AMTP Proceedings 2026

Document Type

Conference Proceeding

Publication Date

Spring 2026

Abstract

College students frequently rely on university career centers for salary information when evaluating early-career opportunities. In sales, however, reported compensation figures often reflect base pay only and exclude performance-based earnings such as commissions and bonuses. This study uses a single-university case study to examine whether university-reported salary data for sales roles accurately represents total compensation. Institutional career center reports and national salary projections were compared with insights from employers, sales professionals, and recent graduates. Findings indicate that performance-based compensation constitutes a substantial portion of total earnings in sales roles but is frequently omitted from reported figures, leading to systematic understatement of sales compensation. This misrepresentation may discourage students from pursuing sales careers based on incomplete information. The study highlights the need for universities to report total compensation more transparently to support informed career decision-making.

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