The objective of this paper is to analyze what kind of newly graduated manager big private companies are looking for. The hypothesis behind the study is that there is a group of technical and behavioral qualifications that are aligned with business demands and that these qualifications are often ignored by businesses undergraduate courses. Data collection was made through interviews with eight people from big Brazilian private companies which are responsible for recruitment-related activities. The conclusion is that the knowledge acquired by students during their undergraduate courses does not contribute significantly to their employment, being more important their behavior and life history characteristics as well as the prestige of their undergraduate course.
employability; professional qualification; manager profile