The University of Reading has reported that 95% of its graduates were in work or further study within 15 months of leaving, as it marks a century since receiving its Royal Charter.
The figure, drawn from the Graduate Outcomes Survey for 2021/22, puts Reading well above the national benchmark. Across the UK, graduate unemployment for the 2022/23 cohort reached 6.1% fifteen months after graduation, according to analysis by the university’s careers service.
The strength of the local jobs market provides part of the backdrop. Office for National Statistics data for January to March 2026 shows the South East achieved the highest employment rate of any UK region at 78.5%. Reading sits in the Thames Valley, an economic corridor dense with technology firms such as Microsoft and Oracle, life sciences companies, and the big four professional services firms.
Over the past decade, the university has put more than £500m into teaching, research, and student facilities. It runs more than 150 taught postgraduate courses, and taught postgraduates record particularly strong outcomes: 96% of those in full-time work are in graduate-level roles, according to the university’s Prospects.ac.uk profile.
Careers support remains available to alumni for 24 months after they finish their programme. The university is highlighting the employment data alongside its centenary celebrations, which run throughout 2026 to mark 100 years since it received its Royal Charter.
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