Employers hate private schools?

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In the fortunate position of choosing between one of the best private schools in the country, vs one of the best non-selective state schools in the country. Private school is affordable with sacrifices, which we’re happy to make, and it has all the expected advantages of better funding and selective intake, but the state school is also lovely.

To avoid this thread being bogged down by all the nuances of our choice, I’ll keep the question simple:

DH is convinced that employers dislike privately educated applicants. All things being equal, they’ll pick the state educated person. In other words, job applicants are disadvantaged by a private education.

Is this true? If so, how much better does a privately educated applicant have to be, for you to pick them?

Most of my husband's work top management and wages are men, white and top educated same in last work. Didn't see their schools (worked there for a bit) buy all the top universities which are possible from state schools but all educated beyond student loans. And know people that have been privately education and no going into the same legal profession and much easier for the one from private as need references and has been associated with the right kind of people their who life. You might find employers over looking well educated as believe they will move on. But one of my old bosses was privately educated and really she should of done more with education but has be a vet loyal worker as company give good benefits beyond pay.

@astoundedgoat

lol your husband is HUGELY wrong.

However, when it comes to Oxbridge applications - and an Oxbridge primary degree WILL help your child significantly in many if not most careers - all other things being equal (i.e. grades, quality of applicant etc.), A-levels from a state school WILL help.

If your child is in any way lacking in confidence, I would absolutely prioritise that over anything else at this stage and choose the private school, because that is where they excel above all else, but then perhaps consider a state school for sixth form.

If your child is a confident, outgoing and academically able child, you might be better off taking advantage of your excellent local state school - just be prepared to throw some money at tutoring nearer the time for exams to compensate for the class sizes/individual attention deficit.

No, the 'private until sixth form when you enroll them in the local comp sixth form or a-level college' doesn't work for a moment when it comes to universities contextualising applications!

they know the score I'm afraid.

However for OP's completely fake dilemma, it matters not a jot anyway as there will be no contextual lower offer for someone from one of the top state schools, either!

@girlmom21

Honestly though OP - I'd suggest your DH doesn't want him privately educated and is trying to make excuses.

Yep. Saving himself a few quid.

you're funny,OP.

Complete rubbish. Has your husband got a chip on his shoulder about private education? Why on earth does he think this. A word of caution though, if he is like this and you go down the private route he will very likely moan and moan about it for years!

Also there is private and private. Are you talking about the likes of Eton, Harrow, Charterhouse etc?

@skeumorph - or maybe people’s lives are more complicated than you imagine?

@girasol - my DH showed me something from the FT that says the same thing. I guess this is my main concern.

@AllThatFancyPaintsAsFair - I completely agree. On the other hand, it’s so hard knowing what my kids will be like in future - whether they’re the sort to do well regardless or whether they need the extra support!

I have recently recruited for several posts. School names etc. were redacted before CVs / application forms were passed to the selection panel.

as said earlier, schools don't feature on a CV for jobs.

for uni applications, many universities do take context into account, which mainly means that kids coming from a deprived postcode may get a BBC offer where a kid coming from a regular postcode (private or grammar) would get a BBB offer, for example. But in the long run, it probably makes very little difference.

If you have good state options, no need to stretch your finances to the limit to go private. And remember, if you start with state you can switch later to private if your child is unhappy/not thriving, but it is less common to switch the other way.

I'm pretty sure I know the FT article you're referring to - it was discussed at length on a thread a few months ago.

Your DH is being ridiculous. There ARE efforts by universities and workplaces to be more inclusive by NOT offering as many positions to privately educated individuals. But all this means is that privately educated individuals have to work very slightly harder than they did before. Non privately educated people still have to work much harder, all of the time.

In your (fake or otherwise) shoes I would choose the state school and spend the money saved on fees for extra-curricular trips etc - and saving for university.

When I have recruited I have looked at what schools people attend. I google them to see if they are private or state. But ultimately I am just being nosey - I recruit the right person for the role regardless of background. (and sometimes people surprise you - I work with two people who speak ever so posh(ly), but neither went to private schools!)

Also, should say that we can't afford private school but if we could, I'd consider it in a cold blooded way simply because there is no doubt in my mind that the contacts and experience my DC would get is better than 99% of similar at a state school (with the possible exception of a top selective). Education/marks etc might be similar, but those contacts and experience and the "veneer" are real.

I know someone who was asked by a Bulge Bracket bank whether he was privately educated and he wasn't then invited to interview. He felt that it counted against him. Separately, a number of the banks and accountancy firms are removing schools and university details from CVs and their intakes are proving to be very diverse and very successful. I think society is turning against private education (I am, my husband is and our children are/ were with eldest now at one of the top 10 state schools in the country). I think also if your children is Oxbridge material then you are now less likely to be offered if you are coming out of a private school.

If I were presented with two applicants for a job who were identical in their achievements in every way and one was privately educated and one state, I'd choose the state educated one.

