Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

York of Sheffield in terms of careers?

8 replies

UoYorUoS · 24/03/2023 12:03

DS has offers from Sheffield and York to study history. We’re unbelievably proud of him as both these universities are excellent and require very high grades. We’ve visited both and, despite both having a very different vibe, he likes them both. Seemingly, York is considered more prestigious, although it is lower down in the QS world rankings than Sheffield. So, as DS is satisfied that he would be equally as happy at either, I wanted to ask what would be better for career prospects? DS is unsure what he wants to do so which university has the better career department and is more likely to be able to lead to high paid or prestigious careers?

OP posts:
remine · 24/03/2023 12:12

if he looking for prestigious careers such as consulting, civil service, law conversions etc York will be more highly regarded. However, in the grand scheme of things, it will not matter too much. What module options do they have in each University that he may be interested in? What extra-curricular options are there, as work/volunteer experience is just as important as the degree. For example, are there any societies he would want to get involved with potentially on the committee, or internship opportunities? Which uni has more to offer in that regard? Best of luck!

PerpetualOptimist · 24/03/2023 12:48

The latest National Student Survey (NSS) stats suggest that employment outcomes 15 months after graduation, for history grads, are very similar for both unis, with c. 35% going straight into grad-level employment and c.20% doing further full time study. Some people dismiss the NSS but so long as you look at results with reasonable sample sizes, it can give a good general steer.

York has a marginally higher proportion, of those in grad-level jobs, going into the finance or business sector. However, be aware that York will probably draw a higher proportion of SE-domiciled students who may have easier access to London-based jobs by virtue of having a home base there after graduation. All this says to me that Sheffield holds its own relative to York in relation to employability.

Others may post in relation to specific career services at each uni but your DS needs to be aware that uni careers services, in reality, can often provide only general support. It is the self-starters who build up evidence of transferrable skills, research the opportunities and apply for multiple internships and jobs who secure the roles they want.

The 'Prospects' website provides very useful information on graduate outcomes.
https://luminate.prospects.ac.uk/what-do-graduates-do

These are obviously 'average' stats for history students and others. The more proactive your DS is, the less average his likely career outcome. So it is likely to be the case what he does with his time at either uni is likely to be the most influential factor, rather than whether there is a 'York advantage' or 'Sheffield advantage' as such.

Well done to your DS. History is an interesting and rigorous subject area and both unis have excellent reputations.

NCTDN · 24/03/2023 13:07

Nothing to do with the course, but Sheffield will almost certainly be cheaper in terms of accommodation.

PerpetualOptimist · 24/03/2023 13:13

That is a very good point NCTDN which, in these times of accommodation shortages, needs to be weighed in the balance.

In my earlier post, the employment data is actually from the Graduate Outcomes survey, which is reported alongside the NSS stats on the Discoveruni website.

Geneticsbunny · 24/03/2023 13:17

Around 10% of students who go to sheffield for uni stay on afterwards. It has one of the highest retention numbers in the UK. So if you don't want him back afterwards then I would steer him toward Sheffield.

Robin233 · 24/03/2023 13:24

One of my adult child settled in Sheffield after Uni.
York is more scenic.
Which is closer to you ?

ErrolTheDragon · 24/03/2023 13:30

Robin233 · 24/03/2023 13:24

One of my adult child settled in Sheffield after Uni.
York is more scenic.
Which is closer to you ?

But the area around Sheffield is more scenic than York Grin

It's one of those cases of 2 good options so wherever he thinks he'll be happier he'll probably do better.

redspottedmug · 24/03/2023 13:43

So if you don't want him back afterwards then I would steer him toward Sheffield

That made me laugh!

If I may chip in, has he visited? Which city did he prefer?

I have DC at York, it's fair to say the nightlife is quite tame; and accommodation is eye wateringly expensive.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread