Only 23% of Young People Who Skipped University Had Stable Work
Few young people in England who skip higher education land secure work soon after school. A study found that among them only 16% secured apprenticeships and just 23% had stable work by the age of 19 or 20.
Among those in work, only half had a permanent contract, down from 81% in a similar study six years ago.
Idle? Mostly not
The share of young people classed as not in education, employment or training (NEET) more than doubled between ages 17 to 18 and 19 to 20, from 4% to 10%. More than 40% of those who were NEET at 17 to 18 were still in that group two years later. No other education or work status was nearly as persistent.
The picture of disengaged, inactive youth does not fit the data. Around seven in 10 NEET respondents were seeking work or education, or doing volunteer work or unpaid caring.
Who gets the places
Access to apprenticeships and secure work is uneven. Asian and Black young people apply for apprenticeships at similar rates to white peers, yet are less likely to win a place, by roughly 15 and 12 percentage points.
Black young people more often stay in education past the compulsory school-leaving age. Among those who do not, the chance of stable employment at 19 to 20 is about 24 percentage points lower than for white peers.
What temporary work costs
The researchers compared temporary and casual jobs with apprenticeships and stable work. The casual jobs came with worse pay, poorer relationships at work and poorer job design.
The authors take this to mean such jobs are insecure and also lonelier, with fewer chances for mentoring or a real say in working life.
Mental health difficulties, unfair treatment and bullying at 15 to 16 went along with poorer workplace relationships and less say at work at 19 to 20. The authors see it as a sign that troubles at school follow people into their first jobs.
The survey
The work is called Your Life, Your Future and was led by Sharon Gewirtz, a professor of education at King's College London. It followed 4,295 young people born in 2004 or 2005 from ages 15 to 16 to 19 to 20, in three waves between May 2021 and January 2025.
What the authors and others want
The Milburn report, from an independent review into NEET status, is due soon. The authors say their results show a system for moving young people from school into work or training that is letting down a large share of them.
Gewirtz said that most of these young people are keen to work, yet an unequal system fails them. She urged caution about welfare reforms that could force young people into poor-quality work or work experience.
Olly Newton, executive director of the Edge Foundation, called the results "sobering reading". He hopes the second Milburn report takes up more apprenticeships, vocational routes that are more plentiful and start earlier, and a bigger voice for young people in decisions.
The researchers ask government to strengthen vocational pathways and to act early, recognising that NEET status covers different experiences. They also want workplaces adopting policies that help young people with mental health needs, and a shift from individual employability to structural reform of the supply and quality of work.
Source: Phys.org