{"id":2212908,"date":"2026-10-21T23:12:06","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T20:12:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2212908"},"modified":"2026-10-21T23:12:06","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T20:12:06","slug":"the-graduates-ditching-the-uk-to-work-abroad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2212908","title":{"rendered":"The graduates ditching the UK to work abroad"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/branded_news\/a70c\/live\/920779f0-cd4f-11f1-a64c-550be9e3c66b.png”]<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\"BBCBBC<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Charlie West, left, Rachel James and Owein Iveson have all moved overseas<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

Last year Rachel James quit her corporate job in London, packed a suitcase and booked a one-way ticket to Sydney, without a job lined up or a plan in place.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“I went for a fresh start,” says the 26-year-old from Surrey. “To take a risk and try something completely different. With the worst case being there will always be a flight home if all fails.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

More than one in 10 UK university students are now planning to move abroad for better opportunities after they have graduated, up from 7.8% two years ago, according to a survey of 15,000 final year university students.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Meanwhile, a study by the Institute of Student Employers (ISE) says that competition for graduate jobs in the UK was at a three-decade high. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

UK employers now receive 140 applications per graduate vacancy on average, an increase of 14% from 2025, and up from just 30 applications per vacancy 20 years ago, according to the ISE’s report.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

For young British adults going abroad, where are they heading?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Australia: ‘The weather’s beautiful, even in the winter’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

While there is no age-specific data for which countries people go to, Australia remains by far the most popular nation for British adults overall who move abroad, official figures show.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

In addition to Australia’s weather and use of the English language, another reason is its visa-friendly policy. Under its Working Holiday Maker programme, British passport holders between the ages of 18 and 35 can live in Australia for up to three years.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\"RachelRachel James<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Rachel James says that Sydney is a nicer place to live and work than London<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

Rachel, who graduated from Loughborough University in 2022 with a degree in English, had been working for accountancy giant PricewaterhouseCoopers in the UK. She now has a job in marketing in Sydney for gym chain Fitness First.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

She says her annual salary has gone down from \u00a342,000 to \u00a337,000, while she now pays $AUS 2,000 (\u00a31,000) a month to rent a two-bedroom apartment with a friend, similar to what she was paying in London.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Despite having less disposable income, she has no regrets. “The weather’s beautiful, even in the winter, and the walks on my doorstep are unmatched.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“People want to leave work at 5pm so they can go and do their hobbies – whether it’s surfing, running, enjoying the sunset, a picnic or sunset yoga. I didn’t come with career progression as a focus – it’s more about the different way of life.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

The US: ‘I’m paid a lot more here’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

Around two-thirds of British nationals who emigrate are aged between 16 and 34, according to the most recent figures from the UK’s Office for National Statistics.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

It said that 75,000 more people in that age bracket left the UK in 2025 than arrived.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

After Australia the next most popular destination for British adults is the US.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\"CharlieCharlie West<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Charlie West says that working in the US has given him better pay and more opportunities<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

Charlie West, 25, from Cheshire, moved to the States in 2024 for better pay and opportunities in academia after he completed a masters in medieval studies at Oxford University.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

West is now two years in to a six-year funded PhD course at Yale’s Department of Italian Studies, which includes him teaching.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“I really wanted to do a PhD but it’s difficult to get funding in the UK, particularly in the humanities, and funded stipends are about \u00a321,000. I’d have had to work [outside academia] at the same time to afford to live.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“In the US I’m paid $51,000 a year (\u00a337,770), about to rise to $52,000, and it comes with a lot more opportunities to teach and travel to conferences.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Europe: ‘If you can work across the EU there are more opportunities’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

The European Union also remains popular with young Britons looking to move abroad, although the visa requirements since Brexit have made it more difficult.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

One way to get into the European jobs market is to have studied in the EU. International graduates can apply for a permanent residence permit after their degree ends.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\"OweinOwein Iveson<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Owein Iveson has no plans to return to the UK from Finland<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

This is what Owein Iveson, 24, from Sunderland, is doing as he is about to graduate from Finland’s Aalto University with a masters in design.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Owein says he “fell in love with the country” after visiting for the first time in 2020.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“Finland’s a beautiful country,” he says. “The streets are very clean. It’s a very quiet lifestyle. The nature is fantastic and the public transport works really efficiently.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Owein lives in Espoo, a city about 15 minutes on the metro from Helsinki, and doesn’t expect to return to the UK anytime soon.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“To be honest the jobs market is not great in Finland, but there is high demand for IT workers, and if you can work across the EU there are many more opportunities.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Immigration lawyer John Kiely, a London-based partner at international law firm Howard Kennedy, says it is easy to see why more UK graduates are looking overseas. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“When you combine student debt, high housing costs, relatively weak wage growth and uncertainty about future employment, the willingness to roll the dice somewhere else becomes quite rational.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Back in Sydney, Rachel says the city simply offers a better quality of life than London. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

“I don’t see life in Sydney as any more expensive than if I was in London, but personally I have found the perks in Sydney better.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\"Your<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

[analyse_source url=”https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cmzxj4e8w44vo”]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/branded_news\/a70c\/live\/920779f0-cd4f-11f1-a64c-550be9e3c66b.png”] BBC Charlie West, left, Rachel James and Owein Iveson have all moved overseas Last year Rachel James quit her corporate job in London, packed a suitcase and booked a one-way ticket to Sydney, without a job lined up or a plan in place. “I went for a fresh start,” says the 26-year-old […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[35,226],"class_list":["post-2212908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-bbc-com","tag-crawlmanager"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2212908","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2212908"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2212908\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2212908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2212908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2212908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}