Page 11 | AIBU to think going to an RG university means absolutely nothing

Butchyrestingface · 2025-05-13T19:15:48+00:00

Never one to shy away from a challenge (even if it's a challenge to someone else). [tbugrin] So I went to a RG uni. I didn't even KNOW I'd been to a RG uni until about 15 years after the fact when I joined MN. Thereafter I referred to it as having gone to a 'Russell Grant' university (bit confused). AIBU in thinking RG unis are not the be all and end all?

Original poster

Butchyrestingface · 13/05/2025 22:02

Goalie55 · 13/05/2025 21:59

I went to uni in the early 90s (Liverpool) and all I remember was it being referred to as a red brick uni.

I think the course and the uni matter, not just the uni. I live in a town with an ‘ex poly’ it does certain subjects much better than RG unis.

Yes, think I was familiar with that term. But I took 'red brick' to mean, old, probably stuffy, non-polytechnic and not the OU.

OP posts:

marmaladeandpeanutbutter · 13/05/2025 22:01

I tend to judge the course , not the university.

RedCrochetedWigFace · 13/05/2025 22:01

WitchesCauldron · 13/05/2025 21:55

That's a wider issue about the number of grad jobs available if they are taking entry level roles. But a graduate employer would definitely know.
That's the issue with the uni sector- so many go to Uni that a degree isn't special anymore. You need at least a masters to stand out and then you're still competing.

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I agree that a degree isn't enough to stand out by itself now.

I'm not sure I agree that graduate schemes filter by uni which is what you are suggesting.

blueshoes · 13/05/2025 22:01

R3s3t · 13/05/2025 21:51

Many have heard of the term but aren’t impressed as know what it actually is- an outdated self appointed club based on research ie pretty meaningless. If asked bar Oxbridge most couldn’t list any - don’t think given how unimportant it is that indicates a lack of knowledge or reading. 🤔

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Just because you think it it 'unimportant' does not mean the rest of the recruiting population agrees with you, as this thread shows. You may have a strong view and much as you may scream it from the rooftops, that does not make it a universal truth.

Even if it is just branding, why do you want to shut yourself off from certain (and mostly elite) careers.

I do think it reflects a lack of knowledge or reading as to how RG is regarded for recruiting purposes, which is a different not whether you think it is a valid factor.

I trust you are able to see the difference from a critical thinking perspective.

Goalie55 · 13/05/2025 21:59

I went to uni in the early 90s (Liverpool) and all I remember was it being referred to as a red brick uni.

I think the course and the uni matter, not just the uni. I live in a town with an ‘ex poly’ it does certain subjects much better than RG unis.

Sayithowiseeit · 13/05/2025 21:58

No idea what a Russell grant uni is

ArtemisiaTheArtist · 13/05/2025 21:57

Nobody in my DDs circle is going to an RG university this autumn.

Original poster

Butchyrestingface · 13/05/2025 21:56

blueshoes · 13/05/2025 21:48

I am amazed people have not heard of RG universities.

I did not do my university in the UK and have heard of the term.

Makes you wonder how widely read people are and their level of general knowledge.

I went in the mid-90s. No teacher at my school ever mentioned RG. I was not aware of it at any of the open days I attended.

During my 4 years at university, it was never mentioned by any of the uni staff, nor did I hear any of my fellow students talk about it.

Makes sense in a way since Google tells me the RG was only founded in 1994, so still in its infancy when I went to uni.

Only when I arrived on Mumsnet and was confronted by everyone yapping about these mysterious Russell Grant universities, did I realise for the first time I'd been to one.

Then when I discovered St Andrews didn't make the cut, I decided the list must be a load of old shite. (love me some St Andrews).

OP posts:

howrudeforme · 13/05/2025 21:56

Mmmmm - ds at an RG. I don’t think it will help him that much in the job market as his cohort have good family connections. I absolutely don’t.

blueshoes · 13/05/2025 21:56

WitchesCauldron · 13/05/2025 21:47

I think it absolutely does. With over 50% going to university employers need to distinguish between the quality of qualifications offered. There's a world of difference between an old poly offering a soft subject & a RG stem course.

This.

I often recruit close to entry level for my sector (compliance). I get candidates with different degrees from all universities apply. Strangely enough, I often see firsts from non-RG unis but fewer from the RG unis. I would still prefer the latter. The rigor is in the way the RG unis select and the type of candidate that gets in. I cannot comment on where the RG sits in the league tables that year or how good the course is in that uni nor do I particularly care.

That is because I am not hiring a graduate with a specific qualification but looking for good raw material to work with and train up. The degree decides whether they get an interview in the first place. The interview decides whether they get the job.

