Updated
Updated · China Daily · Aug 3
UK Graduate Job Openings Fall 7% to Lowest Since 2020 as Youth Unemployment Hits 14.8%
Updated
Updated · China Daily · Aug 3

UK Graduate Job Openings Fall 7% to Lowest Since 2020 as Youth Unemployment Hits 14.8%

3 articles · Updated · China Daily · Aug 3

Summary

  • Graduate-targeted UK job adverts fell about 7% from a year earlier, hitting their lowest level since 2020, while temporary summer-role postings dropped to a four-year low in July.
  • Indeed said employers are cutting junior hiring because of 2026 cost pressures and uncertainty, leaving graduate openings near record lows as a share of all vacancies.
  • Retail and hospitality payroll declines are hitting young workers hardest, with unemployment among 18- to 24-year-olds at 14.8% and about 1 million young people not in education, employment or training.
  • Overall UK job listings are down 11% since the start of the year and sit about 32% below their pre-pandemic baseline, a weaker hiring backdrop than in the United States and euro zone.

Insights

Why are UK graduate jobs at their lowest since 2020—and is this a temporary slump or a broken pathway into work?
With 140 applications per graduate vacancy, what now separates the young candidates who get hired from those left behind?