The bar charts compare the destinations of UK graduates and postgraduates who did not enter full-time employment after completing their studies in 2008.
Overall, further study was the most common destination for both groups, whereas voluntary work attracted by far the fewest people. In addition, the number of graduates in each category was considerably higher than the corresponding figure for postgraduates.
Among graduates, almost 30,000 (29,665) chose to continue their education, making this the largest category. Part-time employment ranked second at 17,735, narrowly ahead of unemployment, which affected 16,235 graduates. By contrast, only 3,500 graduates undertook voluntary work, accounting for a relatively small proportion of the total.
A similar pattern can be seen among postgraduates, although on a much smaller scale. Further study again topped the list with 2,725 people, followed closely by part-time work at 2,535. The number of unemployed postgraduates stood at 1,625, while voluntary work remained the least popular option, with just 345 individuals choosing this path.
