Russell Group Informed Choices

The latest Informed Choices (2016-17) booklet, created by the influential Russell Group of universities, has been published. It contains guidance about applying to universities and which combinations of its "facilitating subjects" it recommends for various degree courses and careers. You can view a video about it and download the latest copy of the booklet here.

"Generation Rent"

A study, led by Pete Redfern, chief executive of the house-builders Taylor Wimpey, has said that 62% of people living in rented accommodation cannot see themselves buying a property in the next 5 years. The proportion of property owning households has fallen to a 30 year low of 62%, whilst the average age of a first time buyer has risen to 34 in London, and 30 elsewhere. Earlier this year a survey by the charity, The Equity Trust, found that 86% of renters (around six million households) do not have the minimum £8,838 needed for a 5% deposit on the average UK home. Experts say that around 250,000 new homes need to be built every year to meet demand, but in 2013/14 only 125,000 were built.  [source GTAssociates]

Downturn in wages predicted

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said that workers will earn less in real wages in 2021 than they did in 2008, with a squeeze on pay lasting for over 10 years. Paul Johnson, director of the IFS, said, "This has, for sure, been the worst decade for living standards certainly since the last war and probably since the 1920s. We have seen no increase in average incomes so far and it does not look like we are going to get much of an increase over the next four or five years either." He said that, the "outlook for living standards and for the public finances has deteriorated pretty sharply over the last nine months". Real average earnings, which factor in the rising cost of living, were forecast to rise by less than 5% between now and 2021, which is 3.7% lower than was projected in March. Mr Johnson said, "One cannot stress enough how dreadful that is, more than a decade without real earnings growth. We have certainly not seen a period remotely like it in the last 70 years." The IFS said that the biggest impact on income in recent years has been felt by younger workers. Those aged 60 and over, in contrast, have seen living standards rise.  [source: GTAssociates]

Labour Market Information: November 2016

• Unemployment is 1,604,000, down 52,000 from last month’s published figure (quarterly headline down 37,000).
• The number of claimant unemployed is 803,300, up 9,800 on last month, the claimant rate is 2.3%.
• The number of workless young people (Not in Education, Employment or Training) is 1,022,000, up 1,000 on the quarter, representing 14.2% of the youth population (up 0.1%).
• Youth unemployment (including students) is 591,000, down 36,000 on the quarter.
• There are 2.1 unemployed people per vacancy.
• The employment rate is 74.5%, no change on last month’s published figure

School leavers need better "soft skills"

An employer survey by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) found that 80% of school leavers require "significant training" in what is known as "soft skills" before being put to work. The top areas of weakness for new recruits are people skills and business skills, followed by technical skills. More than 90% of those surveyed said that their workload had increased as a result of skills shortages, with 66% agreeing it had increased the stress levels of staff and 44% that it had caused a fall in departmental performance.

Oxford comes out on top

The recently published Times Higher Education World University Rankings, ranked Oxford top, a first for a UK university, knocking the California Institute of Technology (top for the past five years), into second place. The table ranked universities on measures including teaching, research and international outlook, for example, numbers of overseas students and staff.

UK INSTITUTIONS IN TOP 200 (previous ranking)
1. Oxford (2)
4. Cambridge (4)
8. Imperial College (8)
15. University College London (14)
25=. London School of Economics and Political Science (23)
27. Edinburgh (24)
36=. King's College London (27)
55. Manchester (=56)
71. Bristol (69)
82=. Warwick (80)
88. Glasgow (=76)
96=. Durham (70)
109. Sheffield (97)
110=. St Andrews (86)
113=. Queen Mary, University of London (98)
121=. Southampton (=110)
126=. Exeter (93)
129. York (=131)
130. Birmingham (119)
133. Leeds (=133)
137=. Lancaster (130)
147. Nottingham (143)
149. Sussex (140)
158. Liverpool (157)
165=. East Anglia (=149)
172. Leicester (=167)
173=. Royal Holloway, University of London (129)
180=. Dundee (=185)
182=. Cardiff (=182) 188=. Aberdeen (=172)
190=. Newcastle (=196)
192=. Reading (=164)

Personal Statement tips for applying for Medicine

There is no one way to do a Personal Statement but here are things to consider. The information below is taken from the excellent medic portal website.

Reflect.

