Universities UK hits back in graduate employment debate
University representative body, Universities UK, has responded to the CIPD's report that graduates are not getting highly skilled jobs.
Universities UK, the representative body for 132 higher education institutions in the UK, has responded to claims made by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) that graduates are not entering highly skilled jobs after leaving university, but rather taking positions traditionally reserved for less-skilled workers. Universities UK claims that graduates are still in a substantially better position to get a job and earn more money than those without a degree.
Earlier this week, the CIPD released a report indicating that too many skilled graduates entering the workplace has resulted in a lack of available highly skilled positions. The CIPD found that 58.8% of graduates were in jobs that did not require a degree.
Universities UK claims this research is too short sighted and doesn't take into consideration that many university leavers do not intend to go directly into a career. Nicola Dandridge, the Chief Executive of Universities UK, says that graduates often choose to do something else before pursuing a career path.
"Many graduates do not go straight into their chosen careers after graduating. Some will get short-term jobs to fund further study or to go travelling," she says.
"Employment figures looking at what graduates are doing three and a half years after graduation show that the vast majority are in full-time employment."
Dandridge says that graduates are as in demand as ever, and points to research done by relevant bodies to support her.
"Skilled graduates are increasingly in demand from employers. The Association of Graduate Recruiters' predicted an 11.9% rise in vacancies this year, following an increase of 4.3% last year."
"Recent government [Graduate Labour Market Statistics] showed that more graduates are in work this year than at any time since 2007. Graduates also earn almost £10,000 a year more than people without degrees."
It is clear Dandridge believes the CIPD are being misleading over the suitability of graduates for the working world.
"The kinds of skills that higher education provides, the ability to think critically and to analyse and present evidence, are lifelong and are going to be increasingly in demand as the number of high-skilled jobs increase," she says.
"UK graduates are still in a substantially better position to obtain a job and, on average, earn substantially more than non-graduates over a working lifetime."