The Great Expectations of Gen Y. Guest Post From AGR Chief Executive, Carl Gilleard

I make a habit of waking early and catching up on world events by tuning into BBC Breakfast. Of course, I am doing other things at the same time, so it is more often than not a case of listening to rather than viewing the programme. Then, when I catch a word or two of particular interest, I call a halt, sit on the bed and watch the story unfold.

There are a number of key words that trigger off my increased attention – they include ‘university’, graduates’ and ‘unemployment’. I am no longer surprised by how often the news includes items on these topics. This morning all three featured in the headlines.

The story that really caught my attention was about student dissatisfaction with the university experience. According to an extensive survey conducted by Which, in partnership with the Higher Education Policy Institute, 29% of the 17,000 participants said that their university course did not represent good value for money. The last time the survey was carried out, in 2006, only 16% had the same complaint.  

It is hardly surprising that with fees rising from just over a grand in 2006 to £9,000 maximum today, expectations would rise. Unfortunately state funding of higher education has been much reduced so there is no more money in the system to improve the quality of what is on offer although I know that many universities are striving to enhance the student experience. Part of the problem is that students are not always aware of what they are signing up to. One in five respondents complained that information on courses was vague and one in ten said it was misleading. 

Expectation management is something that universities are going to have to get used to. Consumers, and students are consumers whatever the purists think, today do expect more for their bucks. It is essential therefore that when students consider going to university and which institution and course to apply for, they have a good understanding of what to expect. Anything less will inevitably lead to disappointment and frustration. (GRB can help show the average salaries by university and course).

It is exactly the same for employers. Telling it how it is, helps to adjust expectations to a realistic level. There is a huge temptation to only show the best bits of working for your business when competing for the best talent but that carries the danger of raising expectations to an unreasonable level.

I recall visiting a mansion in an idyllic setting that had been converted into the management centre of a heavy engineering company and asking the graduate recruitment manager if that was where they carried out their assessment centres. “Good heavens, no,” he cried, “the candidates would get entirely the wrong idea about their daily working environment. All our selection activities are held onsite, in the factories where the graduates will be based”.

Fair point!

Carl Gilleard
Chief Executive
AGR

HEAR hear, a credible alternative to a 2.1?

The latest figures released by the Higher Education Statistics Agency show yet another increase in the proportion of graduates achieving a First or Upper Second degree. In the academic year 2011/12, 66% of those graduating achieved this distinction, a rise of 2% over the previous year. As recently as 2007/08 only 61% did so well.

It’s difficult to be anything but pleased for those who ‘made the grade’ as it were. Employers, at least those in membership of AGR, value the First and Upper Second (a 2:1) highly. So highly in fact that three quarters of them when recruiting graduates have an automatic cut-off which excludes those who have achieved anything less.

With growing numbers of graduate applications to contend with it is a simple way to reduce numbers. Some employers receive well over a hundred applications for each vacancy, so having an academic cut off point is strategic. However, the weakness with this approach is that the degree classification system is not a national standard. Put another way, you cannot accurately compare one candidate’s achievement of a 2:1 with another candidate’s unless they studied the same degree at the same institution at the same time. The degree then is a blunt instrument and recruiters need to treat it with caution.

What’s the alternative? Well, some recruiters do not exclude candidates at the screening stage on the basis of their degree classification by applying other criteria, such as relevant work experience. The higher education sector has been working hard over the past few years to develop an alternative record of students’ achievement that show the academic achievements throughout the degree programme and also captures extra-curricular achievements which employers value so highly. It’s called the Higher Education Achievement Record or HEAR and a majority of higher education institutions have signed up to it. Graduates will be able to permit employers to access their HEAR which, as well as providing additional granularity over the crude degree classification, will be verifiable data.

In a recent GRB poll of graduates just over half claimed that they would always be honest on social networking sites. There’s a difference between what you say about yourself on a social networking site and a job application, so the findings cannot be extended to applications. Other research claims that as many as one in four people misrepresent educational qualifications.

Carl Gilleard, AGR Chief Executive, says “These are tough times for job applicants and recruiters. Both are grappling with increased competition for vacancies. Using the degree class as the prime cut-off is problematic and can result in talented candidates being excluded. Using the UCAS points (A level grades) to de-select candidates is even worse practice.”

Until now, it has been difficult to come up with an alternative but the HEAR might well provide a credible remedy. After 200 years of the degree class system evolving, employers should at least allow time for the HEAR to become embedded in the HE sector before passing judgement. The more encouraging employers are and the more use they make of it, the more likely it is that universities will adopt it. People need to support a new idea, not be instantly sceptical; a little faith is a required to bring about change. In this case, a definite change for the better for all concerned.