Reflection comes from thinking about what you’ve done and extrapolating learning points. You should follow a three step process when speaking about work experience to ensure you have reflected properly:

· Where were you and what did you do?

· What specific incident did you see? 

· What did this teach you?

Show that you understand what they are applying to.

Tutors don’t want to see statements that talk excessively about how amazing medicine is. There are times when medicine can’t help. People die, patients can be ungrateful and you might see suffering and not be able to stop it. You need to break bad news and hours are long and will take over evenings and weekends. You need to show that you understand all this, and still believe this is the right path for you! The best students manage to get across the fact that they appreciate the realities of medical school and recognise the challenges ahead.

Clarity in language and structure.

Always remember that your personal statement is one of a pile to an admissions tutor. They are busy and you are doing yourself a favour if you can show achievements clearly and concisely. Use short, sharp sentences, with straightforward language, and follow a logical progression, from motivation, to work experience, to volunteering, extracurricular activities and a neat conclusion. By making your credentials jump off the page, you avoid the risk of them being missed.

Honesty.

Don’t exaggerate the things you have done, especially in a medical context, this will be really obvious to admissions tutors, and don’t fabricate life-changing moments that meant you simply had to be a doctor. This can create a bit of suspicion, so if that is the case for you, make sure it is well backed up.

Tutors want people who are well-rounded human beings.

Medicine is a demanding degree but this does not mean that medical schools want you to give up all other interests. Rather, they want people with an outlet for stress, who are well-rounded with other interests, like sports, hobbies or regular activities. Try and state them in relation to key qualities like teamwork.

Good news for graduate employment

The latest leavers’ survey found that the proportion of graduates in work or further study is at a record high, with more going into professional jobs. Overall, 90% of graduates were in work or further study sixth months after graduation. 71% of those are in work roles which are classed as 'professional employment', a rise of 3 percentage points on the previous year. 

The survey also found that the gender gap in pay was increasing, with men in work having a mean salary of £24k compared to £21k for women, the gender gap in the previous year was £2,000. The highest unemployment rate was in Computer Science, 10%, although this has fallen from 14% in 2011/12. The highest employment rate was Dentistry and Medicine, both of whom had 1% unemployment. This is the penultimate leavers’ survey, as the intent is to use employment information from national data sets in the future, which will be far more accurate. The effect of Brexit on graduate prospects will not be known until next year.  [ source: CES newsletter ]

Most expensive cities for students

A study by the Royal Bank of Scotland has concluded that Edinburgh is the most expensive UK city for students. However, Edinburgh students are still the highest social spenders and spend above the weekly average on alcohol. The survey of 2,500 students took into account a range of factors, including how much students spend on going out, how much time they spend studying, accommodation costs and average term time income. The survey found the majority of a student's income came from student loans, on average £161.14 per week. That figure was four times higher than any other source, including part-time work. After loans, parental support was the largest income source. [ source: CES newsletter ]

List of the top 25 most cost-effective cities for students in the UK:

1 Portsmouth	10 Dundee	19 London
2 Liverpool	11 Manchester	20 Sheffield
3 Newcastle	12 Norwich	21 Plymouth
4 Belfast	13 Leicester	22 Oxford
5 Exeter	14 Brighton	23 Cambridge
6 York	15 Reading	24 Southampton
7 Cardiff	16 Glasgow	25 Edinburgh
8 Nottingham	17 Leeds
9 Birmingham	18 Bristol

Need a "Plan B"?

If your GCSE results were not what you expected and you need to re-think your options, DON'T PANIC, help is at hand! There are lots of things you can do. Start by reading this ...

• Talk to someone at school. Senior Staff will be available in school on Results Day (Thursday 25th August, 9.00-11.00am.) and you can book an appointment to speak to someone to get advice about what you can do next, for example, if you need to change your Sixth Form courses.
• Talk to our Youth Connexions Personal Adviser, Claire Blanchard. She will be in school on Results Day and you can also contact her through the St Albans Youth Connexions website. She can work with you on a late application to College or help you with other pathways such as entering employment, training or an Apprenticeship. 
• If you have an offer from College but need to change course or your level of entry visit Oaklands on Results Day and talk to the tutors there  - they are expecting visits from potential students.
• Visit the Youth Connexions "one stop shop" in Catherine Street. You can find out the details here. It will be open on and after Results Day  -  details here.
• Think about an Apprenticeship. You can find all the information you need at Apprenticeships.gov. You simply fill in your details - like a mini CV - and then you can search the opportunities available and applying is easy as your information is stored.
• Think about applying to Oaklands College. They have Open Days this month for late applications. You can find the details here as well as on the Oaklands website. 
• Check out ChannelMogo for general information and advice.
• Use the 'search' tool on this blog to explore further options.

