| Practice area: | Education and Labour Markets | Growth |
|---|---|
| Client: | University of East London |
| Published: | September, 2025 |
| Keywords: | higher education 2025 Public Policy |
London Economics were commissioned by the University of East London to undertake research on UK employers’ views about the future of talent identification, selection, and retention. The study focussed on four key themes:
- Desirable attributes and skills gaps among graduate recruits;
- Employers’ views and use of Skills-Based Hiring;
- The extent to which organisations embed diversity of thought in their hiring and onboarding processes; and
- Employers’ appetite for collaborating with universities.
The research gathered insights from two sources: a pulse survey of the University of East London’s employer partners, and in-depth interviews with recruitment and HR leads.
Some key findings from the research are as follows:
- The two core attributes important to employers when recruiting graduates were communication skills and teamwork and collaboration skills (67% and 57% of respondents, respectively).
- Only around half of survey respondents (49%) felt that graduates were well-equipped for the workforce, with employers noting gaps in communication, time management, and commercial awareness (among others attributes).
- The vast majority of employers surveyed (97%) reported that they would find at least one type of collaboration with universities valuable.
A summary booklet of the research and the associated press release can be found here.