A new study announced today will reveal vital information on the careers of research
postgraduates and how they make use of the expertise they have developed during
their studies. It will help the Research Councils, Government and others to understand
the economic impact of postgraduate research training.
The cohort study commissioned by Research Councils UK (RCUK) in partnership with
the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) will establish a "panel" of all UK
and EU domiciled doctoral graduates for a longer term study to track their careers
over a number of years. This first step involves further development of the HESA
survey of the destinations of leavers of higher education which asks graduates about
their careers and choices roughly 3.5 years after graduation (known as the DLHE
Longitudinal Survey). The success of the study will depend on maximum response to
the DLHE Longitudinal survey. The universities play a key role in providing contact
details for this survey.
The first phase of the cohort study will build on the existing HESA survey and
RCUK has commissioned an enhancement to the questions to specifically target doctoral
graduates. The first results of the study will become available in May 2009 and
the analysis will also inform future phases of the study as it follows doctoral
graduates' career paths over a number of years. It is widely recognised that statistics
alone cannot provide the whole picture of how doctoral graduates contribute to our
economy and society and plans for the survey include commissioning the gathering
of case studies and career profiles from individuals.
Speaking on behalf of RCUK Iain Cameron said, "Research councils and others interested
in postgraduate training want to know what graduates with research degrees actually
do, whether a PhD is necessary for their job and how their skills and expertise
helps them and their employer. We also want to understand the impact that they have,
whether in a business, university, or third sector. Whilst initial data will be
of huge interest, we are also looking forward to enriching the picture with detailed
career profiles and case studies."
Speaking on behalf of Higher Education Statistics Agency Catherine Benfield,
said "We are pleased that the Research Councils have taken the decision to extend
the scope of HESA's longitudinal destinations survey to form the first phase of
this project. This will help HESA to provide even more useful information to the
HE community and ensure that the information about PhD students is comparable with
that available about other graduates."
Speaking on behalf of the Vitae programme Janet Metcalfe said, "We have little
evidence of the contribution doctoral graduates make to the economy, culture and
quality of life in the UK. This large scale study of the careers of doctoral graduates
will provide a major contribution to the overall picture. It will be an invaluable
resource for government, universities, employers, researchers and potential researchers."
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Notes
About the Destinations of Leavers of Higher Education Survey
The Research Councils' missions include providing trained researchers who meet
the needs of research users and beneficiaries, thereby contributing to the economic
competitiveness of the UK. The purpose of this study is to provide evidence of the
impact of doctoral graduates on UK society, culture and economy. The analysis will
also inform the medium to longer term conduct of the project in terms of case studies
needed to enrich and illustrate findings as well as the conduct of future surveys.
The survey will include all UK and EU domiciled graduates of UK universities
awarded higher degrees mainly by research during the 2004/05 academic year and who
responded to the "early" DLHE survey, which is conducted shortly after graduation.
Information of the key findings that came from the first DLHE longitudinal survey
is available
here
The next longitudinal DLHE starts this later this autumn and data from this will
become available next May (2009).
Information on the surveys is available at:
http://www.hesa.ac.uk/
The Research Councils fund Vitae, which supports the personal, professional and
career development of researchers.
http://www.vitae.ac.uk/
About RCUK's Research Careers & Diversity
The Research Councils are committed to enhancing the quality and output of the
UK research base through training the next generation of world-class researchers.
The Research Councils exert a specific influence on the higher education (HE) sector
through funding a major portion of the human research capital: supporting over 30,000
researchers at any one time including 15,500 doctoral students, 10,000 research
staff in universities, 4,000 research staff in research institutes and 2,000 Research
Fellows.
The UK's 10 year Science and Innovation Investment Framework (2004) makes clear
that science, engineering and technology (SET) skills are essential for the future
of the UK. There are several aspects to this, including increasing the participation
in SET in HE; ensuring women and ethnic minority groups are fully represented; and
being responsive to employers and skills needs of the economy.
The RCUK Research Careers and Diversity Unit aims to build on the Research Councils'
investments in training and fellowships by strengthening the skills base and by
leading and influencing the skills agenda. It works alongside the seven Councils
to deliver the five aims of the RCUK Research Careers Strategy.
- Attract the most creative minds into research;
- Encourage researchers to get the training they need;
- Help research organisations manage their staff and develop their careers;
- Encourage people from all groups of society to take up research careers;
- Enhance the international reputation of UK research training.
About Research Councils UK
The seven Research Councils are independent non-departmental public bodies, funded
by the Science Budget through the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills
(DIUS). They are incorporated by Royal Charter and together manage a research budget
of over £2.8 billion a year.
Research Councils UK (RCUK) is the partnership between the UK's seven Research
Councils. Through RCUK, the Research Councils work together to champion the research,
training and innovation they support.
The seven UK Research Councils are:
- Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC);
- Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC);
- Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC);
- Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC);
- Medical Research Council (MRC);
- Natural Environment Research Council (NERC);
- Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC).
Contact
Toni-Jo
Henderson
RCUK Media Officer
Tel 01793 444023