Birmingham announced as University of the Year for Graduate Employment

The University of Birmingham has been named University of the Year for Graduate Employment in The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2015-16.

The coveted accolade places Birmingham as the UK’s number one university for securing a graduate-level job and comes just two years after being named University of the Year in 2013-14.

Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir David Eastwood, said: “When students choose to go to University, they are making a big investment in their future. When they choose to study at Birmingham they are choosing a university that is profoundly committed to preparing them for a successful and fulfilling life ahead, as well as a world class education.

“At Birmingham employability is a shared agenda delivered throughout the University and sits at the centre of the student experience. From the moment our students arrive we strive to equip them with the necessary knowledge, transferable skills, and confidence to go on to succeed in their chosen fields.

“To achieve this, we have invested £5 million in the expansion of our student employability services, our unique Careers Network guidance service and access to mentoring from some of our most successful alumni. Our students have also benefited from bursaries to support their development through work experience and national award-winning internships, along with placements in the UK and around the world.

Birmingham has a strong worldwide reputation for producing sought after graduates. The University was ranked as the 13th most targeted university by leading employers in the UK in the High Fliers Graduate Market in 2015 report. Internationally, the QS World University rankings has Birmingham ranked 55th in the world for employer reputation.

Alastair McCall, editor of The Sunday Times Good University Guide, said: “The fact that work placements are embedded in so many courses, coupled with the University’s outstanding academic reputation, makes it no surprise that Birmingham is one of the “go to” places for graduate employers.

“Winning our University of the Year for Graduate Employment award is testimony to the work done by the University to ensure its graduates leave ready to make an immediate and significant contribution to workplaces regionally, nationally and internationally.”

There was  further cause for celebration as the NHS Management Training Scheme (MTS) was listed seventh in The Times list of Top 100 Graduate Employers ahead of organisations such as the BBC, John Lewis, KPMG, Barclays, Apple, Marks and Spencer, Facebook and the Bank of England. It continues a run of top 10 results for the MTS dating back to 2003. 

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