Wellbeing of Leavers from Higher Education 2011/12 HEFCE’s Key Information Set (KIS) and various league tables publish HESA’s DLHE data as the principal graduate outcome. This frames economic productivity as the primary purpose of higher education, dismissing universities’ role in promoting graduates’ broader wellbeing. Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz’s 2009 Report by the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress reflects growing economic and public policy interests in public wellbeing beyond economic indicators such as GDP per capita. Stiglitz Report (2009) Recommendation 1:
UK All-Adults Trends (ONS)
Personal Wellbeing 2013
“Measures of subjective well-being provide key information about people’s quality of life. Statistical offices should incorporate questions to capture people’s life evaluations, hedonic experiences and priorities in their own surveys.”
How
Satisfied are you with your life nowadays?
80
Office of National Statistics (ONS) suggest economic indicators provide an incomplete description of socioeconomic progress.
%
of recent Plymouth graduates say 7 or more out of 10
To what extent do you feel that the things in your life are
Worthwhile?
81
ONS developed subjective wellbeing (SWB) metrics in 2011, began annual data collection from 200,000 households in April 2011, and first reported findings in July 2012.
%
of recent Plymouth graduates say 7 or more out of 10
How
Happy
did you feel yesterday?
Get Wellbeing at Your University
75
We would really like to hear from potential collaborators. For further information and resources for integrating wellbeing into your graduate outcome (DLHE) survey, please contact:
%
of recent Plymouth graduates say 7 or more out of 10
How
Anxious
did you feel yesterday?
24
Dr Helen Hicks helen.hicks@plymouth.ac.uk 01752 587772 Dr Glen Crust glen.crust@plymouth.ac.uk 01752 587715
Graduate* Snapshot (UoP)
Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.1.0.
%
of recent Plymouth graduates say 6 or more out of 10
*ONS surveys a general adult population, while Plymouth University surveys recent graduates.
“Measure wellbeing, get wellbeing” All-party Parliamentary Group on Wellbeing Economics, Feb 2012
The Office of National Statistics Subjective Well-being Questions These tables set out mean scores for the four ONS SWB questions used in the University of Plymouth Subjective Well-being Survey, alongside an aggregate SWB score (= S + W + H + 10 - A). The four questions are On a scale of zero to ten overall, how Satisfied are you with your life nowadays? On a scale of zero to ten overall, to what extent do you feel the things you do in your life are Worthwhile? On a scale of zero to ten overall, how Happy did you feel yesterday? On a scale of zero to ten overall, how Anxious did you feel yesterday?”
UoP: Subjective Well-being and Subject of Study The profiles below describe the life experience of graduates from programmes within thirty-five JACS level 2 subject groups. Collecting SWB data through the DLHE survey provides SWB data for individual degree programmes. In this first year of graduate SWB data collection we are reporting mean scores by JACS subject groups. The sample sizes for many individual degree programmes are rather small. In associating SWB scores with subject areas we acknowledge that some subjects may recruit students with particular SWB characteristics, and some course cultures may develop particular SWB characteristics.
