University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) graduates have received a timely boost to their job prospects after the institution received its best graduate employability score.
According to new figures released by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), 95.5% of UCLan’s full-time, first-degree graduates based in the UK went into employment or further study within six months of graduation.
Professor Mike Thomas, Vice-Chancellor, said: “This is great news for everyone involved with the University, especially for the thousands of our students who will graduate later this month.
“Having 95.5% of our full-time UCLan graduates in employment or further study six months after graduation is a record figure for us and is testament to the work we’ve done to ensure our graduates leave with the skills that are needed to meet employers’ demands.”
The figure represents the best achieved by the University since the information became available in 2008/09 when the total was 88.7%. This year’s national average was 94.6% across the 152 higher education institutions, and UCLan is ranked above some major names including Oxford and Cambridge.
The Vice-Chancellor added: “The working world is evolving but studying for a degree is still one of the best ways of securing employment and a career. A degree offers a wide variety of opportunities, not only for learning but for employability and that is why we ensure employability skills are embedded into every degree course.
“Ensuring talented people from all walks of life make the most of their potential and go into employment, often within the North West region, is a staple of why we are a major economic anchor in the city, the county and wider region.”
100% of dental surgery, adult nursing, children’s nursing, midwifery, pharmacy, physiotherapy and journalism graduates are in work or further study after six months while significant numbers are in social work, law, police roles. The latest analysis also shows graduates finding good career opportunities in areas such as retail, arts, entertainment and recreation, gaining graduate roles at a range of companies and organisations such as ASDA, Aston Martin, BBC, Capita, IBM, John Lewis Group, Marks and Spencer.