WitchesCauldron · 13/05/2025 21:55

RedCrochetedWigFace · 13/05/2025 21:50

Really? Do you think your bog standard employer/entry level employer (which let's me honest, is where most new graduates end up) has a list of RG universities and filters by them?

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That's a wider issue about the number of grad jobs available if they are taking entry level roles. But a graduate employer would definitely know.
That's the issue with the uni sector- so many go to Uni that a degree isn't special anymore. You need at least a masters to stand out and then you're still competing.

RedCrochetedWigFace · 13/05/2025 21:54

R3s3t · 13/05/2025 21:53

Surely a stem degree from a non Russell group is as stem as that from a Russel group and not soft🤔

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I don't understand your question but I didn't go to an RG so it could well be me. 🤣

R3s3t · 13/05/2025 21:53

RedCrochetedWigFace · 13/05/2025 21:50

Really? Do you think your bog standard employer/entry level employer (which let's me honest, is where most new graduates end up) has a list of RG universities and filters by them?

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Surely a stem degree from a non Russell group is as stem as that from a Russel group and not soft🤔

JHound · 13/05/2025 21:53

Butchyrestingface · 13/05/2025 21:07

Oxford or die?

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No, not quite that strict! But if your university was a former polytechnic forget it. It was RG or top non RG unis.

WitchesCauldron · 13/05/2025 21:51

Talkinpeace · 13/05/2025 21:46

THe Russell Group was not invented till 1994
its utterly meaningless
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Group

They receive three quarters of all university grant funding. How can you say that's meaningless.
Call me a snob but unless it was a particular vocational course, I told my kids that they should definitely aim for RG particularly given the cost of a uni education.

R3s3t · 13/05/2025 21:51

blueshoes · 13/05/2025 21:48

I am amazed people have not heard of RG universities.

I did not do my university in the UK and have heard of the term.

Makes you wonder how widely read people are and their level of general knowledge.

Many have heard of the term but aren’t impressed as know what it actually is- an outdated self appointed club based on research ie pretty meaningless. If asked bar Oxbridge most couldn’t list any - don’t think given how unimportant it is that indicates a lack of knowledge or reading. 🤔

RedCrochetedWigFace · 13/05/2025 21:50

WitchesCauldron · 13/05/2025 21:47

I think it absolutely does. With over 50% going to university employers need to distinguish between the quality of qualifications offered. There's a world of difference between an old poly offering a soft subject & a RG stem course.

Really? Do you think your bog standard employer/entry level employer (which let's me honest, is where most new graduates end up) has a list of RG universities and filters by them?

R3s3t · 13/05/2025 21:48

EilishMcCandlish · 13/05/2025 21:43

Apparently I went to one. Been graduated 30 years and only just found out. Although almost every university I could have done my degree at is a RG one. So I don't think it made any difference to my career. It certainly isn't something any employer I have ever worked for has been remotely interested in.
The only place I ever see RG mentioned is on MN as some sort of badge of honour for bragging rights.

Yep my husband went to two and nobody has ever been remotely interested in which uni he went to only his experience hence him having the same stance when recruiting. The MN obsession with it is bewildering.

RedCrochetedWigFace · 13/05/2025 21:48

My uni wasn't a RG but my dept and at least one other dept were carrying out world leading research. The uni regularly appears on TV when they need "experts" then and now.

I dont think my dept is at that level anymore but the other dept is and has recently made huge steps in something really important.

I don't think most people even know whether a uni is RG, especially if you're not talking about a local one.

blueshoes · 13/05/2025 21:48

I am amazed people have not heard of RG universities.

I did not do my university in the UK and have heard of the term.

Makes you wonder how widely read people are and their level of general knowledge.

WitchesCauldron · 13/05/2025 21:47

I think it absolutely does. With over 50% going to university employers need to distinguish between the quality of qualifications offered. There's a world of difference between an old poly offering a soft subject & a RG stem course.

LivingLaVidaBabyShower · 13/05/2025 21:47

I voted yanbu and I went to one of the "good" ones to do one of the "good" degrees.😅

Itseatingmeup · 13/05/2025 21:46

For most, it's what you study that counts. Engineering anywhere = job.

Talkinpeace · 13/05/2025 21:46

THe Russell Group was not invented till 1994
its utterly meaningless
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Group

Russell Group - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Group

blueshoes · 13/05/2025 21:45

BarleyMcGrew · 13/05/2025 21:23

All the graduate recruiters know EXACTLY what a Russell Group University is. It is part of their literal job to know.

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Absolutely. It makes a difference re: graduate recruitment in the initial sift.