Applicants to higher education are more confident about their job prospects after graduating than at any time since the pandemic, according to new research.
The Unite Students Applicant Index, produced in partnership with the Higher Education Policy Institute, is an annual survey that asks students about their lives before they attend higher education and tracks changing attitudes year on year.
This year’s results show two in five (40%) applicants strongly agree they are confident about getting the job they desire after graduation, up 6 percentage points from last year. In total, 63% are confident about their employability after graduation, up from 61% in 2023.
This is likely due in part to this year’s cohort having more work experience – 52% of 2024 applicants believe they have a lot of work experience compared to 47% in 2023. A substantial majority (70%) have been in paid part-time work over the last two years.
The confidence in employability has risen despite a year-on-year rise of 6 percentage points in school absences due to mental health, and applicants being less confident about their general life skills.
More than a third (36%) of applicants say they have been absent from school due to their mental health, with almost one-in-10 having been absent for four or more weeks. Among those who have been absent because of this, 43% of them think they will likely miss lectures at university.
When it comes to specific practical life skills like cooking, laundry, cleaning and relationship skills – such as managing conflict or helping a friend in distress – this year’s cohort are somewhat less confident than last year’s.
Half of this year’s applicants say they have learned practical life skills from their parents. More than two-thirds (69%) feel confident about their independence (including self-assurance related to starting university and accessing support).
There is also a 5 percentage point increase in UK applicants making sacrifices to live more sustainably (53% compared to 48% in 2023). Unite Students is committed to becoming net zero carbon across its operations and developments by 2030.
Over a quarter of all UK applicants – 27% – identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer, Pansexual or Non-Binary. Two-thirds say they will share this information with their university, compared to just over half in 2023.
Building on the launch of its successful student support team in 2015, Unite Students updated its framework and in 2022 announced Support to Stay, which aims to provide students with a supportive living environment, whatever difficulties they are experiencing.
This year’s Applicant Index is based on a representative and weighted survey of 2,190 university applicants planning to start an undergraduate degree in the 2024/25 academic year. It covers finance, social, community, wellbeing, resilience, learning, employment, independence and sustainability themes and provides insight into the needs, wants and level of preparedness of the new cohort of first-year students.
Joe Lister, Chief Executive of Unite Students, said:
‘For the third year running, we are proud to publish this unique index about university applicants – which provides a voice to applicants before they start university.
‘It’s great to see the growing confidence applicants have in obtaining the job they desire after graduating. This is a strong, positive indication that school leavers continue to believe that university will help them achieve the best outcome for their futures.
‘However, mental health is of vital importance and remains one of our top priorities. Our Support to Stay framework provides students with a living environment to fulfil their potential. We take pride in our properties providing a Home for Success, where students feel they can belong and thrive.’
In the Foreword to the report, Nick Hillman, Director of HEPI, writes:
‘The shift to higher education very often represents the biggest change young people have faced in their lives up to that point. Moreover, applying to become a full-time undergraduate student is risky. If you manage to secure the place you want, you will then likely leave your family, friends and existing support networks and quite possibly move to a city in a completely different part of the country in order to study a discipline in greater depth than before, while taking on a whole new level of financial independence. There are plenty of opportunities for things to go wrong …
‘The one finding that comes through repeatedly in the pages that follow is how unequal the student experience can be for people from different backgrounds. If equity in education is the goal – and society would clearly benefit from people having more equal chances – then there is great progress still to be made. As the new Government finds its feet and builds its educational policy programme, Ministers should consider what more can be done to deliver an education system that is fairer to those who currently have to fight the hardest to overcome the obstacles in their way.’
***The full report can be read here.***
Notes to Editors
- HEPI and Unite Students are hosting a free webinar to launch the report on Tuesday, 16 July from 10am to 11am. Register your place here.
- Unite Students is the UK’s largest owner, manager, and developer of purpose-built student accommodation serving the country’s world-leading higher education sector. We provide homes to 70,000 students across 153 properties in 23 leading university towns and cities. We currently partner with over 60 universities across the UK.
- The Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) was established in 2002 to influence the higher education debate with evidence. We are UK-wide, independent and non-partisan. We are funded by organisations and higher education institutions that wish to support vibrant policy discussions, as well as through our own events. HEPI is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity.