By Caitlin Pugh

According to the UCAS admissions service, a record breaking 27,900 students secured places through clearing in 2016 after missing out on the grades required for their firm and insurance choice universities.

So, if you find yourself in clearing this year, you’re not alone. In fact, I went into clearing on my A Level results day. My lack of preparation made it one of the most stressful, emotional days of my life (I wasn’t even sure what clearing was!) – but it all worked out in the end. If you expect to be in clearing this year, here are seven tips I wish someone had given me ahead of results day.

First up, what even is clearing?

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Clearing is a process which you are automatically entered into in the UK when the conditions of both your firm and insurance choice universities are not met. Universities with spare places on their courses will open them up to students in clearing with lowered entry requirements.

To secure one of these places, first check universities’ websites to see if they are offering clearing places and, if so, what their lowered entry requirements are. If you meet the requirements, call the clearing hotline and speak to an operator who will talk you through the rest.

If you meet the requirements, a verbal offer of a place will usually be made over the phone, to be shortly followed by a formal offer online via UCAS.

Tip #1: Do some research

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My experience of clearing was stressful, mostly because I didn’t expect to be there and hadn’t prepared for the eventuality that I might be. My heart was set on my first choice university and I wouldn’t even entertain the possibility that I might not get in – so when I didn’t, I was distraught.

Whether you expect to be in clearing or not, it pays to be prepared. So, my first piece of advice is to do some research before results day. Find around five universities with a range of entry requirements that you feel you would be happy going to. Places in clearing are usually first come, first served, so by doing a bit of research beforehand and having an idea of the universities you would like to contact, you’ll save valuable time on the day.

Tip #2: Don’t give up hope just yet

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Just because you weren’t offered a place at either your firm or insurance choices, you shouldn’t abandon all hope of going to either of them until you call their clearing hotlines. The entry requirements for their courses in clearing will be lowered and you may get preferential treatment because you already applied there. So, try your luck and give them a call!

Tip #3: Let go of league table snobbery

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If after calling your firm and insurance choices, you still can’t secure a place, the university you go to will most likely be ranked lower in the league tables - but this isn’t the end of the world! The university rankings are based upon a large range of factors, and a lower ranking doesn’t necessarily mean a university scores poorer for graduate employability and isn’t that what’s most important?

I was sure I needed to go to a Russell Group university. I thought that, if I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to compete for jobs with people who did. In the end, I didn’t go to one, but this encouraged me to go out and get lots of work experience to gain workplace skills and put myself on a par with people who had. I wouldn’t have felt the need to do this if I had gone to a more highly ranked university and I wouldn’t have a lot of the skills I have now. So, I have clearing to thank for that.

Tip #4: Ask about foundation years

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When you call universities to ask for a place through clearing, ask if they offer a foundation year. This is an extra year to be completed at the start of your degree that brings you up to the standard required to undertake the actual degree.

The entry requirements for foundation degrees are much lower than for normal degrees, so you could still have access to a highly ranked university regardless of your lower than expected grades. Foundation years do mean you will carry an extra year’s worth of student debt, so it’s worth weighing up the pros and cons before taking this route.

Tip #5: Go through clearing at school or college

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I went through the clearing process at school with the support of my teachers and my mum, who helped me come to terms with the fact that just because my future didn’t look like what I had hoped, I could still be just as successful at a different university.

Having the support of knowledgeable people around you is invaluable when making choices about your future under pressure. So, resist the urge to grab your results and go home and use the assistance available to you to help you make the best of the situation.

Tip #6: Identify the edge you have over other students

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When calling clearing hotlines, explain why you feel you should be given more consideration. Is one of your results just a few marks shy of the grade above? Have you been involved in anything extracurricular that will make you a more desirable student to have?

Clearing operators are given a level of discretion when offering places to students, so give them an excuse to make an exception for you if your grades are still slightly below the clearing entry requirements.

Tip #7: Ask for the supervisor

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If you don’t feel you’re getting anywhere talking to the operator you were assigned when you called the clearing hotline, don’t be afraid to ask to speak to their supervisor. Supervisors have more power and are allocated a number of places to offer, so explain to them why they should offer you one of them. There is a chance they will say the same thing as the person you spoke to before, but it’s your future we’re talking about, so it’s worth a try.

If you do miss out on the grades you wanted this year, don’t forget that clearing isn’t your only option, you could also stay at sixth form or college to improve them and try again next year. There is absolutely no shame in dropping back a year, because in the grand scheme of things, one year isn’t all that long.

