midpoint salary of all reported salaries).
• Median is often a truer reflection of the middle of the salary range than is average, as outlier salaries (both high and low) can have a disproportionate impact on averages. We encourage consideration of both, for perspective.
Annual Salary by Concentration and Level
Q: What is your current annual salary? (open-ended; Average and Median)
Note: Because titles and hierarchy vary greatly by individual agency/company, we asked alums to define their current level.
Note: See above for average and median definitions and our rationale for providing both.
Note: Segments marked n/a had less than 10 data points, and were thus omitted from the analysis.
AD
$67,222 Average $68,500 Median
CW
$57,693 Average $65,000 Median
XD
n/a Average n/a Median
ST
$65,886 Average $75,000 Median
$67,167 Average $70,000 Median
$83,797 Average $80,000 Median
$90,411 Average $84,000 Median
$104,331 Average $92,500 Median
$87,818 Average $81,250 Median
$93,451 Average $81,500 Median
$141,551 Average $125,000 Median
$153,008 Average $135,000 Median
$172,471 Average $145,000 Median
$148,609 Average $120,000 Median
$139,361 Average $126,000 Median
$210,487 Average $200,000 Median n/a Average n/a Median
$204,419 Average $175,000 Median n/a Average n/a Median
$165,765 Average $141,000 Median n/a Average n/a Median
$177,064 Average $175,000 Median
$263,370 Average $265,000 Median
$177,280 Average $168,000 Median n/a Average n/a Median
Annual Salary by Role and Level
Note: New this year - Because many alumni pursue roles “outside” of their Brandcenter concentration, we asked alums to identify their role in addition to their concentration
Note: We reported salary data for the roles for which we had enough responses. Segments marked n/a had less than 10 data points, and were thus omitted from the analysis.
Salary by Gender and Level
Average Junior Salaries: Industry Average vs. Brandcenter Average
Source: Glassdoor (US average; junior level; media and communications industry)
Job Happiness
Q: How would you describe the way you feel about your current job? (multiple choice) Answered they “Like” or “Love” their job.
Q: In this industry, we understand that workload varies depending on things like current projects, production, new business, etc. ON AVERAGE, how many hours per week do you work? (multiple choice)
Job Modality (In-Person, Virtual, or Hybrid)
Q: Is your current role fully in-person, fully remote, or hybrid?
Q: Regardless of how your current role is structured, what is your preferred modality for working?
Job Attributes
Q: Thinking of where you are in your career right now, rank your top FIVE most important job attributes.
All Respondents
(top 5 most important attributes)
Salary
Work/Life Balance
Cultural Fit
Clients I want to work with/Category work
Growth potential
Job Tenure
Q: How long have you been at your current job? (multiple choice)
Respondents at the Junior Level (top 5 most important attributes)
Salary
Work/Life Balance
Mentorship
Cultural Fit
Growth potential
Q: Do you plan to actively look for a new job this year? (yes or no)
Q: What are the reasons you plan to look for a new job? (Check all that apply) (across all respondents)
Planning to Look for a New Job (top 3 reasons)
Top Employer Benefits
Q: In addition to salary and health benefits, when considering a new role, what benefits/perks do you value most? (Select top 3)
All Respondents (top 3 most valued benefits)
401K/Retirement Savings Plan
Unlimited (or generous) vacation allowance Parental leave
Respondents at the Junior + Mid Level (top 3 most valued benefits)
Unlimited (or generous) vacation allowance
401K/Retirement Savings Plan Relocation stipend
Early Career
Advancement (Class of 2022 and 2023)
Job Offers by Graduation
Q: How many official job offers did you receive upon graduation? (Official means the agency/company made a formal offer verbally or in writing including title, salary, benefits).
Class of 2022
Class of 2023
Note: Class of 2023 faced a more challenging state of economy and job hiring climate.
Job Level Accepted After Graduation
Q: What level of job did you accept after graduation?
Promotion/Raise in Year Since Graduation (Class of 2022)
Q: Have you received a promotion and/or raise since you graduated?
Of the 45 Class of 2022 alums who took this survey, 67% have received a promotion or raise since graduation.
