Speaking of Universities

by Stefan Collini

Consider, for example, the implicit premise that higher rates of employment among a university’s graduates are evidence of better-quality teaching. Is there any evidence that this is the case? If one leaves aside the effects of home background and social connections, which are very considerable, the main determinants of a graduate’s employment prospects are 1) the perceived standing of the university they attended, 2) their field of study, and 3) (but a distant third) the class of their degree result. The relative standing of universities only changes with glacial slowness and continues to involve elements of pure social snobbery. For employers, the most salient differentiating feature of universities is how difficult they are thought to be to get into: a university’s admission scores are taken to provide prima facie evidence of the general ability level of its graduates.