Whatever happens on Thursday, make sure you know your options and are prepared for every possibility. Last of all, good luck!

Lead image: City of Stoke on Trent Sixth Form (Flickr)

Thinking of studying a master’s degree? While in some cases it can be a necessary step towards achieving your dream career, it’s not always a smart move. In fact, in some industries grad school is at best a waste of time, so it’s worth asking yourself if you really need to do a postgraduate degree. If your main motivation is any of the following reasons, that should be a warning signal that maybe a master’s isn’t actually for you.

“I’m not ready to work”

You’ll probably find that working in an office isn’t all that different from going to university, especially if you’re just starting out. You’ll have a daily routine of tasks to attend to, fixed hours, targets (i.e. grades) and none of the cons of going to school like homework and having no income. Depending on your sector, you might even find you’re a little richer than you were at university and have a little extra money to spend on things like nights out or takeaways, so don’t choose the student life just because you want to put off being an adult.

“I’m planning on waiting out the recession”

Using grad school as a ruse to wait out the recession is a fairly risky gamble. It might mean that you find yourself one or two years down the line exactly where you left off before your master’s and with more debt. There aren’t any shortcuts to employment. You just have to keep at it and not give up. Remember that it takes the average college graduate several months to find their first job.

“I want to work in academia”

Every nerdy college student has said at some point in their lives that they aspire to become an academic. With no experience of working life, how do you know for sure there isn’t another vocation out there that you’d love? As a rule of thumb, it’s always a good idea to mull it over, so why not try taking a year to venture out into the real world before committing to a master’s degree?

There’s no reason to rush into a life in academia, so take your time and consider trying something else first. You might even find that the research interest you were so committed to a year ago doesn’t interest you anymore.

“I need to kill time before figuring out what to do with my life”

There’s no better way to figure out what you actually want to do in life than by doing things and working. Try out a job, and if it’s not for you, learn why and give another career a go. Find out what works for you and what doesn’t, while building valuable work experience. Avoiding the problem won’t make it go away.

“A prestigious alumni network would help me find a job”

The perks of having a “prestigious” alumni network to use as a safety net can often be overstated. There are other ways to build a network of contacts that don’t involve paying hefty tuition fees. Interning with a company you like, for instance, and making a good impression can have just as positive an impact on your future job prospects.

“I need to make up for my average undergraduate classification”

One of the most prevalent misconceptions out there is that having a master’s degree on your CV will make up for an average undergraduate classification. Most recruiters will be happy with a 2:1 in the UK or a GPA of 3.33 in the US, provided you meet the other requirements of the job and have the right personality. The myth of having the perfect CV is a little overdone. In most cases, you just need to be able to do what’s listed in the job description.

“My visa will expire soon”

Doing a master’s degree abroad on the off-chance an employer will sponsor you can be a bad idea. Employers tend to be unwilling to hire a candidate they need to sponsor unless there’s a significant skills shortage they need to fill. Unless you have skills which are particularly in-demand (such as web developing, engineering, or computer science), or visa laws explicitly state that holding a master’s degree from a local university will render you more eligible for a work permit, then don’t bother.

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Harvard University has topped the Academic Ranking of World Universities published by ShanghaiRanking Consultancy for the 15^th consecutive year.

The Ivy League institution is one of 16 US universities in the ranking’s top 20, with Stanford University holding on to second place again this year. At third, up one place from last year, is the University of Cambridge, while Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) – the best university in the world according to the QS World University Rankings – are in fourth.

The Shanghai Ranking is dominated by US and UK universities, with only one university in the top 20 coming from a different country. The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich is ranked 19^th. China is well-represented lower down the table, with 57 universities in the top 500, but the highest-ranked Asian university is based in Japan. The University of Tokyo just misses out on a place in the top 20, ranking 24^th.

The ARWU ranking considers the number of alumni and staff winning Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals, as well as the number of highly cited researchers at a university and the number of articles published in particular academic journals.

For the first time ever, the Shanghai Ranking has been expanded beyond a top 500, with the universities ranked 501-800 included this year under the label “ARWU World Top 500 Candidates”. These are universities which are considered to have the potential to break into the top 500 in the future.

The complete top 20 in this year’s ranking can be found below.

Do you keep seeing STEM on university websites and leaflets but you’re not entirely sure what it means? Don’t worry, we’re here to explain the acronym to you and why it’s becoming one of the most talked-about subject areas in higher education.