Keep calm and talk to someone to get the impartial advice and guidance you need ... Good luck!

ANOTHER new league table for universities ...

Researchers from the Times Higher Education supplement (THE) have used the same criteria that will be employed for the teaching excellence framework (TEF), student satisfaction, graduate employment and retention, to create a new league table. The new table judged Cambridge to be 12th, whilst Oxford was 28th, and Imperial College 37th, Loughborough, Aston and De Montfort were the top three. There were no Russell Group universities in the top ten and just three, Cambridge, Durham and Birmingham, made it into the top 20. The TEF is to be the main criteria of whether universities are allowed to raise their fees and thus is a very important benchmark. The TEF is to be piloted in 2016-2018, before formal assessment begins in 2018-19.  See below for the best and worst performers in the table:

	TOP TEN			BOTTOM TEN
1	Loughborough		111	St Mark & St John
2	Aston		112	Bolton
3	De Montfort		113	Leeds Becket
4	Swansea		114	Glyndwr
5	Kent		115	West London
6	Coventry		116	Wolverhampton
7	Keele		117	Trinity St David
8	Surrey		118	East London
9	Bath		119	Queen Margaret
10	Lancaster		120	London Met

Applying to Medical School

Applying to study Medicine is always a potential "minefield", with conflicting advice from different sources. That said, the more information you have at your fingertips the better.

You can view slides from a PowerPoint, titled Applying for Medicine, which was delivered at a recent national careers conference, here.

Also useful, is a table of information about which Medical Schools will take any A/S level qualifications you have into account when applying for Autumn 2017 entry.  View it here.

Two pathways planned at 16+

The first skills white paper in a decade will bring an end to mixed provision and make 16-year-olds choose between academic courses leading to university or a new Technical Professional Education (TPE) route into work. The leaked, government  paper, is likely to be controversial for fear the plans will create a two-tier system between academic schools and vocational colleges. A three-year course could also be an option, with the first year preparing students to start on TPEs. There will be a substantial work experience element within each college-based TPE “pathway”, within its relevant industry.

Impact of the Digital Revolution

Students should be able to take Computer Science instead of a language at GCSE and schools should offer a 'technical stream' for 14-18 year olds, according to a new report, which also says the Ebacc is forcing students into a “19th century diet of academic subjects for all”. In The Digital Revolution, former education secretary and chair of the Edge Foundation, Lord Kenneth Baker writes that radical action is needed to help prepare children for the the impact of the digital revolution, which he terms the "fourth industrial revolution".

“The economy is changing at an unprecedented pace,” he said. “Every day, jobs are being lost in professions we used to regard as careers for life. artificial intelligence, robots, 3D printing and driverless vehicles will impact on sectors as varied as the legal profession, transport and construction.

“The UK’s future workforce will need technical expertise in areas such as design and computing, plus skills which robots cannot replace – flexibility, empathy, creativity and enterprise.

“Right now, this thinking is almost entirely absent from the core curriculum in mainstream schools.”

His report was prompted by the Bank of England’s prediction that up to 15 million jobs are at risk of automation across the UK economy.

Have a Sandwich

The number of students taking a sandwich degree has risen from 113,795 in 2009-10 to 153,535 in 2014-15. This is partially down to an improving economy, which makes obtaining placements easier and a growing awareness of their benefits: destination data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency shows that 82% of graduates from a sandwich course were in employment, compared to 74% for other graduates. In addition, the maximum fee that universities can charge for students for the sandwich year has been dropped to £1800 from 2014-15, whilst many charge less than this. The majority of students also earn on their sandwich year, although remuneration is very much dependent on the industry concerned.

Be a farmer!

Agriculture is the fastest growing subject in UK universities. There are over 19,000 people studying Agriculture and related subjects and while at first glance the subject may seem quite narrow, in fact those that do not wish to pursue a career in farming can find work with food retailers, suppliers or work in research, technology and education. Read more here.

