Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). Destinations of leavers from higher education. Author, Cheltenham, 2012.

At the end of June, HESA has released the 2010/2011 statistics from the Destinations of leavers survey conducted six months after the end of every year. The survey tracks everyone from the UK who has concluded their studies that year across all levels of higher education.

Although the 2010/2011 figures largely conform to the recent trends – employment rates have been hovering around the 60% mark for the last five years now (2008/2009 being the only exception with 57%) – the unemployment rate of full-time, first degree leavers from higher education has increased from 6% in 2006/2007 to the current 9%. Despite marginal regional variation between the different parts of the UK, the type of degree and institution does have an effect on the rate of employment after graduation with some professions more easily absorbed by the job market than others.

HESA