The latest University of Helsinki career monitoring survey shows that nearly all master's graduates from five years ago and doctoral graduates from three years ago are employed. The survey offers valuable insights into employability skills, helping the University improve its teaching to meet job market needs.
The results of the latest University of Helsinki career monitoring survey are very promising: the majority of respondents are satisfied with the education and training they have received in terms of their careers. The proportion of satisfied students has risen by almost two percentage points since the previous survey and is now at its highest level in the history of the survey.
This time, the most satisfied with their degree are graduates from the faculties of medicine, law, veterinary medicine, political science and pharmacy.
The survey, conducted at the end of 2023, was targeted at 2018 graduates of the University of Helsinki with a Master's degree, as well as bachelor graduates in pharmacy and early childhood education and doctorates who graduated in 2020.
Employment situation of both graduate groups very good
94 % of respondents graduated in 2018 were employed five years after graduation. Unemployment stood at 1.5 % and outside of the workforce at just under 5 %. The latter group includes, for example, full-time students.
Unemployment and long-term unemployment were down on the previous year's results. At the same time, the share of permanent full-time jobs was slightly increasing compared to temporary full-time and part-time jobs.
87 % of the 2018 graduates were able to use the skills they had learned at university in their work. 83 % of respondents felt that their job was a good match for the level of university education.
34 % of respondents to the career monitoring survey worked in companies and 25 % were employed by municipalities and welfare regions. Government, universities and the third sector were also important employers. One fifth of respondents have worked as self-employed or freelance since graduation.
In 2020, 96 % of PhD graduates were employed, 1 % unemployed and 3 % in the inactive population. The proportion of employed in the labour force was high - 98 %.
The number of people experiencing unemployment after graduation had fallen. 78 % have not been unemployed at all since graduation.
90 % of PhDs graduating in 2020 felt that they were able to use the skills they learned at university in their work and 90 % were on a career path that met their goals.
88 % were satisfied with their doctoral degree in terms of career prospects. 83 % of respondents felt that their job was a good match for the demands of a PhD.
The university sector was the most important employer sector for respondents, followed by private companies and the local government sector. There are large differences between faculties.
General skills important in working life
The most important factor influencing employment was the ability to communicate their skills, as cited by 2018 graduates. Other important factors included work experience, degree subject mix, work placements related to their studies, and contacts and networks. However, the importance of these factors in the assessment varied widely between faculties.
Respondents rated generic skills according to their importance in their current job and how they were developed through university studies. From the career survey, analytical, systematic thinking skills, self-direction/self-initiative, ability to learn and absorb new knowledge, problem-solving skills, knowledge acquisition skills and collaboration skills topped the list.
- Typically, all of these are considered important in the workplace, but there is some variation in how well the studies developed them or how they are identified," says Miia Hankonen, planning officer at the University of Helsinki's Strategic Services for Teaching.
As in previous career tracking surveys, PhDs felt that having a Master's degree and being able to describe their own skills are key factors in finding employment. Doctoral degrees, work experience and networks were also important for doctors.
Learning continues at work
Alumni were also asked what skills would you develop in the next five years? Around 600 alumni said they wanted to develop leadership and interpersonal skills, project management, language and communication skills, presentation skills and general skills such as critical and systematic thinking. They also want to develop stress tolerance, self-regulation and time management, networking and other collaboration skills, artificial intelligence and analytical skills. The deepening of sectoral knowledge and skills was also considered important.
The career monitoring survey will help to develop the university's teaching to better meet the needs of working life. The results of the survey will be taken into account in the University's financial allocation model. The number of respondents and the quality of the responses will influence the funding. The next career monitoring survey will start on 1 October 2024 and will collect responses from Masters graduates in 2019 and PhDs graduated in 2021. Respondents will be approached in person.
A new results reporting platform will be launched early next year, when all results of the Career Monitoring Report will be available. If you would like to be notified when the results are published, please leave your email address: https://forms.office.com/e/c3d49FV2xm
