Providing transparency on graduate progression can be invaluable in reassuring students and their parents on the range of high-quality career opportunities, following a chosen course.
Selecting a university course is a significant decision, often involving considerable financial and personal investment. In this context, access to reliable information about graduate outcomes—such as career paths, employers, and average salaries—can be an invaluable resource for prospective students and their families. Transparency in these areas not only aids in making informed choices but also builds trust between institutions and their stakeholders.
Here at Pathways we believe providing such data is essential and adds value to students, parents, and universities alike.
Aligning academic choices with career aspirations
For many students, understanding how a degree translates into a career is a crucial factor in course selection. Graduate career and salary data offer a realistic view of where a course can lead, helping prospective students gauge whether their academic interests align with their professional ambitions.
For instance, data showing that journalism graduates secure positions at prominent media outlets or that engineering alumni work in high-demand, well-paid sectors provides clarity and assurance. Parents, too, find comfort in knowing their child’s chosen path offers tangible opportunities after graduation.
For those looking to study a humanities degree, providing transparency on graduate progression can be invaluable in reassuring students and their parents on the range of high-quality career opportunities.
Evaluating Return on Investment
Higher education represents a substantial financial commitment, requiring students or their families to invest significant resources. Course pages that include salary information enable a clearer understanding of the potential return on this investment.
If graduates of a particular course consistently achieve competitive salaries, it reinforces the value of that degree. Those with variable outcomes might prompt deeper scrutiny, allowing students and their families to make better-informed decisions. While financial gain is not the sole measure of a degree’s worth, this information is a valuable component of the decision-making process.
Bridging the gap between academic theory and professional practice
Graduate destination data demonstrates how academic learning translates into real-world applications. For example, if alumni of a business course frequently join leading firms like Deloitte or Google, it signals that the curriculum aligns well with industry demands. Such insights reassure prospective students and their families that the education provided is both practical and relevant.
This alignment is particularly important to parents, who are often concerned about employability and the practical value of their child's education in securing a future career.
Inspiring confidence and motivation
Highlighting the achievements of alumni serves as a source of inspiration for prospective students. Seeing graduates thriving in diverse and impactful roles—whether as architects, journalists, nurses, or engineers—helps students envision their own potential success.
For parents, these success stories serve as proof that the university provides a robust foundation for both professional growth and personal fulfilment.
Promoting accountability and transparency
For universities, sharing graduate outcomes fosters accountability. Institutions making bold claims about the quality and relevance of their programs should be able to substantiate those claims with tangible evidence. By publishing career and salary data through our embedded Pathways Graduate product, universities demonstrate their commitment to transparency and their confidence in the value of their offerings.
For students and parents, this transparency helps cut through marketing jargon, providing clear, measurable evidence of program quality and effectiveness.
Pathways seamlessly integrates with our course pages, offering prospective students a comprehensive and engaging way to explore their future career options.
University of Stirling
A growing trend towards data transparency
While not all universities currently provide detailed graduate outcome data, the trend toward increased transparency is gaining momentum. Institutions that adopt this practice stand to differentiate themselves in an increasingly competitive higher education market, offering prospective students and families the clarity they need to make informed decisions.
Access to graduate career and salary data is an essential tool for evaluating university courses. It equips prospective students with realistic expectations about their future prospects, reassures parents about the value of their investment, and holds universities accountable for delivering meaningful outcomes.
What this looks like in Pathways
With Pathways Graduate, we can help you showcase the career destinations of your graduates seamlessly in your course pages. The Graduate product helps you engage with prospective students and their parents by demonstrating a clear line of sight from academic study to future career.
- Percentage split of career areas for every course, based on your own Graduate Outcomes data (or choose to display national data)
- Average salary of your graduates, 15 month after graduation for each career area
- Predicted workforce growth of each career area
- Top employers your own graduates go on to work for, for each career area
- Typical job roles with descriptions, within a career area
- Average salary after 5 years for every course
As this practice becomes more widespread, it will continue to enhance the decision-making process, benefiting both students and the institutions they choose to attend.
When selecting a university course, we believe this data should be considered alongside academic content and university facilities as a vital part of the evaluation process.
