7 March 2017 - Social Mobility: How can employers and unviersities work today to improve graduate outcomes

Secretariat 1 March 2017

Overview

 

The higher education sector does not operate in isolation. Universities admit students whose qualifications – and expectations – are shaped by many people and organisations, most obviously for younger students by their experiences and attainment at school. Students may also have had their experience shaped by a further education college or alternative provider, and many will have been supported by a charity in accessing higher education. When students graduate, decisions about whom to employ, into what role and on what career pathway, will be determined in large part by employers.

The Social Mobility Advisory Group’s report published in October 2016, highlighted the critical role of employers for improving social mobility, given the mass of evidence which points to socio-economic background still being the most important factor in determining a graduate’s career – often irrespective of the university attended. There is a need to enhance collaborative activity between the higher education sector and employers, particularly with small and medium enterprises, with more needing to be done to improve the inclusivity of recruitment practices, including the monitoring and publication of recruitment data, especially from underrepresented groups, and sharing effective practice and interventions.

Charities and the third sector

 

There are many charities working either exclusively or in part to address social mobility in higher education, seeing higher education as one of the best levers available to address wider social disadvantage. The charitable or ‘third’ sector acts as a broker to support universities in widening access and in linking universities with employers at the other end of the student lifecycle.

Many charities have a regional focus, with a number working in London and the South-East. Sometimes these organisations are associated with particular groups of universities, and can focus on addressing social mobility in a particular professional area, for instance supporting disadvantaged or BME graduates into professional careers. As such, these organisations have a critical role to play in supporting the delivery of the priorities. There is currently no directory or list of all educational charities. Knowing what these are, where they are located and their reach is important in supporting a more coordinated approach between charities, schools, colleges and universities. This information will also be useful to those engaged with HEFCE’s National Collaborative Outreach Programme (NCOPs) in exploring whether more could be done to link charities with NCOPs. This will help efforts to raise attainment to be scaled up in ‘cold spots’ in conjunction with the NCOP funding bids.

Alongside charitable sector activities, there are some innovative initiatives looking at how outcomes-based commissioning can support social mobility, particularly on a regional basis. The impact that these initiatives can have deserves close consideration in the context of evaluating how central funds can be allocated most effectively.