JACS Level 2 Subject Group Nursing Initial Teacher Training Medicine and Dentistry Education Studies Medical Science and Pharmacy Civil, Chemical and other Engineering Psychology Sports Science Electronic and Electrical Engineering Other subjects allied to Medicine History and Archaeology Social Work Mathematical Sciences Other Creative Arts Human and Social Geography Agriculture and related subjects Business English-based studies Sociology, Social Policy and Anthropology Technology European Languages and Area Studies Architecture, Building and Planning Tourism, Transport, Travel and others in Business and Administrative Studies Politics Physical Science Physical Geography and Environmental Science Performing Arts Mechanically-based Engineering Computer Science Biology and related Sciences Art and Design Finance and Accounting Law Management Economics
n
S
132 76 19 130 37 37 113 47 18 62 74 83 25 65 34 76 180 65 78 69 7 84 91 27 79 103 77 30 91 120 205 87 103 47 24
8.16 8.17 7.79 7.90 7.73 7.92 7.64 7.40 7.61 7.68 7.54 7.37 7.40 7.37 7.65 7.17 7.54 7.46 7.45 7.65 7.14 7.63 7.62 7.67 7.47 7.48 7.35 7.73 7.42 7.00 7.09 7.47 7.13 7.32 6.58
W H 8.57 8.34 8.63 8.28 8.05 7.76 7.80 7.49 7.67 8.34 7.61 8.06 7.48 7.66 7.50 7.37 7.56 7.68 7.59 7.94 6.57 7.64 7.64 7.52 7.65 7.60 7.77 7.70 7.25 7.18 7.35 7.29 7.48 7.53 6.92
7.71 7.82 7.42 7.68 7.92 7.51 7.53 7.66 7.78 7.29 7.82 7.49 7.68 7.28 7.26 7.61 7.33 7.43 7.19 7.14 8.29 7.45 7.42 7.48 7.24 7.19 7.65 7.57 7.24 7.33 7.30 7.51 7.04 7.06 6.33
A SWB 2.80 3.28 3.11 3.15 3.11 2.76 2.72 2.53 3.17 3.45 3.22 3.22 2.96 2.85 3.03 2.78 3.14 3.29 3.06 3.59 2.86 3.62 3.57 3.59 3.37 3.34 3.87 4.23 3.20 3.23 3.48 4.02 3.80 4.51 3.88
31.64 31.05 30.74 30.71 30.59 30.43 30.25 30.02 29.89 29.85 29.76 29.71 29.60 29.46 29.38 29.37 29.29 29.28 29.17 29.14 29.14 29.11 29.10 29.07 28.99 28.93 28.90 28.77 28.71 28.28 28.26 28.24 27.84 27.40 25.96
UoP: Subjective Well-being and Occupation Professional / managerial roles (SOCs beginning 1 to 3, shaded blue) lie towards the top of the table.
SOC Occupation 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 3 6 3 4 6 6 3 2 3 3 6 3 1 4 3 2 3 4 9 6 2 4 3 3 9 7 6 7 7 3 1 9 7 7 3 2 3 9
Physiotherapists Further education teaching professionals Management consultants and business analysts Chartered surveyors Chartered and certified accountants Health professionals not elsewhere classified (n.e.c.) Nurses Midwives Primary and nursery education teaching professionals Podiatrists Managers and directors in retail and wholesale Paramedics Educational support assistants Graphic designers Book-keepers, payroll managers and wages clerks Teaching assistants Animal care services occupations n.e.c. Human resources and industrial relations officers Programmers and software development professionals Architectural and town planning technicians Conference and exhibition managers and organisers Nursing auxiliaries and assistants Welfare and housing associate professionals n.e.c. Restaurant and catering establishment managers and proprietors Sales administrators Artists Social workers Sports coaches, instructors and officials Other administrative occupations n.e.c. Waiters and waitresses Sports and leisure assistants Design and development engineers Receptionists Business and related associate professionals n.e.c. Business sales executives Kitchen and catering assistants Customer service occupations n.e.c. Care workers and home carers Sales and retail assistants Sales supervisors Marketing associate professionals Publicans and managers of licensed premises Bar staff Call and contact centre occupations Retail cashiers and check-out operators Sales accounts and business development managers Teaching and other educational professionals n.e.c. IT user support technicians Elementary storage occupations
n
S
13 9 8 12 12 14 70 10 47 12 24 16 11 13 11 37 13 22 9 14 8 13 43 12 11 9 11 12 48 36 9 14 14 8 15 30 10 24 160 14 19 8 42 13 14 9 13 8 8