Q: How prepared did you feel in your first job post-Brandcenter?
Job Preparedness (Class of 2022 and 2023 combined) 84% reported feeling very well prepared or prepared for their jobs.
Job Satisfaction
Job Satisfaction
Employer Type
Q: Have you ever considered starting your own business? (all responses)
Career Attributes Preventing Entrepreneurship
Q: What is holding you back from entrepreneurship? (Select all that apply)
34% Financial Security: I need to save more, find external funding, etc.
24% Career/Experience: I want to get more experience, I still have more to learn, etc.
20% Risk: There are too many unknowns, I have a fear of failure, etc.
16% Network: I want to build my network more, develop more relationships
6% Something Else
Job Happiness
For those considering entrepreneurship, their self-described happiness at their current job:
Q: For those considering entrepreneurship, what is MOST and LEAST IMPORTANT in terms of career attributes? (Respondents could select multiple answers)
Career Attributes Ranking Most Important Least Important
by Gender
9% of respondents reported they are freelancers.
by Concentration
Q: How long have you been freelancing?
Day Rates
Because 93% of the respondents were at the senior, director, or level, we only included day rates for that level. Senior/Director Level - Average day rate by role:
Job Satisfaction
Q: How would you describe the way you feel about your current job?
Average Workload
Q: Workload varies depending on current projects, production, new business, etc. On AVERAGE, how many hours per week do you work?
Where Our Alums Want To Work Now
Q: What agency/company would you LOVE to work for? (open-ended) Some of the most popular answers were:
Work for Myself. Entrepreneur
Q: Your Adcenter/Brandcenter experience was an investment. In looking back on your decision to attend, do you consider it worth the investment?
80%
Yes, it was absolutely worth the investment.
16% I don’t know yet.
4%
No, it was not worth the investment.
Q: What makes Brandcenter worth the investment?
Most popular answers included:
Networking/connections - Alumni, peers, and faculty
Foot in the door/ entrance to industry
Real-world/industry preparation
Job placement assistance
Higher starting salary/earning potential
Obtaining graduate degree
Skills learned
Rigor/intensity
Widened perspective/creativity
Learning team dynamics and leadership
School’s reputation
Q: How would you rate the strength of Brandcenter’s industry/alumni network (for landing jobs, finding new clients, staying current in the industry, etc.)?
79% of respondents say the Brandcenter network is strong.
Welcome! Thank you for supporting the school and its past/present/future students by completing this survey. Should take ~5 minutes to complete. This information will be used to publish the biennial Brandcenter Alumni Report.
If they answer 2021, 2022, 2023, they get the next 4 questions
How many official job offers did you receive upon graduation? (Official means the agency/ company made a formal offer verbally or
What
of job did you accept after graduation?
How prepared did you feel in your first job post-Brandcenter?
Very well prepared Prepared
Unprepared
Very unprepared
IF “unprepared” or “very unprepared” above:
Please explain why you did not feel prepared for your first job.
Have you received a promotion and/or raise since you graduated?
Yes No
What track/concentration were you at the Adcenter/Brandcenter?
Art Direction
Copywriting
Strategy/Communications Strategy
Creative Brand Management
Experience
Design/Creative Technology
Which of the following best describes the type of role you’re currently in/ your discipline? We know roles often overlap/blur so please choose the one that aligns most with your current position at your current employer. (drop-down menu)
Art Director (jr, mid, sr, ACD, CD, GCD, CCO, etc.)
Copywriter (jr, mid, sr, ACD, CD, GCD, CCO, etc.)
Strategist (jr, mid, sr, director, GPD, CSO, etc.)
Research (Design, Consumer, Market, etc.)
Account Manager (jr, mid, sr, supervisor, director,etc.)
Product Designer (jr, mid, sr, supervisor, director,etc.)
UX/UI Designer (jr, mid, sr, supervisor, director,etc.)
Digital/Motion designer (jr, mid, sr, supervisor, director,etc.)
Marketing/Brand Manager (jr, mid, sr, supervisor, director, CMO,etc.)
