A management position at a university on a meteoric rise through the league tables, reporting impressive levels of graduate employability. A job that sounds too good to be true? In my case, it was.
When I was appointed to a senior position in a university’s employability department a few years ago, I was full of optimism and excitement. The university’s results were improving year on year, and its graduates were obtaining fantastic jobs. I had high hopes that we would continue this upward trajectory.
Part of my role was to help manage the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education survey, the annual review of alumni’s employment or educational status six months after their graduation.
The survey process is governed at a national level by the Higher Education Statistics Agency and is required by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, but it is conducted in-house, by universities themselves.