Government Becoming More Attractive to New IT Grads

Government agencies have moved up a few spots on a list that gauges where current and future IT grads want to work after graduation.

According to a new survey by Universum of nearly 60,000 college students, federal agencies such as the FBI (11), National Security Agency (12), NASA (13), the CIA (15) and the Defense Department (20) all placed in the top 20 as ideal places for students to work following graduation. These agencies beat out companies such as Nike, eBay and Boeing.

Among engineering students, NASA ranked as the top employer, with the Energy Department ranking not far behind, at number seven.

Other agencies, such as the State (22) and Energy departments (30), the Air Force (31) and Navy (34), and the Environmental Protection Agency (49) rounded out the list of federal agencies in the top 50. The Treasury Department (54), Army (60), Peace Corps (69), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (91), the National Institutes of Health (95), Centers for Disease Control (97) and the Veterans Affairs Department (100) all made the top 100 list.

Like last year, Google was ranked as the top place to work among IT students as well as students overall. Students studying IT also ranked Microsoft, Apple, Facebook, IBM, Amazon, Intel, Electronic Arts, Walt Disney Company and Sony as their top 10 choices.