Graduate unemployment fell from 8.5% to 7.3% year-on-year, marking the biggest drop in early graduate unemployment in 15 years – according to new research by the Higher Education Careers Services Unit (HECSU) published today (25 September 2014).
HECSU’s annual What do graduates do?1 publication reveals the destinations of 256,350 full and part-time first degree graduates in January 2014 - six months after they had left university. Key findings:
- More graduates employed: increased from 73.6% to 75.6% year-on-year
- Drop in further study as graduates take advantage of improving employment conditions: fell from 13% to 12.4% year-on-year
- More graduates in professional and managerial work: increased from 64.9% to 66.3%
- Smaller proportion of graduates in non-professional jobs: for example, graduates working as retail, catering, waiting and bar staff fell from 13.7% to 13%
- Mature graduates doing particularly well: a higher proportion (77.2%) were in professional and managerial work compared to all first degree graduates (66.3%)
Prospects for graduates going into some of the more severely recession-hit sectors have improved significantly in the last 12 months with all STEM and building management subjects experiencing higher employment and lower unemployment rates. The number of graduates working as science professionals increased 22.4% year-on-year. Graduates were commonly working as biochemists, medical scientists, civil and mechanical engineers and architects.
The employment outcomes for graduates with first degrees in building and engineering were better year-on-year than graduates from all subjects, with architecture graduates doing particularly well (83.6% employed and 6.1% unemployed).
Charlie Ball, deputy director of research at HECSU said: “The last 18 months are a fascinating example of how quickly the market can change, and students must bear this in mind when deciding which subject to study.
“There are significant increases in employment across all sectors and the turn in fortune is spreading beyond the South East with graduates in cities such as Birmingham and Manchester doing particularly well. If you’re located away from the major cities and are yet to feel the upturn, there’s a good chance it will reach you in the months to come, assuming there are no further shocks to the economy – although there are no absolute guarantees.
“The biggest turnaround has been the outcomes of graduates from STEM and construction-related subjects. It’s encouraging that STEM skills are so highly sought, but there is a complex story of demand and supply, so it’s vital that students seek careers advice early and take work experience to better inform their decisions and prepare for employment.
“With a great deal to offer, mature graduates are doing particularly well in the jobs market, which is in part down to their tendency to opt for vocational courses. As a result they provide the backbone to some of our most important professions such as nursing, social work and education.”
What do graduates do? can be downloaded from 25 September 2014 at www.hecsu.ac.uk
1 What do graduates do? is published in collaboration with the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS) www.agcas.org.uk. It is based on data from the HESA Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education survey 2012/13.