8.77 8.33 9.38 8.25 8.33 8.29 8.20 8.40 8.17 7.92 7.79 8.25 7.82 7.92 7.82 7.84 7.77 8.14 7.67 8.29 7.88 7.77 7.60 7.67 8.00 7.67 7.55 7.00 7.50 7.00 7.00 7.79 7.21 7.75 7.53 7.13 7.50 6.75 6.93 7.00 7.89 7.50 6.64 6.77 6.64 7.89 6.38 7.38 5.88
W H 8.85 9.00 9.00 8.25 7.75 8.50 8.70 8.70 8.53 8.67 7.88 8.69 8.36 8.08 7.45 8.35 7.54 7.59 8.33 8.07 8.25 8.54 8.07 7.42 7.73 8.67 8.09 7.67 7.67 7.50 7.44 7.79 7.36 7.13 7.53 7.03 7.60 7.58 6.79 6.71 7.95 7.25 7.02 7.08 6.14 6.89 8.31 7.13 5.00
8.69 9.44 7.50 8.25 8.42 8.07 7.77 7.80 8.02 7.75 8.08 7.75 7.27 7.85 7.91 7.57 7.77 7.73 7.56 7.50 7.38 7.23 7.60 7.58 7.82 8.00 7.55 7.92 7.52 7.42 7.11 7.14 7.29 7.00 8.13 7.40 8.00 7.08 7.14 7.21 6.95 6.63 7.26 6.85 7.57 5.78 6.62 6.75 6.75
A SWB 2.46 3.22 3.00 2.33 2.17 2.71 2.69 3.10 3.11 2.92 2.38 3.31 2.09 2.62 2.27 2.92 2.38 2.77 3.00 3.43 3.13 3.23 3.00 2.42 3.64 4.67 3.55 3.00 3.35 2.67 2.44 3.64 2.79 3.00 4.53 2.93 4.60 2.92 2.63 2.93 4.79 3.63 3.33 3.15 2.86 3.67 4.92 5.13 2.13
33.85 33.56 32.88 32.42 32.33 32.14 31.99 31.80 31.62 31.42 31.38 31.38 31.36 31.23 30.91 30.84 30.69 30.68 30.56 30.43 30.38 30.31 30.28 30.25 29.91 29.67 29.64 29.58 29.33 29.25 29.11 29.07 29.07 28.88 28.67 28.63 28.50 28.50 28.23 28.00 28.00 27.75 27.60 27.54 27.50 26.89 26.38 26.13 25.50
UoP Well-being & Degree Class Graduates with firsts have significantly higher overall wellbeing scores than those with thirds. Graduates with firsts and 2:1s have significantly higher satisfaction scores than those with 2:2s and thirds. Graduates with firsts have significantly higher worthwhile scores than those with 2:1s, who in turn have significantly higher worthwhile scores than those with 2:2s and thirds. There is no significant difference in happiness or anxiety across all degree grades. It may be that a common factor such as ability to identify criteria (Kleinmann et al, 2011) determines a student’s academic performance and their success in finding a personally appropriate occupation as a graduate.
UoP Well-being & Transition to Work By comparison with graduates who accepted their only job offer, graduates who chose their job because it fitted into their career plan or was exactly the type of work they wanted scored higher on all four measures including anxiety. Greater control in lifestyle transitions may lead to lives that seem more satisfying, worthwhile and happier, but are a little more anxious. The data invites alternative explanations, however. For example, graduates who experience their lives to be more generally satisfying, happy and worthwhile, and who are a little less laid-back may be more successful in employers’ selection interviews.
UoP Well-being & Gender Mirroring gender results from surveys such as the ONS Annual Population Survey (ONS Statistical Bulletin 30 July 2013), UoP women graduates report slightly higher levels of satisfaction, rate their activities as more worthwhile and rate their happiness slightly higher than men. Some occupations with higher mean satisfaction, worthwhile and happiness scores in the UoP SWB study, such as primary teaching and nursing tend to be chosen by women rather than men.
UoP Well-being & Ethnicity The ONS Annual Population Survey (ONS Statistical Bulletin 30 July 2013) reports statistically significant differences in life satisfaction between white respondents and Black/ African/Caribbean/Black British respondents. The same statistically significant pattern is observed in amongst Plymouth University graduates, despite sample size difficulties (2347 white respondents, 18 Black or Black British-African respondents), alongside a large difference in mean anxiety scores for the two groups. This kind of data has value in monitoring and promoting equality and inclusivity in higher education practice, university culture and the student experience.