The impact of higher education for part-time students
This report examines the impact of higher education for part-time undergraduate students. It is based on secondary analysis of data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency’s Longitudinal Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (Longitudinal DLHE) survey. The analysis compares how graduates from part- and full-time study fare in the labour market six months and three and a half years after graduation. This is the first time such analysis has been undertaken.
The impact of higher education for part-time students (PDF, 1.1 Mb) – Evidence report 36
Published September 2011
Recent policy developments suggest that part-time study is central to the UK’s skills and employability agenda because it provides flexible study aimed at those already in the labour market. Specifically, it has a role in providing educational opportunities throughout people’s lives, in increasing social mobility, and in creating a more diverse Higher Education sector responsive to the needs of employers, the economy, and students.
Little is known about the extent to which part-time undergraduate study enhances employability, earnings, and labour market progression, unlike the much larger body of research on full-time undergraduates. To help fill the gaps in our knowledge, this report compares how graduates from part- and full-time study fare in the labour market six months and three and a half years after graduation. It also helps inform the debate regarding who should pay for improving higher level skills.
The findings are based on secondary analysis of data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency’s Longitudinal Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (Longitudinal DLHE) survey.
