This is a subscriber-only article
The graduate outcomes survey of class 2022 was published on 17 October.
This is a nationally representative survey of graduates across the higher education system that is carried out every year where graduates are surveyed nine months after graduation.
For the class of 2022, the survey was distributed during the spring and summer of 2023.
The results presented show a very strong labour market for recent graduates, as 83% of them are in employment nine months after they graduated.
Key trends
This figure is up from the last three years - for the class of 2021, it was 81.9% and for the class of 2020, it was 75.9%.
Employment is highest among education graduates, with 93.9% finding employment and lowest for arts and humanities graduates, with 66.3% of graduates being in employment.
The proportion of graduates pursuing further education has decreased to 10.2% for the class of 2022. This is down from 11.9% for the class of 2021, most likely due to the high rate of employment.
For the class of 2022, 4.4% of graduates are unemployed nine months after graduation.
Value of higher education
CEO at the Higher Education Authority Dr Alan Wall has commended the value of higher education qualifications in Ireland.
"We are delighted to release the graduate outcomes survey class of 2022 report, which shows that employment rates for our graduates continue to increase showing the value of a higher education qualification.
"This report adds to the graduate tracking evidence base and provides all our stakeholders with up-to-date and detailed data on early career outcomes for recent graduates."
Technological universities have higher employment rates
The study shows graduates from technological universities (TUs) have higher employment rates than universities. This is because more TU graduates tend to go directly into employment rather than pursue further study.
Between 82% to 87% of undergraduate graduates from TUs are in employment nine months after graduation, whereas this figure is between 64% and 85% for universities.
Courses proving relevant
The survey also highlights that recent graduates found their courses very relevant to their current area of employment.
The theory and practicalities of what they were studying throughout their degree has benefited them since entering the workplace.
Two-thirds (66%) of graduates indicated in the survey their course very relevant or relevant to their job.
When graduates were asked would they do the same course if they could choose again, 64% said they would be very likely or likely to pick the same one.
SHARING OPTIONS: