jobs.ac.uk attracts a very diverse and talented audience in a variety of fields. Take a look at how this audience is falling apart and gain insights that can help you successfully advertise your work and PhD opportunities to the right people on our platform.
at a glance
Our job seekers survey proves that we have a base of candidates who can fill the positions of retiring senior academics and new entry-level positions.
Of all those who participated in the survey, 94% had a degree, master’s or doctorate, with one in three having more than 10 years of experience. Two out of five (41%) currently work in senior positions and more than half work in junior positions. In addition, 24% of the people who participated in the survey in higher education workers work in a professional service position.
Of the 3,208 people who responded, 86% used the jobs.ac.uk website to find and apply for jobs. An additional 9% use the site to find and apply for doctoral opportunities.
Our applicants are very mobile, with 71% reporting that they would consider moving out of their home country for a job or study opportunity. Britain, the United States, Germany, Australia, Sweden and the Netherlands are the most popular countries that people will consider moving to.
When looking at incentives, popular reasons to consider opportunities overseas include career advancement, experience in a new culture and research opportunities. The main barriers that prevented people from moving abroad to a new position were lower wages, safety and security concerns and lack of research support.
Insights of job seekers
What are job seekers looking for and why?
In general, the jobs.ac.uk audience is currently employed or still studying, with 93% of them at least having a degree and 81% holding an advanced degree.
Nine out of 10 respondents are looking for a full-time job and three out of 10 are actively looking or willing to consider part-time jobs. The main reason they are looking to change roles is for career advancement. When it comes to research positions, 13% of respondents said they are looking for paid research opportunities.
Looking closely at the type of employment our audience is looking for, over 80% of the people surveyed are looking for a higher education job. Three out of five are looking for permanent jobs, while one in four will consider a contract job.
What is the level of experience of our audience?
There is a variety of experience among the jobs.ac.uk audience. No matter what type of work experience or career level you are looking for, jobs.ac.uk can help your institution advertise a variety of positions to our diverse pool of candidates.
Three out of five candidates have more than 10 years of experience and one in three has more than 20 years of experience. At the other end of the scale, one in 10 is still studying or has less than two years of work experience.
Looking at the different experience of our candidates by sector, our audience has a mixed background across higher education, further education, the public sector (non-academic) and the private sector (non-academic), many of which have experience in several sectors.
Higher education jobs
Of all those who filled out the job.ac.uk job seekers survey, 82% of them are looking for a higher education job, with 73% of them looking for academic or research positions and 24% looking for positions in professional services.
The recruitment process
When it comes to job ads, 69% of our respondents would like an ad that contains all the job details, including a job description and person specification. Nearly half would like to see information about the employer included in the job ad as well as about the job itself.
Aside from the job name, salary and position, a clear job description was the most important part of a job ad (83% of respondents chose this answer). About half of the respondents found that the lengthy application process (50%) and non-response from a job applied for (49%) is the most frustrating part of a job search.
In terms of interviews, most of our audience prefers personal interviews for local jobs. Video interviews are the preferred method for overseas positions.
In the workplace
More than three out of four job seekers will want a combination of work at home and on campus in the future. An institution with an excellent workplace reputation is also important to our candidates, with 46% saying it is the most important thing an organization should have.
Doctoral opportunities
The recruitment process
When examining a doctorate, three-quarters of the people who participated in the survey said that the availability of funding is the most crucial factor.
Similar to our job seekers, people looking for doctoral opportunities said they would prefer advertisements to include all the details (including job description and person specifications) and 40% said they want information about the employer as well as the job.
Following COVID-19, most of our audience will still prefer in-person interviews for local doctoral students and favorite video interviews for overseas opportunities.
In the workplace
Our candidates are looking for doctoral research opportunities in institutions that have a reputation for excellent research and encourage diversity and inclusion. They are looking for opportunities that will allow them to make a significant contribution to their field of study or pursue an academic career.
work abroad
There is enthusiasm for seeking opportunities abroad among the jobs.ac.uk audience. Two out of three respondents have worked in a country outside their home country and three out of four will consider an opportunity outside their home country in the future.
Motivation and prevention of factors for work abroad
When considering what would encourage job seekers to consider an opportunity abroad, career advancement (63%) and wage increases (48%) were the most popular.
Attracting candidates for your opportunities abroad
While they are considering an opportunity abroad, four out of five job seekers require information about the core benefits offered by the institution, including salary, pension and annual leave. Other important information included location and facilities (57% of respondents said it is essential when considering a job abroad) and job security (44%).
Demographics of an audience
Visitors to the jobs.ac.uk site are diverse in age, ethnic background and gender.
While 95% of our respondents are between the ages of 25 and 64, the largest age group is 35-44. One in two of our audience is Caucasian, with Black and Asian making up 15% of our audience respectively.
There is an equal division between job seekers and almost one in 10 people in our audience identifies as LGBTQUA +.
You can see the full reports here:
Global Job Seeker Preferences Report