Rise in success rates of Apprenticeships

Latest figures from the Skills Funding Agency indicate that the apprenticeship success rate has risen by 2.8% to 71.7%. 

In related news, the Sutton Trust has published research that suggests that apprentices with a Level 5 qualification could earn £50,000 more in their working lifetime than those with an undergraduate degree from a non-Russell Group university.

Russell Group leads in studying STEM subjects

For those students with an eye on a Russell Group university, studying STEM subjects or languages are more likely to see them succeed. New research has found that 47% of students who study STEM subjects at A-level went on to a Russell Group university in 2011/12. Read more here.

More Graduates = Less Earning Power

A Bank of England study has shown that the growing number of university students is affecting graduate earning power. One in three workers now has a degree, compared to just one in 10 back in 1985. On the positive side, the survey also showed that those with a degree could still expect to earn more over their working life than those without academic qualifications. Understanding the opportunities, access routes and potential earnings are all important factors when it comes to deciding on a career path. Read the full story here.

Leading the world in graduate debt

Graduates in England have more debt than their peers in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, according to the Sutton Trust. It said that the average English graduate owes £44,000, whereas the average debts in the other countries ranged from £15,000 to £29,000. American graduates, on average, owe between £20,500, for students at public or private non-profit universities, and £23,000, for those at private for-profit universities. Canadian graduates owe on average £15,000, Australian graduates £20,900, and graduates from New Zealand £23,300.

STEM subjects do not guarantee employment

A study by Sir William Wakeham, the former Vice-Chancellor of Southampton University, into the employment rate of various Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) degrees has concluded that Biological Sciences are a ‘particular problem’. His report said, “Something like 40% of graduates were in non-graduate jobs, and many were in low paying occupations, even years after graduation”. Another area of concern was Computer Science, although this was very much linked to the university attended, with Oxford Computer Science graduates actually top of the graduate starting salaries. 

For some STEM areas, the results were nuanced, for example Chemical Engineering graduates had high unemployment rates but also the highest salaries of all engineers, again linked to the institution attended. Bio-engineering employers normally demanded a post-graduate qualification. For Systems Engineering graduates, Sir William said that “Nobody is any longer employing people from these courses, and it would be better if students didn’t start them”. He also said that there were some concerns with Earth, Marine and Environmental Sciences and Agriculture Science. 

Sir William also said that a major concern was graduates' “attitude to work”, with many lacking work experience and training in mathematical and statistical skills. He also said that, “Students are not engaged with their own career until after the final year examinations, and that is not good enough”.  [source GTAssociates]

UCAS Personal Statement "don'ts"

UCAS has published a list of Top 10 overused and cliched phrases students use in their Personal Statements.

• From a young age I have (always) been ...
• For as long as I can remember I have ...
• I am applying for this course because ...
• I have always been interested in ...
• Throughout my life, I have always enjoyed ...
• Reflecting on my educational experience ...
• XX is a very challenging and demanding (career/profession/course) ...
• Academically, I have always been ...
• I have always wanted to pursue a career in ...
• I have always been passionate about ...

UCAS said it had released the information to encourage applicants to "convey a connection with the subject" in language that made them stand out. Their chief executive, Mary Curnock Cook, said: "The Personal Statement is supposed to be personal. Learning to write about yourself in a compelling way is a vital skill when applying for jobs; using hackneyed phrases is not the best way to stand out.

What can you expect to earn a decade after graduating?

Recent research has identified significant differences in earnings after 10 years for different university courses, with notable gender gaps too ...

COURSE	WOMEN	MEN
Medicine	£45,400	£55,300
Economics	£38,200	£42,000
Engineering & Technology	£23,200	£31,200
Law	£26,200	£30,100
Physical Sciences	£24,800	£29,800
Education	£24,400	£29,600
Architecture	£22,500	£28,600
Maths & Computer Science	£22,000	£26,800
Business	£22,000	£26,500
History & Philosophy	£23,200	£26,500
Social Sciences	£20,500	£26,200
Biological Sciences	£23,800	£25,200
European Language & Literature	£26,400	£25,000
Linguistics & Classics	£23,200	£24,100
Veterinary Science & Agriculture	£18,900	£21,400
Mass Communication	£18,100	£19,300
Creative Arts	£14,500	£17,900
Social Sciences	£20,500	£26,200