Other
All agencies/companies define titles in different ways and have their own ways of explaining hierarchies. How would you define your current level?
Junior level
Mid level
Senior level
Director level
Executive level
In which city/metro area is your company located?
Atlanta
Boulder/Denver
Chicago
Los Angeles
Minneapolis
New York City
Portland
Raleigh/Durham
Richmond
San Francisco
Seattle
Washington DC/Northern Virginia
Other
Do you live in the same city/metro area where your company is located?
Yes No
IF NO:
In what city/metro area do you live?
Is your current role fully in-person, fully remote, or a hybrid?
Fully in-person
Fully remote
Hybrid
“Regardless of how your current role is structured, what is your preferred modality for working?”
Fully in-person
Fully remote
Hybrid
There are lots of different ways to describe a company/organization, and all have their own ways of defining themselves. Which best describes the company that you currently work for?
Freelance/Self
Full-service advertising agency
Digital advertising agency
Brand/strategy/innovation consultancy
Brand-side (Nike, Target, Apple, etc.)
Nonprofit
Start-up
Research or trend reporting company
College or University
Other
If YES to freelance/self, ask these 2 questions
How long have you been freelancing?
Less than 6 months
6 months – 1 year
1 – 3 years
3 – 5 years
Over 5 years
What is your average day rate? Please enter a number (no $ symbol).
Have you ever considered starting your own business?
Yes No
I am already an entrepreneur
If YES, ask the next question.
What is holding you back from entrepreneurship? (check all that apply)
Career/Experience: I want to get more experience, I still have more to learn, etc.
Financial Security: I need to save more, find external funding, etc.
Risk: There are too many unknowns, I have a fear of failure, etc.
Network: I want to build my network more, develop more relationships, etc.
Something else (Please specify)
What is your annual salary? Please enter a number with no $ symbol (ex. 80,000). If you are working abroad, please convert to USD.
In addition to salary and health benefits, when considering a new role, what benefits/perks do you value most? (Choose top 3)
401K/retirement savings plan
Unlimited (or generous) vacation allowance
Parking allowance
Gym allowance
Cell phone allowance
Pet insurance
Parental leave
Relocation stipend
How would you describe the way you feel about your current job?
I hate it. I don’t like it.
I am indifferent.
I like it.
I love it.
Thinking of where you are in your career right now, rank your top THREE most important job attributes (#1 spot = your most important attribute). Label ONLY your top three with a 1, 2 or 3 in the corresponding boxes.
Global/cultural impact
Mentorship
Clients I want to work with/category work
Fast-paced
Cultural fit
Salary
Cause-related work
Work/life balance
Title
Networking potential/connections
Growth potential
Company/agency’s notoriety
Autonomy
Workload varies depending on current projects, production, new business, etc. ON AVERAGE, how many hours per week do you work?
40 (or below 40)
How long have you been at your current job?
Less than 1 year
1-2 years
3-5 years
6-8 years
9+ years
Do you plan to actively look for a new job this year?
Yes
No
What are the reasons you are looking for a new job? (Check all that apply)
I want a higher salary. I want a higher title.
I want to move to a new city.
I want to try a new agency/company.
I want to do something else in marketing/advertising/branding industry. I want to leave marketing/advertising/branding and do something else.
I want to feel more challenged.
I want more job stability.
Other (Please specify)
Your Adcenter/Brandcenter experience was an investment – in time, money, energy (and likely more...). We want to know: in looking back on your decision to attend, do you consider it worth that investment?
Yes, it was absolutely worth the investment. No, it was not worth the investment. I don’t know.
If yes to above: What makes Brandcenter worth the investment?
How would you rate the strength of Brandcenter’s industry/alumni network (for landing jobs, finding new clients, staying current in the industry, etc.?)
Very strong
Somewhat strong
Neutral
Somewhat weak
Very weak
Just a few more questions! Thanks for hanging. What agency/company would you LOVE to work for?
This question is optional, but if you’ve got an idea we’d love to hear it! What’s one skill that you wish you knew (or could learn) to take your career to the next level?
How would you describe your gender?
Female
Male
Non-binary
Gender not listed. My gender is ________________