The evolving recruitment patterns in Higher Education – 2020 – 2022

Higher Education recruitment impacted by the pandemic

Having a look back on the last year and few months, it seems like a distant memory when we first heard about this new virus and the impact it would have on every aspect of our lives. I recall hearing about the first London university that closed due to a positive case in March 2020, and the domino effect with other universities following suit. Suddenly the majority of our temporary candidates found themselves out of an assignment, but thankfully we had the furlough scheme which we managed to utilise, ensuring our temporary candidates were taken care of. The next few months were difficult, with universities introducing recruitment freezes – and what was usually a buzzing temp desk was eerily quiet!

Adaptation to new types of recruitment need in Higher Education

As soon as the recruitment freezes started to lift, and home working for temporary staff was set up, we saw a steady increase of roles start coming in. Candidates adapted very quickly to home working, and the assessments we carry out on candidates ensured that we were confident of their abilities to pick up new systems quickly. In 2021, we placed over 250 candidates, the majority being temporary assignments with some permanent and contract roles. Admissions and Enrolment have been very busy areas in particular, where we have worked on various roles starting from Admissions Assistants, through to Registry & Admissions Officers and all the way up to Assistant Registrar positions. Another relief for the sector were the positive admission numbers for international students not abating – these contributing to 20.7% of the total student population (14.9% of all undergraduates and 37.1% of all postgraduates). 

There has been a big focus on student welfare, with Universities ensuring that students and staff have all the means possible to get the support they need. With students feeling isolated after the past year and additional emotional and social factors negatively affecting their wellbeing, we have seen a significant increase in Student Wellbeing & Support roles coming in. This has meant that we’ve started supporting Student Unions a bit more, especially in the space of Student Advisor and Caseworker roles.

What does the future of recruitment in Higher Education look like?

So, what does the future look like for Universities? They won’t simply be going back to the same as before and have already moved towards a blended or hybrid approach, where both students and staff work from either the campus or home. Surveys have shown that there is a preference towards the blended approach for both students and staff, and it looks like flexible learning and working is here to stay. We’re seeing this particularly in the Marketing and Communications roles we continue to work on, from Marketing Assistant level up to Marketing Manager. Here, the skills required have moved more towards digital expertise as events, for example, have shifted online and will probably remain to be, at least in part, moving forward. Some institutions have confirmed that they will also continue to run their exams online into at least 2022 and 2023, again facilitating the need for digital expertise. In general, there’s been a huge investment towards utilising digital tools and technology, and we have now also started to see roles come in for project workers that require Agile project management methodology skills, with an increased focus on flexibility and encouraging diversity of ideas.

The pandemic has quite clearly been a catalyst for lasting change across higher education. We are happy to be a part of this journey, matching individuals to great roles and providing Universities with quality candidates with higher education experience and the flexibility they require during peak seasons.

If you work in Education and are interested in discussing your next recruitment need, please drop me an email to discuss your requirements further, or if you are a professional in the Higher Education sector/are interested in joining it, please find our latest vacancies in the space here.