AUAS graduates find job quickly, even during pandemic

11 Apr 2022 15:56 | Communication

As was the case last year, 88% of AUAS students are managing to find a job within three months of graduating. This was confirmed by the 2021 HBO Monitor, an independent nationwide survey on higher professional education graduate job opportunities. The speed with which graduates find a job is an indication of the quality of the education provided by AUAS and how it dovetails with professional practice.

SOLID START ON THE LABOUR MARKET

Unemployment among AUAS graduates fell from 6% in 2020 to 4% in 2021. Of those graduates who are in employment, 82% are in a role that is at least on par with the level of the degree programme completed. On many points, the figures are similar to the national average as well as to AUAS's results from last year.
Student satisfaction is a barometer of the quality of education. 64% of the graduates are satisfied or very satisfied with their courses in general and 58% think that their degree programmes provide a solid foundation for getting started on the labour market.

AUAS graduates are less positive than the national average when it comes to three topics: the extent to which degree programmes constitute a solid foundation for developing competencies, information provision on career options, and lecturers. Faculties and programmes will use the results of the HBO Monitor to make amendments and improvements.

NATIONWIDE SURVEY

The HBO Monitor is an annual survey conducted among all graduates of the universities of applied sciences in the Netherlands, 18 months after they graduated. Among other things, the survey provides insight into the position of graduates, including on the labour market, and shows the extent to which degree programmes leave students well prepared for the labour market, while also establishing graduates’ appreciation of their degree programmes. The survey is conducted by the Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market (ROA) at Maastricht University.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

The results of the 2021 HBO Monitor reflect the labour market situation as at autumn 2021 for those who graduated in the 2019-2020 academic year. The vast majority of these alumni graduated in the summer of 2020, meaning most of them entered the labour market during the coronavirus pandemic.