Sophie Allen from the University of Sheffield’s Forge Press writes that recent graduates need to alter their expectations of the current job market:

This just in: we’re all doomed. In 2010/2011, the number of graduates in low skilled jobs had tripled since 2006. Those that spend years breaking their hearts over essays, equations, exams and assessments could face employment as a bartender or even, dare we suggest it, a cleaner.

Shocking. Forgive me for being underwhelmed by news which seems to be supposed to strike fear and paranoia into the depths of my battered student soul. These statistics might seem a little concerning, but they don’t really come to me as any huge surprise.

Sally Hunt, of the University and College Union, said that ‘people working hard at university face an incredibly challenging jobs market’, meaning that not all students are going to trundle out of university into a high flying job.

So, not all students are going to stroll into the better paid jobs their degrees supposedly entitle them to. But, then again, let’s face it – not all students are actually ‘working hard’. Suggesting that all graduates are sufficiently qualified for particular careers, in terms of experience, academic success, and personality, is a hugely sweeping assumption. Obviously, the main aim of university is to set students up for higher paid work, but a degree alone simply does not make someone instantly employable…

Full story here.