Ambitions and Destinations: the Careers and Retrospective Views of Art and Design Graduates and Postgraduates

What do art and design graduates and postgraduates do once they have completed their courses, and how well do they feel those courses have equipped them to realise their career ambitions? This paper firstly examines the available data on the career paths of art and design graduates, and considers to what extent this data is able to represent their success. It would appear that much of the national data presents a pessimistic view of the career prospects of these graduates and postgraduates. Secondly, the methodology and results of the Ambitions and Destinations project are outlined. The purpose of the project was to determine the career paths of graduates from the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, and to discover the retrospective views about the courses on which they had studied, in the light of their subsequent careers. A postal questionnaire was used to survey all those who had graduated from a cross-section of undergraduate and postgraduate courses 1991–1995 inclusive. The career outcomes of the first-degree respondents are compared with those of the postgraduates, including their respective participation in the areas of paid employment, further study, self employment and unemployment. Respondents’ propensities to remain involved with art and design, and the likelihood of their entering teaching or lecturing are also examined. Some of the key points which emerged from respondents’ comments about the career usefulness of their courses are presented. Finally, the extent to which the career paths of these BIAD graduates and postgraduates are consistent with those obtained from national data is considered.