Made the wrong choice?

According to a survey published by the website The Student Room, 20% of university students would have picked differently having sampled their choice first hand. The survey of 1,805 students enrolled at universities across the country also found that 18% wished they had not gone on to Higher Education (or explored other options more), whilst 1 in 8 said that they had chosen a university too far from home.

Young people are 'anxious and daunted'

A UK-wide survey for The Prince's Trust of 2,215 16-25 yr-olds has found that political upheaval, job worries and low self-confidence have left young people anxious and daunted. 58% said that political events had made them fear for their futures, with 41% more anxious than a year ago. The charity said that young people's self-confidence was at its lowest ebb in the eight years since the research began.

The research found that:

· 50% felt it was harder to get a job than a year ago

· 42% felt traditional goals like home ownership or a steady job were unrealistic

· 34% felt they would have a worse standard of living than their parents

· 28% felt out of control of their lives

· 12% said they did not know anyone who really cared about them

· 45% were stressed about body image

· 37% worried about coping at work or school

Police to become a graduate profession

All new police officers in England and Wales will have to be educated to degree level from 2020, the College of Policing has announced. The National Police Chiefs' Council said the changes would "help modernise the service". The college's Chief Constable, Alex Marshall, said that the nature of police work has changed significantly and officers were just as likely to be "patrolling online" as on the street. He said, "Cyber-enabled crime has increased, so has the need for officers and staff to investigate and gather intelligence online and via information technology". He also said that protecting vulnerable people has become a "high priority", with officers now spending more of their time working to prevent domestic abuse, monitor high-risk sex offenders and protect at-risk children.

The College of Policing is in talks with 12 universities about running the degree courses. The syllabus is likely to cover the law, safeguarding the vulnerable, understanding how an officer behaves on the street and how to build trust by interacting well with communities. There will be three options at entry level:

• A three-year police constable degree Apprenticeship paid for by the force, allowing individuals to "earn while they learn", spending 80% of their time on the front-line and the rest completing their degree while receiving a salary;

• A practical policing degree, as seen in other professions, where the student would complete a three-year, self-funded course and apply for a job once qualified;

• For graduates, a six-month postgraduate conversion course funded by the police.

Update on the labour market

Employer confidence has stabilised, according to a poll of 200 employers taking part in the Jobs Outlook survey. 41% of employers surveyed expected skills shortages for permanent roles, with engineering & technology, construction, and health & social care highlighted as key areas with candidate shortages. The survey also found that 25% of employers intend to hire more permanent staff in the medium term, with 34% saying that they have no spare capacity to take on more work without hiring more staff.

Nursing Apprenticeships announced

The launch of a new nursing degree apprenticeship has been announced by Jeremy Hunt, the Secretary of State for Health, with the first apprentice nurses possibly working on wards from September. The government said that once the programme is established, up to 1000 apprentice nurses could join the NHS each year. Aspiring nurses will start the Apprenticeship at different stages, depending on their qualifications and experience, though the course will not require GCSE English and Maths. Before they start training, Apprentices will have their numeracy and literacy skills assessed by the Nursing and Midwifery Council Approved Education Institution to ensure they meet a minimum of Level two (GCSE equivalent).

Variation in post-graduate earnings

If you (and your parents!) are going to spend a lot of money on a university education, it's useful to know what you can expect to earn on completing it and it seems that there's variation from one university to another. Later this year, the DfE will publish "longitudinal analysis" of graduate earnings, based on government tax records but some preliminary data is published below.  It shows the earnings of Law graduates, five years after graduating, with the numbers of students at each institution:

UNIVERSITY	No.	MEDIAN EARNINGS
Oxford	120	£61,500
Cambridge	105	£54,500
LSE	50	£47,500
UCL	55	£47,000
Warwick	75	£41,500
Durham	75	£40,500
Nottingham	95	£38,000
Bristol	95	£37,500
Kings College	125	£37,000
Manchester	135	£35,500
Huddersfield	60	£20,000
London Met	95	£20,000
Middlesex	75	£20,000
Edge Hill	45	£19,500
Birmingham City	85	£19,500
Bucks New University	25	£19,500
Wolverhampton	170	£19,500
Derby	70	£18,500
Bedfordshire	35	£18,000
Bradford	60	£17,500