UBC Reports | Vol. 47 | No. 13 | September 6, 2001

Graduates working in B.C., says survey

Most graduates are at work in chosen field

What happens to B.C. university students after graduation -- are they employed, in debt, or back at school?

More than 5,600 B.C. graduates from the class of 1997 were asked these and other questions as part of the University Student Outcomes Project, an initiative of The University Presidents' Council (TUPC) and funded by the provincial Ministry of Advanced Education.

"This survey offers good news for students and prospective students," says UBC vice-president, Academic, Barry McBride. "B.C. graduates are realizing the dividends of their investment in education; they're in highly skilled and high-paying occupations right here in B.C."

Highlights of the recently released survey, which was conducted in 1999, show that two years after graduation, more than 95 per cent of 1997 graduates were employed -- a similar rate to that reported by Ontario university graduates -- and a majority of respondents found employment within a year of graduation.

Almost 70 per cent of all graduates surveyed reported their job was to some or a great extent related to their field of study and almost all respondents stayed in B.C.

Almost one-half of full-time employed graduates were earning $40,000 or more annually.

The debt load for about half of students was at a median of $15,000. Ten per cent of borrowers have debts of more than $34,000.

The follow-up surveys are designed to help students make informed choices about university programs, assist universities in planning and address the government's need for accountability, says Dean Goard, secretary of TUPC.

Five B.C. universities participated in the survey -- Royal Roads University, Simon Fraser University, the University of Northern British Columbia, the University of Victoria and UBC. Survey response rate was 62 per cent.

The summary and complete report, prepared for TUPC by UBC's Office of Planning and Institutional Research, may be found at www.tupc.bc.ca/student_outcomes/publications/graduate_outcomes/.

More info

See just-released class of 1998 figures at www.tupc.bc.ca/student_outcomes/publications/summary_report_2001.pdf.