Do High Ranked Universities Have Better Graduate Employment Outcomes?

Abstract

University rankings are increasingly used as a measure of quality and reputation. Institutional leaders are increasingly using the outcomes of ranking in marketing of university courses. Both the critics of ranking and those who support have different viewpoints. Institutions that are ranked high celebrate their achievement however limited research is known on how outcomes of ranking are used to reward academic staff. Likewise some institutions that are not ranked enjoy ongoing student demand with increased diversity of student population, and comparable graduate outcomes. Some research suggests that students consider ranking to determine their choice, however others have ruled out. This chapter reviews the literature on both sides of the argument about ranking and it then presents the graduate employment data related to Australian universities to find out if elite universities have better graduate employment outcomes compared other universities.

Improving career preparation practices for neurodiverse students in higher education

“…First-destination surveys collected by agencies such as the National Association of Colleges and Employers publish the graduate employment outcomes of its member organizations (NACE, n.d.). College rankings provide potential students and their families with a resource to evaluate and compare colleges; for top-ranked universities, their graduates often have better employment outcomes than those lower in the rankings (Shah et al, 2017). Students describe higher education institutional rankings as important assessments when deciding on a college (Kim, 2018).…”