OfS publishes new experimental measure on student outcomes

Details of the measure are set out in a new report, which also includes anonymised results by university, subject, and by subject within universities.

The measure brings together projected data on the number of full-time first-degree students who complete their studies with data about the progression of recent graduates to employment, further study or other activities.

Current measures of student outcomes consider each stage of the student lifecycle separately. This means that they may be less helpful in highlighting to students their overall likelihood of both graduating and going on to professional employment.

The findings of the analysis show that:

• projected rates of progression from entry to professional employment vary substantially by subject group, and by higher education provider
• the projected rates of progression from entry to professional employment vary substantially by subject within many higher education providers
• where a higher education provider has a relatively high proportion of students projected to obtain a degree, it is more likely to have a high proportion of graduates in professional employment or further study.

Richard Puttock, Director of Data, Foresight and Analysis at the Office for Students, said:       

'Our role as the regulator includes the provision of reliable information and guidance to help prospective students make informed decisions, as well as ensuring that universities and colleges provide high quality courses that give all students the opportunity to succeed.

'Developing new and innovative measures in a transparent and open way is an important part of achieving both these aims. I look forward to engaging with students, their advisors and universities and colleges further as we develop our work on this experimental measure. We welcome any views or feedback on this report and analysis.'

Notes

1. As an official statistics producer we are committed to releasing our data in a manner that promotes public confidence, and to complying with the Code of Practice for Statistics. Introducing a potential new measure of projected entry to professional employment outcomes through this publication of experimental statistics allows us to involve users and stakeholders at an early stage in assessment of their suitability for the intended purposes. We intend that publication of this report will initiate a broader discussion with providers, students and other stakeholders about the accuracy, purpose and use of the measure, and will allow us to find out how best to present it in a meaningful way. We therefore welcome feedback on these experimental statistics. To give feedback email [email protected]