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics and refers to any subjects that fall under these four disciplines. Because these things are never straightforward, there are also dozens of alternative versions of STEM (including STEAM, STREAM and METALS) but STEM is by far the most widely-used.

The acronym originates from discussions about the lack of qualified graduates to work in high-tech jobs in the US. Since its creation, governments and universities around the world have made attracting students to STEM courses a priority, in order to address this shortfall. In some cases, it’s also easier to immigrate to another country if you studied a STEM subject at degree level and are looking for work in that field.

What are STEM subjects?

As mentioned, STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics, but a far wider range of academic disciplines fall under this description. Here’s a list of some of the other STEM courses you could study:

• Aerospace engineering
• Astronomy
• Biochemistry
• Biology
• Chemical engineering
• Chemistry
• Civil engineering
• Computer science
• Electrical engineering
• Mathematics
• Mechanical engineering
• Physics
• Psychology
• Statistics

The full is list is far more exhaustive, but this gives you an idea of the range of subjects included under STEM.

In terms of career paths, some of these subjects will offer a quite straightforward progression to particular careers. Aerospace engineering, for example, is likely to lead into a graduate job working for one of the world’s major aircraft designers, such as Rolls Royce.

Not every STEM-related graduate job is this obvious though. For example, a STEM degree could lead to a career working on special effects in Hollywood, helping to design new sportswear, or revolutionizing the farming industry. This is in addition to roles in areas such as finance and accountancy, construction, telecoms, and the energy sector.

Women in STEM

As well as encouraging more students to choose a STEM degree, universities, employers and governments have also introduced policies aimed at increasing the proportion of women choosing to study in these areas. STEM subjects, historically, have been very male-dominated, with young girls often discouraged from pursuing such a technical career path. While 12% of women in bachelor programs will graduate with a STEM degree each year, only 3% go on to work in the STEM field. This lack of gender balance has also led to a pay gap between men and women in STEM. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the gender pay gap in STEM fields in Australia was 30.1% in 2013.

To combat this, government and charitable initiatives have been launched to increase the number of young women studying STEM degrees and going on to work in STEM-related fields. Girls Who Code, Engineer Girl, Kode With Klossy and many other organizations have been established to encourage female participation in STEM subjects, with internships and other work placements often made available specifically for young women.

Lead image: Argonne National Laboratory (Wikimedia Commons), Women in STEM image: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (Flickr)

There are lots of things to consider when choosing a university or college. How good the course is, how much the fees are, how near or far away it is from home. Ultimately though, isn’t the most important thing that you’re happy?

If you’re looking to study somewhere where you’ll have a permanent grin on your face, Vanderbilt University might just be the place to go. According to the latest edition of the Princeton Review, the Nashville university has the happiest students in the US.

Whether it’s because of the inescapable country music, Nashville’s world-famous hot chicken, or the wonderfully scenic Vanderbilt campus is hard to say, but the university is also highly ranked by its students for quality of life, only being beaten by Rice University in Texas.

To compile the ranking, students from across the US were asked how strongly they agreed or disagreed with the statement “I am happy at my school”. 137,000 students were surveyed in total, from 382 different schools.

The top 20 happiest universities in the US are as follows.

1 Vanderbilt University

2 Rice University

3 University of Oklahoma

4 Tulane University

5 College of William and Mary

6 Kansas State University

7 Colby College

8 Saint Anselm College

9 University of Iowa

10 Clemson University

11 St John’s College (MD)

12 University of Dayton

13 Fairfield University

14 University of California, Santa Barbara

15 University of Vermont

16 Washington College

17 Auburn University

18 Hobart and William Smith Colleges

19 Virginia Tech

20 Clark University

The results of this year’s National Student Survey in the UK have been released, with several Russell Group universities missing after they declined to take part.

Boycotts of the survey at Cambridge, Oxford, Bristol, Manchester, Sheffield and UCL were organized as part of a nationwide protest against government plans to use the NSS results to raise tuition fees.

The NSS is issued annually to final-year undergraduates and is typically used to provide feedback to universities on the quality of its teaching. However, under the new Teaching Excellence Framework, universities with satisfied students could increase the amount they charge students for tuition.

12,000 fewer students took part in this year’s survey, despite efforts to expand its reach to a larger number of higher education providers. According to the Independent, one-third of students failed to take the survey.

Of those who did take the survey, 84% of final-year students said they were satisfied with the quality of their education, a drop of 2% from the last three years.

