Benefits of going to University

 [source: the i newspaper]

Decline in Graduate Employment

The latest survey by the Institute of Student Employers (ISE) found that the number of graduate jobs declined by 12% and that the majority of employers anticipated a further decline next year. Employers in the retail and consumer goods sectors made the biggest cuts, slashing 45% of graduate jobs. The ISE, which surveyed mostly large employers, also said that employers reported a 29% decrease in internships and a 25% decrease in placements in 2019-20 with further falls expected next year. Stephen Isherwood, chief executive of the ISE, said, “Employers have had to make significant adjustments. As a result, graduate jobs do not appear to be collapsing and school and college leaver recruitment is holding up, but the decline in internships and placements is more worrying. Around half of placement students get rehired, so diminishing these roles damages the talent pipeline.”

Increase in Job Vacancies reported

A survey by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation has found there were 1.36 million job adverts across the UK in the first week of November, the largest number since early March. However, the research shows the recovery has not been evenly distributed across the different regions and sectors. Half of the UK's major regions now have higher numbers of job adverts than in March, while some still have fewer. The bounce back has been led by North-West England and Wales, which last month respectively had 37% and 33% more vacancies than in March, but London is lagging behind with 18.7% fewer posts on offer. The study also shows roles in construction, logistics and food and drink have recovered strongly, while hospitality and leisure remain at significantly lower levels than in March. However, there were 48.7% fewer adverts for bar staff than in March, despite a recovery during the summer months. Vacancies for chefs were down by 46% and for fitness instructors by 37%, significantly lower than before the pandemic hit.

What is PGA?

PQA stands for Post Qualification Admissions. UCAS has warned that a major overhaul of the admissions system, which would mean places being offered on the basis of grades rather than predictions, could open up a “devolution divide” without an agreement with the devolved nations. Pressure for a PQA has been growing, forcing UCAS into a review, which has led to two proposals, both of which advocate PQA. The first keeps applications ahead of results day in August, with offers based on actual results. The second proposes moving the whole applications process beyond results day and pushing back university start dates until January. However, this is likely to be less popular with the sector and government because it would put the UK system out of sync with the rest of the world.

Universities UK has given its backing to a PQA system after an 18-month review. Under their proposed system offers will only be made once the university has received an applicant’s grades in August. Providers will then have a one-week window before ‘offer day’, and students a one-week window afterwards to respond, followed by a clearing process for unplaced applicants.