More than four in 10 university graduates living outside London have jobs that do not require a degree, according to research.
Graduates from poorer backgrounds living outside London have been held back professionally due to the cost of moving and a lack of highly skilled jobs in their home cities, according to a report by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).
The high concentration of graduate jobs in the capital compared to the rest of the UK hurts the career opportunities of those who cannot afford to move.
The IFS said the number of low-paid jobs has increased uniformly across the UK over the past 20 years, while mid-level roles have disappeared in a process known as “hollowing out”.
However, mainly high-paying skilled jobs, requiring a university degree, have emerged in London.
Useless degrees: Graduates from poorer backgrounds, living outside London, were held back by the cost of moving and the lack of highly skilled jobs in their home cities.
The trend means that those who cannot afford to move to the capital to find work after university are less likely to reap the benefits of their higher education.
The number of university leavers in postgraduate jobs in central London has risen to 65 per cent from 61 per cent in 1993, while it falls almost everywhere else.
The research showed that 42 percent of university-educated workers outside London have jobs that do not require a degree, up from 31 percent in 1993.
Report author Xiaowei Xu, senior research economist at the IFS, said: “The UK’s current economic geography limits both social mobility and the effective use of talent.”
