University Graduates and Jobs: Changes during the 1970s; A Comparison of the Occupations and Industrial Sectors Entered by University Graduates in 1971 and 1978

Raj S. Gandhi is a professor of sociology at the University of Calgary.

This is a study of three aspects of the relationship between university graduates and employment: the occupations of graduates early in their career, the industries graduates enter, and the decline in public sector employment opportunities and the effect on graduation patterns.

Although the data in this study are from the 1970s, they are from two periods seven years apart. They cover the employment status of 1969 graduates in 1971, and 1976 graduates in 1978. Along with the data indicating the employment status are included data on graduation patterns from 1970 to 1981. If a phenomenon was evident in both 1971 and 1978, it may be part of a long-term trend and may persist today.

This study succeeds in contributing to a better understanding of the integration of university students into the labour force, and also suggests the kind of information that could be made available if data such as these were obtained on a regular basis. We need data from 1981 to 1985 to see what changes, if any, have taken place in the relationship between university graduates and employment.