A Wall Street Journal survey of corporate recruiters released Monday (Sept. 13) ranks Purdue University fourth in the nation in preparing its students for the work force.

"This confirms that Purdue gets students ready to succeed in the real world," said Timothy Sands, executive vice president for academic affairs and provost. "Companies are hiring the whole student, and ours have a solid work ethic, strong leadership skills and real-world experience. Job recruiters recognize our emphasis on internships, learning communities, study abroad, writing in the disciplines and other programs that give our students a well-rounded education."

In the survey's specialty rankings, Purdue was ranked first in management information systems, second in engineering and eighth in computer science.

In the overall rankings, Penn State University was No. 1, followed by Texas A&M University and the University of Illinois.

The newspaper surveyed 842 top recruiting executives to find the schools that best prepare students to land satisfying, well-paying jobs that also have growth potential. Responses from 479 recruiters were received. As a group, the survey participants hired more than 43,000 new graduates in the past year.

A sample of recruiter comments about Purdue, mentioned in the Wall Street Journal story accompanying the ranking, included "Longstanding relationships, great deal of executive involvement, well-rounded programs."

Here is the full Purdue article.

Here is the full Wall Street Journal article.