SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Once someone hands you a diploma, getting your foot in the door at a workplace can be stressful. If you’re an Augustana University student, a recent ranking may give you some more confidence.

A career site called Zippia has ranked Augie number two in the entire nation for best overall graduate employment rate.

Carl Lang and Grace Aasheim have on on the outside steps of Augie buildings a time or two. Lang graduated and moved on to medical school. After a few internships, Aasheim graduates next year and will go to law school. Both say Augie has been vital to the beginnings of their success.

“They’re excited for you and they celebrate with you,” Lang said.

“The job placement rates at Augustana are one of the major reasons I chose this school,” Aasheim said.

Key factors that led to the latest spotlight on Augie.

“It’s very rewarding,” Billie Streufert, executive director of the Student Success Center, said.

Zippia looks at U.S. Census, social security, the Department of Education and other databases to find universities and colleges with graduates who have the best record of finding jobs a decade after graduation. It ranks Augie number one in South Dakota, and second in the United States. According to Zippia, Connecticut’s Quinnipiac University has the best overall graduate employment rate in the country

“So, it’s a very universal comparison across the nation,” Streufert said.

Streufert partially credits the university’s ties to partnering with area businesses that give students their first taste of the office.

“Our students are able to take the theory, the rigorous curriculum they learn in the classroom and then go out and actively engage in the community, employers who offer those internships, those practicums. That’s what helps them launch their careers,” Streufert said.

Lang and Aasheim aren’t surprised by the ranking, because they say Augustana University has given them what they need to take the next step.

“Prove yourself as a student and communicate what you’re looking for, and they’ll do everything they can in their power to get you to where you want to be,” Aasheim said.

“Education is more than just book-learning,” Lang said. “The encouragement along the way and the support they provide is beneficial and the connections they provide as well.”