The Accounting Department of the Carroll School of Management says in its literature that it educates students to “manage, thrive, and lead in the accounting industry.” Evidently, the industry agrees.

Uncommonly high rates of seniors go straight from commencement to their jobs in accounting firms. In 2015, 53 percent of these new accounting graduates landed in one of the Big 4. “If you think of a college football team placing players in the NFL, Big 4 placement is commensurate for us,” says Professor Billy Soo, department chairperson. Salaries were another sign of this warm reception by the industry.

And, accounting firms know that Boston College students arrive practice-ready. When they take the CPA exam for the first time, these students pass at rates dramatically higher than the national average.

Here’s the story, as told by the numbers.