Just because I'd expect a privately educated child to have achieved more with all their advantages. By the same token, I'd hire a woman over a man, a black man over a white one. We cannot pretend that privately educated white men are given every advantage in life.

This is of course an entirely hypothetical scenario as no two people have identical achievements.

FWIW I'm privately educated.

Employers in the fields I have worked in are looking for driven, hard working individuals. These may or may not be the ones with a string of A * grades (or whatever the current equivalent is). The interviews are rigorous and designed to identify those who can think on their feet, not those who were hand held and spoon fed at every step of their education.

It is sometimes the case that the super smart more disadvantaged applicant from a failing comp will get the job over the individual with better grades who has had a better schooling. Not always though. The selective private schools select the brightest and most driven i.e. individuals with the characteristics required.

In short the school is irrelevant.

@BlingLoving - I’d love to have a read of that thread, if you could remember the title by any chance?

@Franklin12 - My DH just brought it up as one of the many factors we have to consider. He’s not anti-private or anti-state, neither of us are, we’re just trying to make the right choice for our kids without the benefit of a crystal ball. He’s worried that the opinion against private schools will become more obvious in future years and become a big disadvantage by the time our kids are 18.

And yes, I’m aware that our kids are immensely privileged because we’re going to do our utmost to support their education and development, whether they go state or private.

@parietal - that’s a really good point.

For most roles I've ever applied for (legal), I have had to complete a diversity form about my education (I.e. was I mainly state or privately educated), I assume this info is taken into account but have no idea how from one institution to another.

When I started working 15ish years ago, colleagues were overwhelmingly privately educated and the disadvantage of not being so was immediately felt. I'd love to know what the experience of graduates entering the profession now is. I think one of the advantages of woke-ism is that young staff are more likely to call out the b**locks of "so what school did you go to?" at work social events.

Sorry that doesn't help OP. It probably assists to know most of the key decision makers in the country are part of the privately educated elite, as are their children. So they're unlikely to act against their own self interest in a significant way. To the extent your DC could be disadvantaged, it would be more a correction of the status quo to re balance the ratios of state educated children entering certain professions, then barring the privately educated. Your child would still be at a significant advantage, all being equal.

Posters are saying they do look at school on cv, others say they have no knowledge of school- it would be useful and interesting if they said what field of work they are in.

It very much depends on the employer. If you end up going into a big career like law then yes, private school students are at an advantage.

But I've done admin work for most of my life (because believe it or not, not everyone who goes to a private school is a high achiever, and anyway, I have my reasons, not everyone wants a "career") and I can say for a fact that I've worked at a few small companies where a couple of separate people already decided they didn't like me because I have a posh voice, and it's turned into bullying. There was one person in particular who was clearly very publically left wing and politically opposed to private schools, and she did everything she could to make my time at work impossible. So if you end up at a place like this, then yes it can work against you. I also went to a university that's known for having a lot of students from disadvantaged backgrounds and even the university didn't like me very much because I clearly didn't fit in with their image. I could feel how people felt about me. Thank goodness we had anonymous marking.

Oh and by the way, not all of us get "contacts" or the "old girls/boys network". I've never met anyone who was able to help me in that way, and every job I've had I've got by applying just like everyone else.

There's private schools, and then there's Eton. They're not all the same.

Re getting a job its not the school you went to its the result
Unless
You went to Oxbridge & go for civil service or public service or anywhere where there is old boy network
& there is still quite a few of these
Bourdieu - when you go for a interview & the person who is interviewing you comes from a similar background they are more likely to offer you the job - you speak & understand the same social cues etc

I work in a professional industry - yes, I think it is increasingly true. They want diversity. I think in the next generation there will be a backlash against private education - I see it subtly now and know of one prestigious employer in banking who rejected someone (when person put forward) because Russell Group and private education was too “samey”. So yes / it is happening now and I think it will happen more,

No, absolutely not true. My experience, including in the public sector, is that employers are disproportionately impressed by private / public school still. It opens a lot of doors. Plus you still have a very lively old boys network.

Probably makes more difference for men than women I would guess.

I didn’t go to private school nor do my children. I’ve done well but I’m very aware of it.

@skeumorph - or maybe people’s lives are more complicated than you imagine?

Probly not in this case. Much more likely that you're a liar, isn't it? Occam's razor and all that.

I think if you have the option of an amazing state go for that. Cheaper and I think more favourable to the majority. Of course privately educated people still dominate in many industries but I think it's changing.

You went to Oxbridge & go for civil service or public service or anywhere where there is old boy network

This however is incorrect. Oxbridge is not to be equated with private school- oxbridge for our generation was free of charge after all. In the public sector / civil service you can’t disclose your Uni. You can however disclose your grade so oxbridge can be a disadvantage as it’s harder to get a 1st there.

The public school accent and manner, however, are unmistakable.

I work in publishing and I have to say we are trying to broaden our intake. If someone made a thing of their private school I would think less of them.