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First Destination Survey (FDS) Standard Questions

Tawnya
  • Updated

A First Destination Survey is used to capture information regarding how new college graduates fare in their careers within six months of graduation. The initiative is to provide clear, concise, and consistent data on the outcomes associated with a college education on a national scale. All questions are compliant with NACE. 

Note: the questions below are Handshake's standard questions. If you would like to download NACE formatted data for your First Destination Survey, refer to Download Standard NACE Undergrad or MBA CSEA Report Data From Your FDS.

 

What are you primarily doing after graduation?

  1. Working
  2. Volunteering
  3. Continuing Education
  4. Military
  5. Fellowship
  6. Still Looking
  7. Not Seeking

Working

  1. How many hours per week are you working?
    • Over 30 Hours a week (Full Time)
    • Under 30 Hours a week (Part Time)
  1. Type of employment
    • Organization/Company
    • Entrepreneur
    • Freelancer
    • Fellowship
    • Temporary/Contract Work Assignment
    • Faculty Tenure
    • Faculty Non-Tenure
  2. What is your job?
    • Who is your employer?
    • What industry is your employer in?
    • What city is this position located in?
  3. Tell us about your job?
    • What is your position?
    • Were you already working in this position during school?
      • Yes or No
    • Is this an internship?
      • Yes or No
    • Did you get this job through Handshake?
      • Yes or No
    • What is your job function?
  4. How are you compensated?
    • Base Salary
      • Monthly Stipend
      • Hourly Wage
      • Annual Salary
    • Signing Bonus (not required)
    • Other guaranteed compensation (not required)
    • When did you get this offer?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When did you accept it?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When is your start date?
      • yyyy-mm-dd

Volunteering

  1. Which organization are you volunteering for?
    • Name of organization
  2. What city is this position located in?
    • Select a city
  3. Please tell us about your position
    • What is your position?
    • What is your job function?
    • Did you get this job through Handshake? 
      • Yes or No
  4. Tell us about your Volunteering offer
    • When did you get this offer?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When did you accept it?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When is your start date?
      • yyyy-mm-dd

Continuing Education

  1. Tell us about your continuing education
    • What’s the name of the institution?
    • What city is this institution located in?
  2. What will you be studying? 
  3. What’s the degree you’re pursuing?
    • (Dropdown) Associates, Certificate, Advanced Certificate, Bachelors, Masters, Doctorate, Postdoctoral Studies, Non-Degree Seeking

Military

  1. Which service branch are you joining?
    • Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Navy, Marine Corps
  2. Tell us about your military service
    • Enlisted, Warrant Officer, Officer
  3. What city is this position located in?
  4. What is your *branch* specialization? (not required)
  5. How are you compensated?
    • Base Salary
      • Monthly Stipend
      • Hourly Wage
      • Annual Salary
    • Currency
    • When did you get this offer?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When did you accept it?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When is your start date?
      • Yyyy-mm-dd

 

Fellowship

  1. Is this fellowship educational or for work?
    • Educational, Work

Educational

  1. What’s the name of the fellowship?
  2. Tell us about your continuing education 
    • What is the name of the institution?
    • What city is this institution located in?
  3. What will you be studying?
  4. What’s the degree you’re pursuing?
    • (Dropdown) Associates, Certificate, Advanced Certificate, Bachelors, Masters, Doctorate, Postdoctoral Studies, Non-Degree Seeking

Work

  1. What is the name of your Fellowship?
  2. How many hours per week are you working?
    • Over 30 Hours a week (Full Time)
    • Under 30 Hours a week (Part Time)
  1. Please tell us about your employer
    • Who is your employer?
    • What industry is your employer in?
    • What city is this position located in?
  2. Please tell us about your position 
    • What is your position?
    • Were you already working in this position during school?
      • Yes or No
    • Is this an internship?
      • Yes or No
    • Did you get this job through Handshake? 
      • Yes or No
    • What is your job function?
  3. Are you authorized to permanently work in the U.S.? (not required) Note April 2019: we just officially removed a question related to work authorization from the survey. It will not be included in any surveys created in the future and for anyone filling out an existing survey from today onwards. Any legacy data from this question will still be available for reporting purposes. This question was previously optional for respondents to answer, but there was strong support from schools for not including it at all - we appreciate everyone’s feedback!
  4. How are you compensated?
    • Base Salary
      • Monthly Stipend
      • Hourly Wage
      • Annual Salary
    • Signing Bonus (not required)
    • Other guaranteed compensation (not required)
    • Currency
    • When did you get this offer?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When did you accept it?
      • yyyy-mm-dd
    • When is your start date?
      • yyyy-mm-dd

 

Still Looking

  1. Are you looking for continuing education or employment?
    • Continuing Education, Employment

Not Seeking

  1. What are you doing while you are not actively seeking a job?
    • Taking time off
    • Taking a gap year
    • Traveling
    • Other

 

 

For more information regarding First Destination Surveys in Handshake, refer to FAQs: First Destination Survey.