DS just asked me if it matters which university you go to

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And I couldn't really formulate an answer.

I know Oxbridge and RG are more highly thought of, but from an employer's POV, how much difference does it make where you studied?

Is it different according to which subject you're doing or which sector you hope to work in?

Bath is a non-RG. So is Loughborough. Both are higher in rankings than RG unis for specific subjects (for Comp Sci, Bath is considered even better than Bristol). DMU is non-RG but it’s architecture course is one of the best in the world. As for the OU - it’s neither RG nor Oxbridge but it’s healthcare / business programmes are considered world class & their style of teaching is good prep for research.

It depends on what he is thinking of doing post university.
More niche roles or ones that are highly competitive (like law) will care. Or roles where you need that particular degree to do the job. A lot of other employers won't care as much. It's more about the experience you'll have when you're there - extra curricular, employability skills etc that will get him 'work ready' over just study.

@RunLolaRun102
DMU is ranked 39th for Architecture in the CUG. It really isn’t one of the best in the world. It’s nowhere near the best here! It has lowish entry standards when compared to others. What this shows is how important course/university research is and definitely speak to others doing the job you want.

Not true wrt oxbridge. Anything less rhan a 2.1 will get yOu automatically rejected from most graduate admissions posts
A 2.2 or a 3rd does not prove much except the candidate was an admissions mistake

What job sector is he hoping to go into? Healthcare is different from academic research, which is different from accountancy or magic circle law firm. Different sectors and companies within those sectors tend to hire using different criteria.

If you are a middle of the road type of student it's often better to go to a Uni where you have the best chance of getting a 2:1 or a first. There is no point going to Oxford and failing.

There are no 'joke' universities. That's a nasty and pompous thing to say. Not everyone has the opportunities that other people have and many people thrive with less academic courses. It doesn't mean there is a anything wrong with them or the university.

There is something wrong with courses where a smallish proportion of students get graduate jobs. It does take research to be discerning about the course. You would expect 100% of nursing grads to get jobs but not arts grads, for example.

Obviously a middle of the road student won’t get near Oxbridge. Also they hardly award anyone a 2:2. Never mind a 3rd. So most people attending elite universities are very employable. Of course personality and other skills are evaluated for employment but if the grad hones their employability skills, they are fine.

I agree.
Many if those unis are very industry/ employability focused. One ‘bottom of the ranks’ uni is near me, and I visit it often for work. I’m always impressed. Students did work placements long before it became standard.

Also, they offer vocational courses like nursing- I’m pretty sure those students will be employable

Yes, in that universities are known for the courses they specialise in.

I don’t think this is good advice. It absolutely depends on the job, aspirations of the candidate and the organisation. Economics at Leeds won’t get you a job as a social worker and social work at Birmingham city is unlikely to get you into a grad programme at an investment bank or a training contract at a magic circle law firm. However, either degree May well get you into an entry level marketing role which just wants a degree for the sake of looking for someone with a degree. In theory it might not matter about the uni it might but in practice where it’s highly competitive it probably will

It seems to be assumed that so called joke universities are ones where working class students go to do something vocational. Or did the PP mean the (non existent) ones where you get a 1st in Harry Potter studies for no work? That is why I wanted specifics. I am an academic and know people who teach across the sector. None of them work in joke universities, because there are none. Not least because of Quality Assurance, but not only that. I think it is a vile and pervasive myth that does damage to a lot of people. Name me a joke university and I will tell you where you are wrong.

Depends on the subject. I live near an ex-Poly (!) which is amazing for computer based courses, much better than RG.

DH is a scientist and says you have to look at the content of courses to check they teach in line with what area you want to work. It’s not always about the ‘best’. He’s had graduates who have no practical knowledge and are fairly useless in work, regardless of a good degree. Fine for academic life but not for jobs.

Although we know someone’s son who went to do Travel and Tourism at a uni Id never heard of. He had no interest, just got in through clearing. His dad thought he would be set for life with this degree. I’m sure it’s a total waste of money.

My summary answer would be: "It can matter a lot which university you go to, but how much it matters depends on what subject you are studying and what career you want to pursue. Some universities that don't rank that highly overall in academic rankings may offer specialist courses that are good if you know you want to pursue a career in a particular area."

I do a lot of graduate recruitment.

