First destinations of graduates

Citation

(2002), "First destinations of graduates", Education + Training, Vol. 44 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/et.2002.00444bab.001

First destinations of graduates

First destinations of graduates

Two-thirds of employed accountancy graduates are in professional jobs within six months of graduation, according to a new report, What Do Graduates Do? 2002. The report examines the final destinations of the 2000 UK graduate cohort and reveals that 81.1 per cent of accountancy graduates found work within six months of graduation, the highest of all subjects covered. Of those in employment, 65.7 per cent achieved jobs of professional status – that is, a job requiring a degree or equivalent academic qualification.

Of the employed graduates, 42.8 per cent found employment as business and finance professionals (including 23 per cent as chartered accountants, 8.6 per cent as chartered and certified accountants and 7.2 per cent as management accountants). Over a fifth, 21.7 per cent, started out in non-graduate positions as numerical clerks and cashiers. Almost one in ten, 9.3 per cent, of accountancy graduates embarked on further education or training, while 4.8 per cent are believed to be unemployed – compared to the overall graduate average of 5.5 per cent. There were 2,806 UK-domiciled graduates in accountancy in total.

Published by CSU, the higher-education Careers Services Unit, AGCAS, the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services and UCAS, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, the report tracks the career destinations of first-degree and HND graduates and examines the employment market by occupational sector and academic qualification. The report reveals that, overall, 68.4 per cent of graduates found work within six months of graduation. Although the employment rate has stabilized, more graduates have secured professional jobs this year, with 68 per cent of employed graduates now in professional positions, a 2 per cent increase on last year.

Unemployment among graduates has levelled at 5.5 per cent, down from 9.2 per cent five years ago. The five-year period has also seen a marked shift away from the historically buoyant graduate employment sectors such as engineering and sciences, which have been usurped by "new" industries such as information technology and the media.

The number of graduates undertaking media studies has more than doubled over the period 1995 to 2000. Three quarters, 76 per cent, of the 2000 media-studies graduate cohort secured full-time employment six months following graduation. This compares to an overall national average of 68 per cent. Other boom subjects of the past five years include psychology, which has increased student numbers by 36 per cent, information technology, up by 26 per cent, and business and management studies, up 16 per cent. The report also highlights the continued decline in manufacturing industries, which has left its mark on graduate employment. Although still a popular choice, the number of students entering civil engineering has dropped by a third over the past five years, electrical engineering is down 13 per cent and building 28 per cent.

Overall, accountancy and civil-engineering graduates have secured the highest graduate employment rates, at 81 per cent, followed by IT, at 79 per cent, business and management studies, at 77.5 per cent, and media studies, at 76.4 per cent. However, current predictions suggest that graduate employment has now peaked and that this time next year a graduate job will not be a foregone conclusion. Commenting on the latest findings, which highlight the popularity of vocational courses with both students and employers, Lesley Knaggs, president of AGCAS, said: "This is one in the eye for detractors of media studies and other less-traditional courses which have often been much maligned. The reality is that graduates from these courses enjoy high employment rates. Employers are interested in the person, as well as their degree course". The lowest rate of unemployment was 0.9 per cent for HND diplomates, many of whom stay on to do further study. Among first degrees, the lowest unemployment rate was amongst law graduates, again, most of whom pursue further study. Building, geography and accountancy all recorded unemployment rates below 5 per cent.

Overall, 56 per cent of the graduating cohort were women. This has grown from 52 per cent five years ago. As before, there are stark differences in the gender balance between subjects. Men dominated IT, science and particularly engineering subjects – less than 8 per cent of electronic-engineering graduates, 9 per cent of mechanical engineers and 15 per cent of civil engineers were women. Women were more concentrated in arts and social sciences such as psychology, sociology, modern languages and English.

"Whatever the subject, vocational or traditional, a degree is still a worthwhile investment. Recent graduates aged between 20 and 24 earn, on average, 25 per cent more than their age peers with A level or equivalent occupations and only 21 per cent of graduates aged 25-29 are in non-professional occupations", concluded Mike Hill, CSU chief executive.

Meanwhile, a series of concise guides has been produced to help academics to increase the employability of students. The guides, by the Association of Graduate Recruiters and the University of London careers service, examine such topics as identifying transferable skills, how to avoid skills clichés, advising students on the careers resources available at their institution and where to find information about topics such as salaries, employers and job vacancies.