University life involves balancing academic work with other demands on your time, be they social or getting the right mix of extra-curricular activity and work experience on your CV to make it stand out in a competitive job market.
The rigours of student time management are such that some institutions discourage term-time jobs. This is part of an ongoing debate about how students can maximise their employability and how important it is to get the best degree you can in order to thrive in the market.
So are you better off going for a first, or spending your time burnishing your credentials, and perhaps sacrificing that top grade to get a really good, rounded CV? It's a good question. So, let's look at some data.
I am going to use the most recent Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) data from HESA, from 2011/12, which looks at what graduates from that year were doing six months later. The data covers 80% of all graduates who have done their first degree, to help us look at the most difficult first steps on to the employment ladder.
The initial findings are simple. People with firsts are less likely to be out of work than people with lower grades. The unemployment rate after six months was 4.7% for firsts, 7.1% for 2:1s, 11% for 2:2s and 15.2% for thirds. That's a pretty serious difference.
But it doesn't actually follow that firsts are more likely to get jobs straight away as many of them opt for further study rather than employment. This means that there's not much difference in the rates of full-time employment between firsts and other grades – indeed, 2:1s have a marginally higher rate of full-time employment at 52.3%. 52% of graduates with firsts were in full-time jobs after six months, while 50.1% of graduates with thirds got full-time jobs
Graduates with firsts were much more likely to take a postgraduate qualification and to enrol for a PhD than those with other grades – even those with 2:1s. 59% of graduates from 2011/12 who went on to a PhD had a first.
When it comes to the level of jobs graduates landed, there is a real difference between outcomes for different grades. 77.5% of employed graduates with a first were in professional-level jobs after six months. Meanwhile, 63.6% of those with 2:1s and just over half (53.2%) of graduates with thirds had professional-level jobs. There were no professional-level roles taken up by significant numbers of graduates from 2011/12, where more than half of the new entrants had a first. So, while a first might help you to get one of these jobs, it clearly isn't a necessity.
Of course, some recruiters only target graduates from certain institutions. But are we seeing this effect in play? Graduates from Russell Group and similar institutions are more likely to get a first than graduates from other institutions, but someone with a first from a less prestigious institution was less likely to be out of work than someone with a 2:1 from a Russell Group. So there does seem to be a grade effect going on here.
What does the data tell us about the effects of degree grade on early careers?
Most graduates get jobs: Whether it's a first or a third, despite the reports, most graduates do get work when they leave university.
It's probably going to be easier with better grades: People with firsts do better in the job market.
There are few jobs you absolutely have to have a first for: There is little evidence of professions having so many firsts to choose from that they don't recruit 2:1s. It might help to have a first over a 2:1, but the boost is nothing like the difference between getting a 2:2 and a 2:1.
But it may make a real difference to your chances if you want to take a PhD: Most of the graduates who took PhDs after their first degree had a first last year. That's a higher proportion of firsts than for any job. With competition for funding so fierce, prospective doctoral graduates might want to concentrate on an excellent degree grade.
For most prospective career paths, you don't need a first, but it might make things easier. Only the individual can judge what effort is going to be required to get a first and what they'd have to give up in their lives to do it. Some may conclude it's the smart move to stick with a 2:1 and top up their CV with experiences likely to attract an employer – but for some, it might be worth that extra push.
Charlie Ball is deputy director of research at Prospects' higher education careers services unit.
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