Research by Beyond Academy has found that, while internships are widely accepted as the key to career success, just 8.7% of UK graduates have undertaken one by the time they leave university.
This means that 91.3% of graduates are entering the job market with no industry experience at all – a huge 10.9 million of our sample.
More concerningly yet, there is a clear trend that the likelihood of a student doing an internship depends largely on their university, particularly the university’s ranking in the league tables. This means that students of prestigious universities – such as St. Andrews or Oxford (which boast internship rates of 20% and 18% respectively) – who are arguably already at an advantage, are more likely to get the opportunity to climb this extra rung of the ladder than those who truly need the boost.
Internship rate for students at the top 10 UK universities is 19% – over double the national average, and higher even than the rate of the top 50 universities (13%). Conversely, both the bottom 50 and the bottom 10 universities have an internship rate of just 5%.
Considering that another recent study showed that an internship can fast-track career progression by up to 78%, it is clear that internship rates should be considered key performance markers for universities.
Beyond Academy are urging universities across the UK to invest time, money, and resources into boosting internship rates, with an ambitious goal of raising the national figure to 20% by 2025.
“A national goal of a 20% internship rate would give every student, no matter their academic credentials, the benefits that are disproportionately enjoyed by the top universities. In practical terms that equates to 2.4 million graduates,” they said in their recent report.
“That’s double the number of recent graduates with hands-on experience of the job they’re now doing. It makes them quicker, more efficient, and better at thinking laterally – all vital skills for productivity and never more so than now, with the UK facing recession once again.”
To see a full breakdown of the results and find out where your local university or alma mater ranks, you can read the report here.
