No matter what you study or how well you do in your course – if you are black, you have less chances of finding a job upon graduating from Rhodes University.
Black female graduates with poor schooling backgrounds are even more unlikely to be employed than their male and white counterparts.
These are some of the findings discussed by Rhodes University researcher Dr Michael Rogan at a seminar hosted by the Labour Market Intelligence Partnership and the Human Science Research Council recently.
The findings are based on research conducted by Rogan and his colleague, John Reynolds, and which analysed graduates from Rhodes University and the University of Fort Hare.
The study sought to determine whether people studied for the courses they had intended to study; how they were able to complete their courses (or why not); and whether they found work after their studies.
The research found that of those graduates from Rhodes who changed their course, 48% attributed this to a lack of interest.
At Fort Hare, of the graduates who changed their courses, 32% did so because their marks weren’t good enough to gain entry or to complete their studies.
Finding work seemed effortless for Rhodes graduates who, 30% of the time, commonly depended on personal contacts, social and other networks.
Fort Hare graduates, on the other hand, largely (36%) relied on newspaper advertisements.
The findings have sparked discussions and a larger study is being planned.