\t\t\t\t\tHow much does the name of the institution you attended matter? In theory, Higher Education is egalitarian. A degree is a degree, no matter where you obtained it, and with one you should be in the running for any graduate job. In practice, things aren\u2019t so clear-cut.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhen career advisory services list the universities employers most like to see on applicants\u2019 CVs, the same names tend to crop up over and over again. As you might expect, there\u2019s a strong correlation between the institutions graduate employers want to hire from and rankings lists such as that published annually by Times Higher. But there\u2019s an even stronger correlation between the most desirable UK universities and those belonging to the Russell Group.
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhat is the Russell Group?\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe Russell Group is an elite \u201cclub\u201d of 24 research-intensive UK universities that includes Oxford and Cambridge; the most prestigious London institutions including UCL, King\u2019s College London and Imperial; and elite red-brick and plate-glass universities.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBut what are companies really looking for when they go out of their way to recruit from Russell Group universities? It\u2019s not simply the quality of education their graduates have received. If it were that simple, Russell Group unis would take up the top 24 places in rankings lists of UK universities. At the very least, they\u2019d all make the top 30. But they don\u2019t. So what\u2019s the Russell Group \u201cspecial sauce\u201d?
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe Russell Group and employability\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMore than any other factor, it comes down to selectivity. Traditionally, Russell Group universities have set the highest UCAS tariffs and only admitted 18-year-olds with the best A-Levels results to their courses. And this continues to matter to recruiters.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMany employers remain sceptical about the intrinsic value of a First or a 2:1, especially given that more and more students are graduating university with the top degree classifications. Surprisingly, even after you\u2019ve got a degree, graduate recruitment programmes will sometimes look back at your A-Levels results as a measure of both raw intelligence and drive to succeed. In this regard, Russell Group universities effectively act as a kind of pre-screening service for graduate recruiters. A top degree classification from a Russell Group means that not only do you have the raw intellect to meet their selective entry requirements, you\u2019ve also thrived in a competitive environment once there.
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhy this might be changing\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBut the effects of the so-called \u201cdemographic dip\u201d \u2013 which means there will be fewer school leavers competing for an ever-increasing number of university places \u2013 may be about to turn this thinking on its head. A recent Guardian report describes how even the most competitive courses at the most prestigious Russell Group universities still had places available as of A Level results day.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMany of these universities have sufficiently high reputations to fill at least some of these vacancies with international students, but with ongoing uncertainty over Brexit this is a precarious model to rely on. And reports earlier in the year suggested Russell Groups were feeling the pinch: they made record numbers of unconditional offers to promising students, fearing competition from elsewhere.
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhat are the long-term effects likely to be?\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThere are two consequences to Russell Group institutions\u2019 recent struggles to fill their courses. The first, which the Guardian report focuses on, is that institutions lower down the food chain are likely to struggle. Even more so than last year, undergraduate degree places are a buyer\u2019s market. Applicants who might previously have considered a Russell Group place beyond them could well find themselves studying at one of the country\u2019s most prestigious institutions come September.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFor traditionally lower-tariff institutions, this is likely to lead to sparsely populated courses, and perhaps even to some programmes being cancelled. Given that these are also the institutions that make the least money from research \u2013 and hence rely the most on student fees \u2013 this could plunge some lower-tariff institutions into financial trouble, and increase the possibility of staff redundancies.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIn the longer term, though, the prestige of Russell Group institutions \u2013 and the role that prestige plays in the graduate employment landscape \u2013 may also be at stake. Reputation lags behind reality considerably: Bristol, for example, hasn\u2019t been near the top of a rankings list for some time but is still held in very high esteem by graduate recruiters and even amid falling tariffs Russell Group unis will continue to be synonymous with elite graduates and exclusivity for a while yet. But eventually recruiters may come to realise that a degree from a Russell Group institution is no longer the guarantee it once was of its holder\u2019s ability to excel in a competitive workplace. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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