jobs.ac.uk attracts a diverse and highly qualified audience across a range of disciplines. Our 2023 report taken from 5,737 respondents shows how this audience breaks down and offers insights that can help you successfully advertise your job and PhD opportunities to the right people on our platform.
At a glance
Of the 5,373 respondents who took part in the survey, 78% use jobs.ac.uk to find and apply for jobs. A further 13% use the site to find and apply for PhD opportunities.
96% had a Degree, Masters or a Doctorate, with an average of 70% having over 10 years’ work experience. Out of the 78% applying for roles on jobs.ac.uk, 49% of respondents are actively searching and applying for academic/academic research job opportunities and 35% are actively searching and applying for a professional services role.
Looking at how our candidates’ experience differs by sector, our audience has a mixed background across Higher Education, Further Education, Public Sector (non-academia) and Private Sector (non-academia), with many having experience across multiple sectors.
Hybrid working was the top answer for 80% of our jobseekers on their preferred working pattern and a ‘reputation as a great place to work’ being the top answer for academics and professional jobseekers when considering a new job.
Much like our jobseekers, our candidates looking for PhD research opportunities look for institutions that have a reputation for great research and encourage diversity and inclusion. They are seeking opportunities that would enable them to make significant contributions to their field of study or to pursue an academic career.
In terms of interviews, the majority of our audience (59%) would prefer the first interview to be conducted via video call, with the second interview to be in person and in the town or city where the role is based. (70%)
Local interview preferences for PhD candidates, 54% would prefer a video interview, and an even split for video interview and in-person for second interviews.
Our audience is highly mobile, an average of 79% would consider a job or study opportunity outside of their home country in the future. Aside from the UK, our jobseekers are most likely to consider roles in the United States, Germany, Australia, and the Netherlands.
77% of respondents use our jobs by email service, with 42% also regularly searching our site showing that this is the perfect way to reach your target audience.
Audience demographics
Visitors to the jobs.ac.uk website are diverse in age, ethnic background and gender.
The majority of respondents are aged between 35 and 64. One in two of our audience is Caucasian, with Black and Asian making up 30% of our audience.
There is an even split between male and female jobseekers and almost 1 in 10 people in our audience identify as LGBTQ+.
You can see the full Academic report here
You can see the full Professional Services report here
You can see the full PhD report here
Share your comments and feedback