Amatey Doku, the vice president for higher education in the National Union for Students, said: “The Government wanted to use today’s NSS results to allow universities which scored highly to raise fees from £9,000 to over £10,000 by 2020 as part of their draconian reforms to higher education.

“Our membership made it clear to us that they found this unacceptable and demanded we campaign to sever any link between their crude Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) and a rise in tuition fees which would hit students hard. 

“Figures released today demonstrate just how easily this data can be skewed and how unreliable they are as a measure of teaching quality within this framework. This serves as a reminder that students are opposed to soaring tuition fees and are ready to use their power to challenge any ill-thought changes to the sector which will ultimately see them losing out.

“We will continue to call for the link between fees and surveys like the NSS [to be broken] and engaging students’ unions across the country to do the same.”

Lead image: jisc.ac.uk

Graduates from the University of Pennsylvania are the most sought after in the Ivy League, according to a new report.

The report by Indeed.com revealed Penn graduates receive 30.6% more job call-backs than the average for Ivy League graduates. Yale University is a close second with 30.4% more call-backs from employers than the average.

10,000 Ivy League graduate resumes were analysed for the study, as well as job call-back data from between June 2016 and June 2017. Other successful Ivy League schools for graduate job call-backs were Columbia (20.8% more), Harvard (12.3%) and Cornell (0.54%).

The least successful Ivy League school is Princeton, whose graduates receive 48.3% fewer call-backs than average, followed by Brown (26.4% less) and Dartmouth (20.1% less). Dartmouth defended its graduate employability by pointing out the university’s “notably robust on-campus recruiting program” as well as its private employment platform “where last year more than 6,500 jobs and internships were offered to students by more than 1,800 unique employers”.

Of course, it’s important to note that call-backs do not necessarily mean jobs – and Harvard University actually beats Penn for its graduate employment rate.

To compare this report to the latest results of the QS Graduate Employability Rankings, Penn was ranked 23^rd in the world overall in our ranking, receiving its strongest score for the Alumni Outcomes indicator, while the highest-ranked university overall was the non-Ivy League school Stanford. 

Penn also strong for graduate earnings

This good news for Penn students follows previous reports that the university is ranked first among the Ivy League schools for graduate earnings. Penn is known for having one of the world’s most prestigious communication schools (Annenberg School for Communication) and its Wharton School of Business is also one of the five best business schools in the world, so it’s likely both of these strengths are a factor in the university’s continued success with graduate employers.

However, while Penn is ranked first for graduate earnings among the Ivy League, non-Ivy League school Saint Louis College of Pharmacy was actually ranked first for graduate earnings among all US universities, with Penn eighth. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) also beat Penn for graduate earnings, with its graduates earning an average of $98,500 by the age of 34.  

Everyone can relate to the mixed feelings of nervousness and excitement on exam results day. Although many students will be delighted with their results, others will be disappointed, and might find themselves panicking about what to do next, especially if they now aren’t going to be accepted into their first-choice university.

Around 140,000 young people in Scotland received their results this week, and they’ll have been encouraged by a social media campaign aimed at showing the less traditional paths older people took to their current jobs.

Organized by DYW Glasgow, people used the hashtag #NoWrongPath to post pictures of themselves holding a handwritten sign showing what they did when they left school and what they’re doing now. Hundreds of people have gotten involved, from chefs to business founders and marketing managers. Here are some of our favorites, but you can browse the #NoWrongPath hashtag for more:

You dont have to get it right first time! Make your own path. Do what's right for you! You CAN do! #nowrongpath pic.twitter.com/y6AdarlWNU

— Lorraine Ross (@LorraineRoss20) August 8, 2017

#NoWrongPath on exam day. Here's my path, I might not be at school anymore but, I'm always learning. #resultsday @OfficialSYP pic.twitter.com/4IG4pzWCOm

— Jamie Dunlop (@SYPJamie) August 8, 2017

Here's @fredmacaulay showing off his path! Accountancy and Jurisprudence to Comedy... interesting! #NoWrongPath pic.twitter.com/BEv0D3Q6N4

— DYW Glasgow (@DYWGlasgow) August 8, 2017

Our CEO @LeaskGeoff shows that you can follow multiple routes to your ideal job! #nowrongpath @DYWGlasgow @DYWWest pic.twitter.com/yVpsrfCxRi

