Shortly after the Graduate route visa was introduced in 2021, the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS) launched a research project supported by the UPP Foundation to learn more about the lived experiences of international graduates seeking UK employment in this new visa landscape.
The research consisted of a survey, a series of focus groups and the collection of case studies, with 50 now published on the UKCISA website. With the discontinuation of follow-up telephone calling for international graduates as part of the Graduate Outcomes survey, our research provided much needed insight into the UK job market experiences of that first cohort of Graduate route visa holders.
Our research report revealed that most of our survey respondents had successfully secured employment (60 per cent were working full-time, seven per cent part-time) and nearly three-quarters of those on a Graduate route visa were in a graduate-level role.
Here, we want to share insights from the case studies and consider what these first-hand accounts reveal about the impact of the Graduate route visa and its ongoing value to graduates, employers, universities and policymakers.
