Graduate Business Start-ups Project Report - The Institute for ...

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Postal survey of HE careers services A list of addresses, including named heads of the services was obtained from the Directory of Careers Service and used for the postal survey. The primary objective was to identify and select HEIs to be included in the survey of graduates. At the same time, though, the exercise was used to gather some basic information on the proportion of graduates from different cohort years who were in self-employment. A total of 152 questionnaires were administered; and 65 valid and 17 invalid responses were received, translating into a response rate of 48 per cent. Among the explanation for non-response and invalid response was the fact that some of the HEIs were specialist colleges who did not provide a separate careers guidance service. In other cases too, colleges had merged with universities, or were part of universities, and now had a common or shared careers advisory service. Notwithstanding these difficulties, the response rate of almost half of all HEI career services was high for this type of survey. It was also satisfying, as it included HEIs with higher proportions of graduates entering self-employment. More importantly, this census survey enabled the researchers to identify those HEIs willing to participate in the main survey of graduates. Postal survey of graduates This constituted the main data collection element of the research. It was envisaged that the survey would cover 4,000 graduates drawn from eight to ten HEIs that would agree to co-operate with the survey, and could provide a list of graduates according to IES specification. The intention was that the participating HEIs would represent a broad, but not necessarily representative, cross-section of institutions with a higher than average proportion of graduates entering self-employment. The HEIs included in the initial samples were self-selecting, therefore, having indicated their willingness to participate in this stage of the research from the earlier survey of careers services. In practice, the HEIs from which the sample was drawn either had higher than average proportions of graduates entering selfemployment overall (as was the case of the London New University and Midlands New University), or had specific courses from which a relatively high proportion of graduates entered self-employment (as was the case of the Northern Red Brick University, Southern HEI and Northern Technical University). It became apparent early on at this stage that a sample drawn strictly on the self-selected basis would not generate sufficient cases for most of the relevant variables required, or allow for more rigorous analysis of the data generated. Consequently, it was decided to include only HEIs that indicated their institutions as a whole, or individual departments or courses, had a higher than average proportions of graduates entering self-employment. Graduate Business Start-ups: Project Report 7
As there was still a risk of shortfall in the achieved sample of self-employed graduates from these HEIs, it was decided to approach known organisations which provide support for young people who want to start their own business, and see if they would be willing to help with the research. A sample of graduates was drawn from the database of young people, held by two such organisations, to complement that provided by the HEIs. A sample of 3,479 graduates was generated to be included in the survey, as shown in Table 1. Questionnaires were sent out to all the graduates in the sample initially, and blanket reminders sent four weeks later. The questionnaire remained in the field for approximately eight weeks. The survey yielded 656 useable responses, a response rate of 21 per cent. Development of Good Practice Guide This aspect of the project was undertaken by the project partners at Sussex University CDU and London Institute. The Good Practice Guide (GPG or the Guide) sought to make existing expertise in provision of support for aspiring entrepreneurs, more widely available to careers services throughout higher education. It was intended that some of the information gathered from the interviews and surveys would be used to develop good practice materials. Using the Delphi approach, a panel of ‘experts’ (from within and outside HEIs) selected from the initial interviews would be used to develop further and refine the good practice materials. It was proposed to use either discussion groups or postal questionnaires for this stage of the research, depending on the location and availability of the participants. Table 1: The composition of the participating HEIs Institutions/organisations N Higher Education Institution London New University 778 Midlands New University 677 Northern Technical University 330 Northern ‘Red Brick’ University 600 Southern HEI 644 Total 3,029 Enterprise Organisation Organisation A 200 Organisation B 250 Total 450 Source: IES Survey, 1998 8 Graduate Business Start-ups: Project Report
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Page 11 and 12: levels increase over time. At a mor
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Page 17 and 18: The Results of the Project Main fin
Page 19 and 20: This means, as well, that when thes
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Page 27 and 28: HEQED) of researchers working on a
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Page 31 and 32: graduation, while others return to
Page 33 and 34: Background to Good Practice farmer)
Page 35 and 36: 3. Graduates’ Views: in Retrospec
Page 37 and 38: 4. Developments Under Way: Some Ini
Page 39 and 40: Studying a business plan is part of
Page 41 and 42: Attitudes of Students ! Some studen
Page 43 and 44: Examples of Good Practice Possible
Page 45 and 46: in which local Business Links opera
Page 47 and 48: Organisations Offering Training in
Page 49 and 50: 7. Resources There is a wide range
Page 51 and 52: Many of the organisations offering
Page 53: access entrepreneurs from their own

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