Graduate employment in the UK has returned to pre-pandemic levels as a cooling economy reduces hiring and reverses the temporary post-Covid surge in opportunities, according to new research from Prospects at Jisc.
The annual What do graduates do? report, published on 25 November, highlights a significant decline in outcomes for the 2023 graduating cohort. These graduates entered the labour market as demand slowed and were surveyed in autumn 2024, when economic conditions had worsened further.
Only 56.4% of graduates were in full-time employment 15 months after leaving university, a drop of 2.6 percentage points from the previous year and the lowest rate since the cohort that graduated before the post-Covid jobs boom in 2020. The downward trend has continued through 2025.
Charlie Ball, head of labour market intelligence at Jisc, said post-pandemic hiring had created “unrealistic expectations.” He added that the strong post-Covid jobs market was not representative of a sustainable cycle. “Vacancies are falling, businesses are unconfident and, with the AI bubble set to burst, recession looks more imminent,” he said.
Graduate unemployment also rose slightly, from 5.6% to 6.2%, although this remains far below the broader youth unemployment rate of 15.3%.
The report highlights a notable decline in graduates entering IT roles, with just 5.1% of the cohort moving into tech jobs, down from 6.7%. This reflects a correction in the sector after post-pandemic over-recruitment. Administrative and other non-graduate roles also fell, while retail once again became the largest destination for non-graduate employment, echoing long-term pre-Covid patterns.
Self-employment, which declined during the pandemic, has rebounded strongly, rising to 11.4% from 8.8% last year.
Despite the overall softening of the jobs market, certain sectors continue to experience high demand for graduates. Engineering, IT, health, and social care remain key areas for employment, with nurses, coders, doctors, teachers, and marketing professionals among the top graduate recruits.
Ball urged graduates not to be discouraged, stressing that higher education still provides a significant advantage in challenging economic times. “Most graduates get good jobs quite quickly, and that will continue,” he said. “The process will be tougher and more competitive, but students will benefit from strong support from careers services. They should not get lost in the AI hype, as industry still requires people who can use these tools with human judgment.”
The report underscores the uneven recovery of the graduate labour market and the continued importance of targeted support and skills development as the UK faces a slower economic cycle.
