Graduates of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (henceforth SHAPE)[1] comprise approximately 46% of the 2.32 million university students in the UK, 55% of global leaders and 58% of FTSE Executives. As a result, they are a core focus for the British Academy.
To this end, in January 2017, the British Academy initiated the Flagship Skills Project to define in detail the skills developed by SHAPE graduates and quantify with precision the value they bring to the UK job market, publishing its findings in a succession of reports that are summarised below. Explore the Shape Observatory
Taken together, these reports comprehensively evidence — in personal, social, and economic terms — the relevance and value of the skills developed by English graduates.
The Right Skills: Celebrating Skills in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (2017)
The first overarching study of its kind, identifying in detail three core skill sets (communication and collaboration; research and analysis; independence and adaptability) and a range of ancillary skills (including critical analysis, problem solving, understanding other cultures). It concluded that pursuing SHAPE disciplines delivers core skills essential for future work and wider life, as SHAPE graduates are:
- Employed in a wide range of sectors and roles across the workforce, from financial services to education, social work, the media and creative industries, and possess skills which open up a wide range of options, across the private, public and third sectors.
- Able to move between careers over their working life, using their generic skills to adapt to different industries and become successful leaders and managers.
- Well placed both to shape the future and to take advantage of the opportunities the future will present.
A detailed, data-driven analysis that found that the labour market outcomes achieved by SHAPE graduates are broadly similar to those achieved by STEM graduates, enjoying very similar employment rates at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. Crucially, it concluded that the choices and opportunities available to holders of SHAPE qualifications, as a result of their wider skill sets, might offer greater flexibility over the longer term compared to STEM graduates – in terms of occupation, role and industry.
Qualified for the Future: Quantifying demand for arts, humanities and social sciences skills (2020)
This report quantitatively demonstrated the demand for SHAPE skills across the UK economy. It looked in detail at how the UK workforce might achieve its need for higher-level skills (it is projected that 57% will be employed with RQF levels 4 and above by 2027, compared to 44% in 2017). It concluded that SHAPE graduates are central to the ongoing and long-term requirement for a highly qualified and versatile labour force, as:
- SHAPE graduates underpin key sectors of the UK economy. Of the ten fastest growing sectors, eight employ more graduates from SHAPE than other disciplines.
- Employment rates for SHAPE and STEM graduates are almost identical (88% vs 89%)
- Earnings for SHAPE and STEM graduates, ten years after graduation, are also almost identical
- The top five skills developed by SHAPE graduates (communication, creativity, critical thinking, collaboration and independence) precisely match the top skills identified to thrive in 21st century work.
The British Academy’s most recent report presents detailed case studies that showcase and bring to life the ways in which SHAPE skills are utilised across the UK economy, complementing the findings of its previous reports by defining how SHAPE skills are used and valued by individuals as well as employers. It concluded that SHAPE graduates are:
- More likely to have developed creative and social skills during their degree, in comparison to STEM students
- Contributing to innovation across our economy — over half of the UK’s leading start-ups were founded by SHAPE graduates and 59% of the leaders of FTSE 100 companies have backgrounds in SHAPE disciplines
- Recognised as employable by a wide range of businesses — a global survey of 1000 business leaders found that companies with successful talent recruitment were more likely to hire graduates with non-STEM degrees
- Leaders in the civil service — comprising just over 80% of successful candidates in the civil service Fast Stream and Fast Track programmes
- Motivated by the breadth of perspectives and career flexibility that SHAPE disciplines offer
- Passionate about their disciplines, ambitious to make positive differences, and intellectually curious about different societies and perspectives.
[1] During the period in which the research summarised here was conducted, the British Academy changed its terminology from AHSS (Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences) to SHAPE (Social Sciences, Humanities & the Arts for People & the Economy). For the purposes of simplicity, this summary uses the latter throughout.
Dr Freddie Baveystock, June 2023
