Previous page

Table of Contents

Next page

Annual Report of the Careers Service Syndicate for 2000-01: Summary

I Some highlights

The employment market for Cambridge first-degree graduates, despite the recession, remained reasonable. 59% went straight into employment or directly related training, 28% into some form of further study, and only 4% were known to be still seeking employment or further study.

Further progress has been made with providing information online and with enabling students to book for many events via the website, thus providing important elements of the service 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In particular most of these services are now available to members of the University wherever they are, rather than restricted to those in Cambridge - a major benefit for alumni.

Major improvements have been made to the layout and the presentation of material in the Information Room, especially in the Basement Information Room.

II Graduate destinations

The graduate job market obviously became more difficult in 2001, especially after 11 September. Nevertheless it is pleasing that 59% of the 2,241 first-degree graduates whose destinations are known went straight into employment or directly related training, 28% into some form of further study, and only 4% were known to be still seeking employment or further study.

The destinations of 74% of first-degree graduates and 52% of higher-degree graduates were known. Despite a major effort by staff, these are lower figures than in previous years, largely because the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) imposed a longer gap between graduation and the data collection.

27 graduates entered the Civil Service and local government in non-technical roles. In addition two became public sector researchers and six entered the armed services. Only six graduates entered social work and related professions, a marked drop compared with the 18 in 2000.

45 first-degree graduates went on to study for a P.G.C.E. - a rise of only one despite improvements in the funding available. A further 51 graduates entered work in the education sector, of whom half were in teaching roles. 82% of Homerton graduates for whom details are available went into employment in education, predominantly teaching. 95% of the trainee teachers from the University P.G.C.E. course also entered employment, almost all in the education sector.

176 graduates entered financial work, fewer than in 2000. Of these, 94 went into banking/investment management (2000: 86), 34 entered chartered accountancy, and a further 13 became tax consultants. 17 graduates entered the insurance industry. The remaining 18 graduates included seven economists, five financial managers in industry, three in the public sector, and three in commerce.

158 graduates entered the law including 23 going to the Bar and 129 becoming solicitors.

Only 72 graduates entered management consultancy compared with 111 in 2000. This sector has also suffered a well-publicized period of difficulty which, unlike banking, has been reflected in lower numbers entering. A similar decline occurred in computer consultancy which only 40 graduates entered compared with 77 in 2000. There were 99 graduates altogether recorded as going into ICT jobs. The total number entering industry in all capacities was 83.

77% of Masters students continued with further postgraduate study and 21% found employment, 78% of them in the UK and 22% abroad. Fewer than 1% were still seeking employment. By contrast, 89% of the Ph.D.s whose destinations were known entered employment, 71% working in the UK and 29% abroad. Of those entering UK employment, 142 did so in higher education and 30 entered industry. The number still seeking employment was again small (<1%).

Recruitment of M.B.A.s into management consulting and investment banking, in particular, was down, in line with market conditions. The top six post-M.B.A. sectors were: management consulting (11%); pharma/health (8%); investment banking/venture capital (7%); services (7%); public/not for profit (6%); retail banking (5%). In addition, 7% started their own businesses.

Table 1 gives statistical details of the first destinations of all Cambridge graduates in 2000. Table 2 gives a breakdown of the main types of work entered. Table 3 shows the employment distribution for all levels of Cambridge graduate. Statistics for Homerton graduates appear separately as Table 4.

III Careers Service activities

The Report records the centenary of the creation of the Careers Service on 27 February 1902, and also discusses developments in its use of IT and information management, and changes in the external environment within which the Service operates. The wide variety of activities organized by the Service are also described and a list of major events in the Careers programme is given.

The CLICK e-mail system whereby current students can register to receive information by e-mail has proved extremely popular, with over 2,000 registered since September 2001. The introduction of a Web-based registration system for users has allowed better recording of use and there were 6,678 registered users at Easter 2002, half of them undergraduates. The website itself receives an average of over 5,000 hits a day.

Major improvements have been made to the Information Room, with re-organization of some of the material and display arrangements in the main Information Room and a major upgrade of the facilities in the basement to bring all the student material together and to separate staff working areas and computer equipment from student working areas.

The Service is working to ensure compliance with the Code on Careers Education, Information and Guidance developed by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), and the Department for Education and Skills's (DfES) new professional standards for the guidance sector.

Work with alumni continued to grow and 25% of the 3,964 interviews given by the Careers Advisers were with people who had graduated before 2001.

The Service again organized a number of successful Events. In October some 650 students and 23 banks attended the Banking Event and 700 students and 24 employers came to the Management Consultancy Event. The Law Event attracted 80 organizations and 680 students.

The Careers Information Fair in November attracted 160 exhibitors and 2,249 students over two days - a reduced number because power supply problems unfortunately meant that one afternoon had to be curtailed. The Media/Publishing Careers Evening attracted 560 students, with over 50 organizations and fields of work represented. About 1,200 students and over 80 exhibitors participated in 'The Works', the 'not just for profit' event run collaboratively with the Students' Union. CamConnect brought together 15 local employers and 270 students.

10,000 copies of the booklet on CVs and Cover Letters have been produced to date and a supplement on CVs and Cover Letters for Ph.D.s has also proved highly popular.

During the period October 2000 to September 2001, 541 new organizations approached the Service, fewer than the previous year but still more than in 1996.

Copies of the full Report may be obtained from the Director, Cambridge University Careers Service, Stuart House, Mill Lane, Cambridge, CB2 1XE.

Table 1

Table 2

*(contract terminated before 1/4/2002)

Table 4

Education Graduates 2001

Previous page

Table of Contents

Next page

Cambridge University Reporter, Special 2 August 2002
Copyright © 2002 The Chancellor, Masters and Scholars of the University of Cambridge.