Jobs count over research strength

Prospective university students place low importance on their university’s research strength, according to a new survey.

Prospective university students place very high importance on whether their learning is related to their future job.

Prospective university students place low importance on their university’s research strength in their planned area of study, according to a new survey.

But they place very high importance on whether their learning is related to their future job.

The survey, carried out by QS Enrolment Solutions, found that only 21 per cent of students believed it was “very important” that their course content was linked to the faculty’s research. However, 78 per cent thought it was “very important” the course content be linked to their future career.

The data showed that undergraduate students and postgrad­uate coursework students were very similar in dismissing the importance of their faculty’s research to their choice of course. Twenty per cent of prospective undergraduates said research was very important and 19 per cent of prospective postgraduate by coursework students said the same. Other factors that rated highly in determining a student’s choice of course were the existence of clear pathways to further study, opportunities for industry networking, good reputation, and close engagement with teaching staff.

Students who consider these factors very important when choosing a course

In a disappointing finding for the federal government, only 9 per cent of prospective students said they had heard of the publicly funded Quality Indicators in Learning and Teaching website, which is part of a major push to help students make informed choices about university courses. QILT allows them to compare student experience survey data, as well as compare employment rates and median salaries for graduates, from different universities and courses.

However, among the students who had heard of QILT, it was viewed positively, with 66 per cent saying it helped them understand the quality of teaching at a particular university. Asked whether QILT helped them compare the student experience at different universities, 63 per cent answered in the affirmative.

The data in the survey was collected last year from 5486 prospective students at 22 Australian universities.