What 1,671 recent graduates told the OfS about careers support

What the survey was

The OfS asked IFF Research to find out how well graduates felt their university or college had prepared them for life after graduation. IFF ran three focus groups with 18 recent graduates in August 2025, then used what came out of them to design an online survey, which 1,671 recent graduates from England answered in September 2025. All of them graduated between 2023 and 2025. The figures here come from the survey. The quotes come from the focus groups, so they show how some graduates put it, not how many.

What it found

62% said they felt confident about achieving their goals after graduation, but only half (50%) said they felt prepared for life after leaving.

88% said they had support from their university or college to prepare for their next steps, most often from academic staff (46%) and course teaching (41%).

A third (33%) named their careers service as a source of support, while 70% to 72% used careers activities without crediting the service: careers fairs and networking events (72%), help with CVs, applications and interviews (71%) and wider careers service resources (70%). The OfS reads this as a sign that "the extent of careers support is not widely understood".

47% of the 1,671 recent graduates surveyed said they never had one-to-one careers coaching or mentoring as a student. The research report found it was the third least used type of support, and that it varied by subject: 67% of business and management graduates and 71% of engineering and technology graduates had had it.

The most common barriers graduates reported were financial challenges (45%), lack of relevant work experience (43%) and lack of a professional network (40%). 69% found support from family and friends useful. Graduates with a parent who had a higher education qualification were more likely to have used family support (24% compared with 19%) and to have found it useful (60% compared with 52%).

Graduates who studied higher education at a further education college were more likely to feel prepared (69%) than those from university courses (50%). The OfS suggests this may reflect the vocational nature of college courses and their links with local employers.

One focus group participant, a 2023-24 law graduate, put it this way:

"It was kind of a steep learning curve to realise that the support services were there, but if you wanted to access them, you had to [...] ask. No one was really going to check in on you, which was like different [...] from being at school."

What it means for careers teams

The focus groups asked for support that is easier to see, guidance tailored to subject and stage, and more placements, industry sessions and alumni mentoring outside STEM. The OfS adds that students whose families cannot advise them depend on their institution for this.

Acelro gives each student a plan, projects and lessons aimed at the job they want, and a CV that grows with them, so your team can reach every student.

Sources

Office for Students, Preparing for the next steps after higher education: student insight report, 25 March 2026. IFF Research for the Office for Students, Explorations: preparation for the transition out of higher education, January 2026. If a figure here does not match the report, email research@acelro.com and we will correct it.