What Do Graduates Do?

Although graduate employment levels for 2010-11 were slightly down on the previous year, there were considerable variations between different subjects of study, according to "What Do Graduates Do?" (WDGD) 2012, based on the annual survey of Destinations of Higher Education Leavers that takes place each year.

One career area that clearly bucked the downward trend was Computer Science and IT which showed an 8.5% rise in graduate employment and e-skills UK have forecast that growth in IT employment will grow at twice the UK average until 2020.  Of course, not all entrants into the industry will have studied IT as a main subject at University.

Less good news came unexpectedly from the public sector with a big fall in entrants and the trend extended to include occupational therapists, physiotherapists, radiographers, teachers and probation officers.  These areas each offered over 100 posts less than 2010-11 but the biggest drop was in the number of social work entrants, which fell by 420.  This is certainly not great news for the University of Cumbria, which offers courses in all the professions listed except probation.

The report once again showed the importance of self-employment to graduates from performance arts, media production and art and design. 64.6% or artists and 85.3% of musicians were recorded as being self employed or freelancers six months after graduation.

The Business Studies area is one that exemplifies the "mixed message" theme identified in the WDGD report.  Although it shows up with a higher level of unemployment than average (10.1%) and a sharp drop in the numbers going on to further study, each of the key disciplines of Accountancy, Business Management and Marketing showed high levels of graduates going straight into relevant employment.

They were also some of the subjects that produced less graduates working as Retail, Catering, Waiting and Bar staff, a denomination which covers a large number graduates yet to find a suitable career opportunity by the date of the survey - although longitudinal studies show that many succeed in doing so over a longer period of time.

What Do Graduates Do?

The 2009-10 version of "What Do Graduates Do?", produced annually by the Higher Education Careers Services Unit (HECSU) based on annual graduate destination surveys has recently become available. It shows some interesting trends in graduate employment as it follows nuances of the economic downturn.

While large numbers 2008 - 09 graduates entered the public sector in preference to previously glamorous opportunities in banking and finance, the trend was reversed in 2009-10 as public expenditure cutbacks started to bite. The financial services sector recovered to 2008 levels with some quite spectacular rises in specific areas, including a 45.9% rise in financial analysts and an 81% rise in personnel and recruitment consultants/advisers.

On the public sector side, the numbers of graduates becoming nurses and teachers did not fall markedly, but there was a general decline in administrative posts in public administration and defence, and there were considerable reductions in the numbers of social workers and physiotherapists recruited.

Overall, the private sector comeback lead to a slight decrease in the level of graduate unemployment (down to 8.5%) although there was little rise in the level of salaries offered.

This is a national survey which doesn't necessarily reflect local trends, but it is interesting to note that the University of Cumbria Jobshop has been receiving large numbers of vacancies for recruitment consultants over the past year. Other frequently advertised opportunities have included information technology, marketing and sales jobs.

For a more detailed look at the current employment situation as perceived by University Careers Services, see www.agcas.org.uk/articles/462-Mixed-picture-on-graduate-jobs-front-HE-careers-services