I don't get to see where the candidates where at school or university. It's all removed before the applications are considered, we make our choices about who to invite for assessment from a personal statement and work experience history. We do see the grade they achieved and the subject it was in, but I can't think of any candidate in the last few years where that has factored in to my decision making.

What tends to happen however, is that the successful candidates have been to RG, Oxbridge or the higher ranked red bricks. That's because a) to get into these institutions the candidates have to be intelligent and hard working in the first place and b) the work that they do there (particularly at Oxbridge with the tutorial system) helps them to develop the problem solving, analytical and communication skills we are looking for.

I recruit for a role where there are no specific subject requirements, you could be successful with a humanities or science background. Obviously, there are some career areas where going to a less well known institution that has exceptional courses in a specific area is very valuable - there was a great thread on here earlier this year on standout courses at lower ranked universities, e.g. Music Tech at Huddersfield or Salford, Sound Engineering at Surrey, anything Marine at Plymouth, Land Management at Harper Adams. But to get real value from those courses it helps to have a clear idea of the career you want to pursue at an early age.

I agree that it depends a bit what he is studying. I went to Bath and enjoyed it and people are usually happy enough with it at interview. It isn't RG but ranks high every year for my subject.

I think medicine is respected at most UK universities and doesn't make a difference. Probably the same for nursing.

I think law you'd want a pretty good uni for if he wants to be a solicitor

Just to add - it doesn't make any difference at all for medicine or dentistry. I assume he's not thinking of those but the uni does not make any difference at all for those degrees. You (currently) get your first medical jobs based on exams at the end of medical school and your decile placing within your medical school - so coming close to the top at, say, Brighton and Sussex is better for your early career than bottom at, say, Imperial.

There will be some empoloyers looking for places where disadvantaged students or working class students go as plenty are trying to recruit from there (eg PWC wanting to know job of parents when you were 14 to assess class and help those from the working class into accountancy). London Met LLB (BBC A levels only required) or Hertfordshire LLB( (you can get in with BBB) Or Sunderland near where I am originally from LLB ABB

This. I have a number of degrees. All of mine are from Oxbridge or world renowned universities for that degree.

I have always had an interview.

If there wasn’t a difference they would all have the same ease of entry and the same grades but they don’t.

@Thepaintedgarden , It does make a difference for medicine or dentistry.

It really really doesn't.

Oops name change fail there. But it really doesn't for medicine any more. No applications (for foundation or st) ask for medical school. Where you graduate in your cohort makes a lot of difference but where you graduate from really doesn't. This has changed hugely in the last 5 or 6 years.

50% of young people have degrees these days, and as a result, it’s made degrees far less meaningfull. Same thing has happened with apprenticeships, the term has been broadened out and made govt funding (collected via levy) accessible to legal and financial and public bodies, and undermined what an apprenticeship is.

So ultimately, it depends on what the degree is and what it is to be used for.

If it’s to tick the box of HR Managers who put degree as a filtering mechanism on applications for run of the mill jobs that didn’t need a degree 10 years ago, then any degree will do and make sure a 1st is achieved, as that’s a + in any interview, when comparing to a 2:1. It’ll just help open doors slightly more.

If the role is to be something specialised, Aeronautical Engineering, Something Mathematical, Real Sciences, English, then the top tier Univerisites are worth pursuing, but competition will be stiff and worldwide careers possible on the back of them.

You also have the more niche Universities that do something incredibly well, you’ll possibly find these are great for the networking in the industry being selected, although more likely to be uk based.

Best of luck

On the other subjects, I think that calling universities "jokes" is a bit harsh but I can see some of the rationale. There are a lot of unis requiring lower grades which provide fantastic vocational degrees with good employment rates. I have current employees who really struggled at school etc who are excellent in their field after attending some of these unis. But I have come across a lot of people who were badly advised that "it's all about the course and the grade" and went to lower ranked unis to do degrees such as history or English where they struggled anyway with the independent learning and lack of support and graduated with enormous debt and came back to live with parents and zero chance of high earning jobs. I think some schools do a disservice to their students not to point out the pros and cons of different paths / degrees / institutions.

I don't look, really. I recruit in the software development industry as part of my job, and even for entry level and industrial placements I don't tend to look at which university. For more senior people, I don't even care if they don't have a software engineering or computer science degree (or a degree at all), let alone which university it's from, it's all about skills and experience.

As a previous poster said, though, there's often a correlation between the quality of the application and which university someone went to, for all sorts of reasons.