Top jobs 'restricted to graduates with first-class degrees' :(

It's not really simplistic at all. Sure Derby might have 15% of students joining with AAB (fyi, I know nothing about Derby), but what percentage of top 10 uni students have AAB or above? So if we're going to assume AAB students can work hard and get a first, surely the top unis who have far more of these students should be giving out far more firsts? Just basic logic no?

As for the large number of mature students, surely that should equally affect all unis more or less. Unless you think all the mature students happen to live in Derby? Anyway mature students are in the extreme minority compared to school leavers joining university, so it's not really relevant.



Without knowing your university I'm not entirely sure what to make of that information lol. But I think it's fair to say that strong universities, who attract the best students, should on average be turning out significantly more first grades then weak universities where firsts should surely be few and far between.

Employers know this, that's why there is a prestige attached to certain universities no? If anything it disadvantages those who are genuinely very good and achieve a high first at one of the weaker unis, as their university is discredited due to its weaker standards. Nobody looks at a 1st from a random Met uni in the same way as they look at a first from Oxbridge, nobody. Yet if they made the system fairer, with more standardised testing levels, then people would know that it was actually an equal achievement in both cases.

Well in general it is completely and utterly true. Don't believe me look into it.

It's not really simplistic at all. Sure Derby might have 15% of students joining with AAB (fyi, I know nothing about Derby), but what percentage of top 10 uni students have AAB or above? So if we're going to assume AAB students can work hard and get a first, surely the top unis who have far more of these students should be giving out far more firsts? Just basic logic no?

As for the large number of mature students, surely that should equally affect all unis more or less. Unless you think all the mature students happen to live in Derby? Anyway mature students are in the extreme minority compared to school leavers joining university, so it's not really relevant.



Without knowing your university I'm not entirely sure what to make of that information lol. But I think it's fair to say that strong universities, who attract the best students, should on average be turning out significantly more first grades then weak universities where firsts should surely be few and far between.

Employers know this, that's why there is a prestige attached to certain universities no? If anything it disadvantages those who are genuinely very good and achieve a high first at one of the weaker unis, as their university is discredited due to its weaker standards. Nobody looks at a 1st from a random Met uni in the same way as they look at a first from Oxbridge, nobody. Yet if they made the system fairer, with more standardised testing levels, then people would know that it was actually an equal achievement in both cases.

This is a great news! I have a first class degree!




Unfortunately, it's in English.

i'd like to know on which planet 30% constitutes an extreme minority. (On planet earth if you own 30% of the shares in a plc the london stock exchange rings up to ask if you're taking it over.)
The distribution of mature undergrads isn't uniform either, the post 92's have more of them. Eg UEL has >50% mature undergrads, york is about 14% and oxbridge like em young with 2% mature undergrads.
Unfortunately you've been too simplistic again :-) perhaps you should fact check your simplistic assumptions against readily available web based sources in future?

I don't care what spin and BS you put on it. I'm almost certainly "stuck" with a 2:1 at this point (no more, no less) in IR at St Andrews with a year to go, and you're never going to convince me that the (let's face it) dumb people I knew at school - specifically the ones that I still keep in contact with - who got DDD at A level, but are getting 2:1s and even Firsts at Nottingham Trent, Swansea, Manchester Met. etc., are sitting courses just as rigorous. It's flat-out false, and they often admit it. None of those kids would've been able to deal with the workload at a top university, let alone meet the standards required. There's a reason that some universities have lower entry requirements than others.

Don't tell anyone this, but i've heard you can look for businesses that have recently closed and put them down as a reference

Related:

It's all relative.

Top jobs won't demand a 1st from a top 5 uni as a prerequisite, a 2.1 will do nicely.

And most jobs I've looked at have asked for a 2.1 minimum... only one I came across for a charity has asked for a first

Top barrister sets rarely have anyone without a 1st from a top 5 uni (majority Oxbridge). It could easily be rolled out to jobs in IB etc..

Now you're going into specifics, I was talking in general .

For IB, it's not about whether you get a 1st, it's about your network/internships etc.

It doesn't worry me. Experience, experience, experience! When it comes to general grad jobs a 2:1/1st isn't the deal breaker. Employers would rather take on the 2:1 grad with experience than the 1st grad who did nothing. Obviously, if you've got a 2:1 and experience and your competitor is a grad with a 1st AND experience then you need to up your game and stand out with more focused experience/voluntary stuff. Also people have different capabilities during interview - if the interview becomes the only way to distinguish you apart from the competition then get interview experience (job center/uni careers service) and work on that.

Basically if you've just sat exams/done coursework for 3 years without getting any experience then you're in a pickle because a) you lack experience and b) it's highly likely that you have the interview skills equivalent to cacti.

Likewise if you just sat in the union drinking alchopops - you're in a pickle!

Don't be disheartened - it's all about your drive, frame of mind, and the way you sell yourself on your CV/on application forms. I've had 3 interviews since June and I don't actually 'officially' graduate for another 2 weeks. I have a 2:1. I just need to work on my interview technique lol - I'm a bit more skilled than cacti but by how much, I'm not so sure .

Well that's what you'd expect, isn't it? The top jobs should go to the top graduates. The not-so-top jobs should go to the not-so-top graduates.

It doesn't say ALL jobs restricted to those with first class degrees... just top ones. And I don't see the problem there.

Was there ever really anybody out there that thought they could get a 2.2 or a 3rd and walk into a 'top job' just as easily as if they had earned a first? Keep dreaming.

Anyway, good news for me - I've got one of those first class degree thingys, and not in something piss-poor like English either .

They are a lot easier. If they weren't, and a course with an entry requirement of AAA was at the same level of difficulty of a course which requires the absolute bare minimum then the lower requirement course would have barely any passes. When in truth the proportion of 2.1s and 1st's are similar between Unis. Otherwise it wouldn't be worthwhile holding the course.

Reasons:
Poorer courses tend to have a lot less reliance on exams and a lot more on presentations, course work and group projects.
Lecturers are more likely to actually spoon feed the students, whereas lecturers from top 10s try and push the students to their limits, and are often too caught up in their own research than to spend time spoon feeding.
Marked assessments/ exams are assessed internally, so its up to the uni to choose the level of difficulty. So obviously departmets with an intake of AAA students are much more likely to set harder work than departments who accept DDC type students.
If you don't believe me try and look into the work of the same course type on a top ranked and bottom ranked uni. You will see how much more basic the content of a bottom ranked uni is.