Conor Byrne takes a closer look at NUS President Liam Burns’ comments concerning youth unemployment and graduate job prospects and suggests that the situation is not as bleak as many would make it out to be.
According to Burns, current university undergraduates face a three-pronged attack on their futures due to the possibility of the UK economy facing a triple dip recession. Burns warns that a serious consequence of this for young people is a lack of ‘opportunities, jobs and prospects’ – very bleak, one might think in light of this. He went on to castigate the labour market for ‘failing to deliver economic prosperity, social justice and wellbeing for the majority’. This seems very accurate in light of recent statistics, which show that 672,000 16-24 year olds in the UK are currently unemployed; while 1.62 million 18-24 year olds in all can be classified as being ‘economically inactive’.
Photo Credit: The Guardian
Notwithstanding this, of course, it’s true that, for many professions, it is more competitive than ever and students require much more practical experience and need to show greater originality than they perhaps needed to a decade or two ago. Statistics indicate that many students are not realistic in what they hope to achieve by the time they’re 35, for instance. So a realistic approach to finding a career, and what students want to achieve in life, is essential.
Burns’ comments are fascinating, but it needs to be remembered that it will always be easier for students to find a job in one sector than it is in another. Nonetheless, statistics indicate that many employers do not focus greatly on the degree subject studied, but the skills gained from it, as well as evidence of extra-curricular interests. So it surely shouldn’t matter too much if a student is studying History, or Business, or Law, or Geography, or whatever – obviously for some careers (medicine an obvious one), a certain degree is vital, but for others, these degrees are exciting in opening up many different doors.
Many students are uncertain of what career they want to pursue following the completion of their degree, and Burns’ comments are hardly reassuring in light of this. It’s undeniable that unemployment, particularly for 18-24 year olds, is a very pressing problem in the UK.
But let’s not be too hasty. Just look at the situation in struggling countries where the economy has completely failed: Spain, Portugal, Greece, and much of Eastern Europe, for instance. There, unemployment rates for young people are as high as 25%, and according to Dominic Sandbrook, Angela Merkel is very much a hate figure in these countries because she is blamed for the fact that young people there shave a high likelihood of never securing a career.
Employment prospects depend a lot on the degree students do, the results they achieve, the institution they attend, and a multitude of other factors. It is surely too broad a claim that all students face bleak employment prospects, caused by the ineptitude of the government and the struggling nature of the British economy. Indeed, investment banking, teaching, and retail, for instance, are sectors which will always need people to work for them; and students who are desirous to enter these sectors will probably not face too many problems in attaining a job. The media is very keen to publicise high rates of unemployment, but in context of the European – even world – situation, and the nature of employment in the UK as a whole, it is inaccurate to suggest that university students will all face hardship in trying to achieve their desired career.
Burns’ comments are to some extent truthful, and do reflect a bleak situation in the UK at present, as in much of Europe. But we need to remain optimistic, for pessimism never achieves anything. Exeter students have an excellent chance of achieving great things and finding exciting careers, as do many other students across the UK. Surely an uninviting economic situation shouldn’t prevent students from doing what they want to in life – it might just be a little harder than beforehand.
Conor Byrne
Do Burns’ comments go too far in condemning all graduate employment prospects? Do you feel confident in your ability to pursue a career come graduation, or do you worry that the recession will leave you without the necessary opportunities? Leave a comment below or write to the Comment team at the Exeposé Comment Facebook Group or on Twitter @CommentExepose.
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