OverallThis section examines the first destinations for Masters degree graduates in biomedical subjects from 2005. Psychology graduates were included in this group, making the composition different to last year’s data – this is both because psychology outcomes are more appropriate for this area than for biological sciences, and to produce consistency with ‘What Do PhDs Do?’, from UKGrad. 4,990 Masters degrees were awarded in biomedical disciplines in 2005, with 3,590 replying to the HESA Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DHLE) survey – a 71.9% response rate. The majority of graduates – 61.2% - studied part time, and 63.6% were over 30 on graduation. With women making up 77% of the cohort in these disciplines, it represents the importance of nursing and psychology qualifications in this section. Subjects studied30.9% of graduates in this area studied psychology – 1,545 graduates, with nearly half specialising at Masters level, in areas such as educational psychology, social psychology and occupational psychology. 16.9% - 845 graduates – completed Masters qualifications in clinical medicine, whilst nursing, with 560 graduates, accounted for 11.2%. Other popular subjects included: - Physiotherapy
- Clinical dentistry
- Therapy disciplines
- Occupational health
- Pharmacy
First destinationsOf the 3,590 Masters graduates in biomedical sciences who replied to the survey, 72.8% were working six months after graduation, and another 12.6% were combining work and study. Another 6.1% had entered study or training in the UK – almost half of whom were psychologists going onto PhDs. Unemployment rates were low – 2.3% - with no subjects showing a propensity to unemployment. | First destination | Percentage of graduates |
|---|
| Entered work in the UK | 72.8% | | Working and studying | 12.6% | | Entered studying and training in the UK | 6.1% | | Working or studying overseas | 1.5% | | Not available for work or study | 2.1% | | Believed unemployed | 2.3% | | Other | 2.6% |
Table One: Survey responses of UK-domiciled masters degree graduates in biomedical science subjects from 2005 Types of work3060 biomedical science graduates were known to be working in the UK six months after graduation. Unsurprisingly, health was a very common job type for graduates from these highly vocational degrees. 40.5% went into professions directly considered health-related, 16.7% entered social and welfare roles, in psychology, and 11.6% entered management, many in the health sector. | Type of work | Percentage of working graduate cohort | Number of graduates |
|---|
| Marketing, sales and advertising professionals | 0.6% | 20 | | Commercial, industrial and public sector managers | 11.6% | 355 | | Scientific research, analysis and development professionals | 7.3% | 220 | | Engineering professionals | 0.4% | 10 | | Health professionals | 40.5% | 1240 | | Education professionals | 6.5% | 200 | | Business and finance professionals | 2.6% | 80 | | Information technology professionals | 0.1% | 5 | | Arts, design, culture, media and sports professionals | 0.6% | 15 | | Legal professionals | 0.2% | 5 | | Social and welfare professionals | 16.7% | 510 | | Other professionals, associate professionals and technical occupations | 8.1% | 245 | | Numerical clerks and cashiers | 0.2% | 5 | | Other clerical and secretarial occupations | 1.9% | 60 | | Retail, catering, waiting and bar staff | 0.7% | 25 | | Other occupations | 2.0% | 60 | | Unknown occupations | 0.1% | 5 | | Total | 100% | 3060 |
Table Two: Types of work undertaken by UK-domiciled masters degree students in biomedical subjects, graduating in 2005 In terms of specific jobs, nursing was the most popular role for graduates in these disciplines, with 245 biomedical graduates working as nurses after graduation. Other popular job roles included working as registrars or consultants, physiotherapy and educational psychology. Very few graduates from these disciplines were in non-graduate roles six months after graduating. | Type of work | Percentage of working graduates | Number of graduates |
|---|
| Nurses | 8.1% | 245 | | Specialist registrars, consultants and general practitioners | 6.5% | 200 | | Education psychologists | 5.0% | 155 | | Physiotherapists | 5.0% | 155 | | Biochemists, medical scientists | 4.6% | 140 | | Hospital and health service managers | 4.3% | 135 | | Psychologists | 3.9% | 120 | | University and higher education lecturers | 3.1% | 95 | | Researchers (university - unspecified discipline) | 2.0% | 60 | | Speech and language therapists | 1.9% | 55 |
Table Three: Commonest jobs undertaken by UK-domiciled masters degree students in biomedical subjects, graduating in 2005 |
