Updating Results

A majority of students expect to graduate without a job

Jaymes Carr

Careers Commentator
Prosple Australia's Top 100 survey of university students reveals insights into student perceptions about job prospects & labour market readiness.

The Prosple Australia Top 100 Graduate Employer Guide draws on votes cast by university students at 39 higher education institutions across the country. A staggering 59 per cent of them expect to be searching for a job more than three months after they graduate, with only 17 per cent confident that they’ll secure a job by graduation.

These results are remarkably consistent with the findings of the 2018 survey, with a very slight improvement (two per cent) with regards to the number of students who expect to be searching for a job more than three months after they graduate.

‘Today’s graduates continue to face an uncertain labour market in which even the attainment of traditional vocational degrees, such those in law and commerce, offers no guarantee of immediate employment upon graduating,’ says Geoff Adams, co-founder of Prosple Australia and publisher of the Top 100 Guide.

Compounding the situation is the fact that only a slim majority of students (59 per cent) feel that their course provides them with the skills necessary for the labour market.

The good news is that many employers are increasing their graduate intake for the first time in years. However, things remain tough for new graduates.

‘In this competitive environment, we believe that services like GradAustralia—which more than 500,000 students have used to access up-to-date career and educational advice—have an enormously important role to play,’ says Mr Adams.