Data revolution for students

More data than ever before available to students deciding where to study

Job prospects and graduate salary are two of the most important factors for students when it comes to deciding which university to attend, the Universities Minster has revealed today (21 June).

The new research undertaken by the Department for Education (DfE) shows the value of the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF) for prospective students. It comes on the same day that the DfE released a record amount of data showing graduate outcomes for every university in England - revealing the average earnings and likelihood of employability 1, 3 and 5 years after graduation.

The new information highlights the huge variations in outcomes depending on what subject and where students go to study, demonstrating just how this information can help students and their families find the right place for them. For example, for Economics graduates the median earnings ranged from £17,000 at the lowest institution to £68,600 at the highest 5 years after graduation , whereas for Medicine and Dentistry median earnings range between £42,100 and £49,800.

Universities Minister Sam Gyimah said:

"This Government is increasing the information available to students so that they can make informed choices about what and where to study.

"I am hugely encouraged to see that students and applicants are already using the TEF to inform their decision about where to study. Their voice is helping to develop the new subject-level TEF and helping to put even more clear information into the hands of students.

"We know that employability and salary are key things that students look at when deciding where to study, but for many it goes beyond this and that’s why we’ve made the decision to publish over half a million cells of data showing graduate outcomes for every university."

With more data than ever before being made available to students, Sam Gyimah has also announced plans to work with coders and tech companies to create new digital tools to help students choose where to study.

The Universities Minister will unveil the competition to create this app, worth £125,000 on Monday, 25 June.