This study sought to identify to what extent metacognition has an effect on perceived success, mediated by the entrepreneurial profile. The sample we analyzed involved 194 alumni from Business Administration, Accounting, and Economics programs from public and private higher education institutions in the state of Sergipe. The procedures involved the use of structural equation modeling and the results indicated that goal orientation has a significant direct and indirect relationship with perceived success. Metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive experience have significant indirect relationships with perceived success, and this relationship takes place with the "self-realization" and "leader" dimensions of the entrepreneurial profile. As this study's contribution, we identified metacognitive characteristics that can be improved to enhance the perception of success, such as: frequently defining goals, understanding the relationship between tasks and goals, setting specific goals, frequently evaluating a task's progress, selecting the best option for problem solving, using assertive strategies in the past, gaining prior knowledge regarding a task, breaking problems into small parts, thinking before performing a task, using different strategies, organizing time and information, selecting important information, and using intuition to formulate strategies.