The bar charts illustrate the destinations of UK graduates and postgraduates who did not enter full-time employment after completing their studies in 2008, categorized into further study, part-time work, unemployment, and voluntary work.
Overall, the largest proportion of both graduates and postgraduates chose to continue their education, while voluntary work accounted for the smallest share. In addition, the numerical patterns for the two groups were broadly similar, although the figures for graduates were considerably higher in every category.
Among graduates, approximately 29,665 individuals pursued further study, making it the most common destination. Part-time employment ranked second at around 17,735 people. By contrast, about 16,235 graduates were unemployed, while only 3,500 participated in voluntary work, representing the least popular option.
A comparable distribution can be observed among postgraduates. Roughly 2,725 individuals continued their education, again the highest figure in the group. Part-time work was chosen by about 2,535 people, whereas unemployment affected approximately 1,625 postgraduates. As with graduates, voluntary work was relatively uncommon, with only 345 individuals selecting this path.
In summary, continuing education was the dominant choice for both graduates and postgraduates who did not obtain full-time jobs in 2008, while voluntary work remained a marginal destination, and the overall numerical scale for graduates was significantly larger than that for postgraduates.