— YoungEnterpriseScot (@YE_Scotland) August 8, 2017

We roped our staff into #NoWrongPath and got some brilliant ones :-) pic.twitter.com/xnVOvh3HIO

— MuseumsGalleriesScot (@MuseumsGalScot) August 8, 2017

#nowrongpath @DYWICH pic.twitter.com/s7WHfhwMPl

— Tony Singh MBE (@McTSingh) August 8, 2017

#NoWrongPath is a great campaign for young people getting their #examresults
Thank you to Angela @ Lucerne Scotland Ltd for getting involved pic.twitter.com/25T8F5p8Or

— DYW West Lothian (@DYWWestLothian) August 8, 2017

Lord Provost @bolandeva illustrates her journey to becoming First Citizen #NoWrongPath. Always believe! #examresultsday. pic.twitter.com/iO1DzqkTC1

— Lord Provost Glasgow (@LordProvostGCC) August 8, 2017

It’s important to remember that your next steps after leaving school are just a point in the journey, not the end destination, and you shouldn’t feel disheartened if you don’t get the exam results you wanted. With many apprenticeships, internships and diplomas available (as well as the opportunity to go traveling on a gap year), university is by no means your only option after you leave school.

If you’re in the UK and have received your results, you can call UCAS’ Exam Results Helpline on 0808 100 8000 for advice on what to do next.

Main image credit: City of Stoke on Trent Sixth Form College

Job security is an important thing for everyone, not only recent graduates. After all, just ask Anthony Scaramucci, who was sacked from his job as the Director of Communications at the White House after just 10 days. It may have been brief but it was long enough for him to declare war on practically everyone he worked with, and give an expletive-laden interview to the New Yorker. So, with hindsight, maybe it’s not too surprising he was fired so quickly.

As the Mooch now well knows, holding down a job is hard. Fortunately, having any of these highly sought-after qualifications should help.

1. Nurse anesthesia

There tends to be a skills shortage in this area and demand will jump by 19% from 2012 to 2022, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is why masters degrees in nurse anesthesia rank among the most rewarding, with the salary potential ranging from US$140,000 to US$156,000. Job satisfaction is high in this field too, with as many as 82% of alumni saying their work makes the world a better place.

2. Computer science and engineering

Graduates with a master’s in computer and engineering might end up working as IT consultants, app analysts, UX analysts, web developers, and data analysts, according to Prospects. Job outlook in the field reflects the impact of a number of technological developments on consumers and society. You could expect to earn an early career pay of US$95,900, which may rise to US$134,000 after several years.

3. Operations research

Long-term prospects in this field are excellent. Progression may include moving to the private sector, working as head of operations at a research company or being promoted to principal analyst, according to Prospects. For those of you less familiar with operations research, also known as management science and operational research, it’s a field concerned with the application of analytics and math to make business decisions and improve efficiency. You could expect to earn between US$80,800 and US$130,000.

4. Electrical and electronic engineering

Graduates with a master’s in electrical and electronic engineering are highly-prized in today’s job market, especially in the automotive, telecoms, power and transport industries. So, you should expect a salary potential ranging from US$ 79,500 to US$129,000. Job options with this degree include highly technical professions such as aerospace engineer, systems analyst and IT consultant.

5. Taxation

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics expects job outlook for financial analysts, accountants and auditors in general to grow between 10 and 12% by 2024. A master’s degree in taxation could see you earning between US$61,100 and US$129,000 a year, although it might be worth noting only 29% of alumni report deriving a high level of meaning from their work.

7. Biomedical engineering

77% of biomedical engineering alumni report deriving a high level of meaning from their work, which is pretty good going for a profession with an earning potential that can soar up to US$122,000. Job outlook in the profession is expected to grow by a staggering 23%, much faster than average, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, due to the demands of our ageing populations, as well as our growing medical and technological prowess.

8. Applied mathematics

With a master’s degree in this field, you could expect to earn up to US$121,000, with an average starting salary of US$67,800. You would be using mathematical concepts and methods, such as mathematical modeling, materials science or discrete mathematics, to solve problems and make decisions in such industries as engineering, finance, insurance and computer manufacturing.

9. Finance

High wages and a skills shortage make this industry a particularly attractive one. With starting salaries of US$63,900 (a figure which can rise up to US$121,000 with experience), the industry is definitely a good one to enter as a graduate, and is forecast to grow by about 8% from 2014 to 2024 (US Bureau of Labor Statistics 2015).

All figures and job data were taken from PayScale unless stated otherwise.

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