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Russell George

@careersrussell.bsky.social
93 followers 118 following 120 posts

Careers Development Consultant at UH Careers. NICEC Fellow. Views expressed are my own

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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
So bored by this nonsense
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Access to the most expensive AI tools, parental support, parental networks to get help from all mean that increasing coursework in assessment would be a huge setback for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds
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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
New PISA data out England is now top ten in all three areas (reading, maths, science) and the second highest performing country outside of east Asia (after Estonia). This is a huge public policy success.
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John Burn-Murdoch @jburnmurdoch.ft.com · 03/09/2026
I hereby declare the "learn to code" era officially dead: Big declines in the number of people studying computer science in the last year or two 📉 Chart from this week’s edition of our newsletter on AI and the labour market www.ft.com/content/9183...
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Charlie Ball @lmicharlie.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
just in case anyone here cares, as an experiment, here's what I think is actually going on in the UK graduate labour market right now in the light of all those headlines about collapsing vacancy numbers luminate.prospects.ac.uk/is-this-real...
luminate.prospects.ac.uk
Is this really the worst graduate labour market 'on record'?
Charlie Ball explores the truth behind recent headlines claiming the current graduate labour market is the worst on record.
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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
It’s just depressing. Further education has been cut to ribbons. Higher education is in crisis. Labour turns its eyes to the bit of the education system which is turning out the highest literacy rates in the western world and goes “that’s the bit that needs to change”
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John Burn-Murdoch @jburnmurdoch.ft.com · 07/08/2026
New from me: Britain’s graduate earnings premium is falling, cue “too many go to university!” But non-university outcomes are also bad, cue “we must reform vocational routes!” Both miss the point: people used to think education drove economic outcomes, but the economy drives educational outcomes.
Chart showing that US workers who are functionally illiterate earn roughly the same per hour as the average British worker
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
open.substack.com/pub/daisychr...
open.substack.com
The problem with "parity of esteem"
Vocational education at age 14 is not the answer
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David Beech @davidbeech.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Whatever the good intentions Andy has for the kids he cares about many of us think this is precisely what will happen.
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Charlie Ball @lmicharlie.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Every commentator saying too many kids go to university has to give up their current job and spend at least a year seeing how they do in the non-graduate labour market they want other people's kids to spend their lives in.
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Chris Cook @chriscook.news · 28/07/2026
as a general rule, delaying specialisation to 16 + the GCSE being well specified exams are positive feature of England’s system
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Organising w/exp for 200 year 10s every year were proper beg, steal and borrow days.
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Johnny Rich @johnnyrich.com · 09/07/2026
The good people of #Clacton may be interested in data published today, broken down by constituency, showing the net economic impact of international students (ie. AFTER public costs). They gain over £2million, amounting to the equivalent of £20 in the pocket of every resident.
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
CHUMS Charity are running a fantastic World Cup fundraising raffle. Win Big Mick coming over for your 2nd round World Cup watch party! Enter as many times as you like here: www.zeffy.com/en-GB/ticket... @sarahowen.org.uk
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Sarah O'Connor @sarahoconnorft.ft.com · 30/05/2026
I've written an essay in today's FT Weekend about why - and how - people are shaking off the feeling of being "frozen" in front of a "tusnami", and beginning to fight for the future they want. as.ft.com/r/cfa87609-8... (some free clicks here!)
as.ft.com
Should AI steal your job?
The real question is not what the technology can do but what it ought to do. Sarah O’Connor on the people fighting for the future of work
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Ben Newmark @bennewmark.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
A weird thing in The Big Report is how it's really clear that kids with good gcse grades appear best prepared for work but then implies these courses aren't good preparations for work.
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Sigh. Use your University Career Service, many offer support beyond graduation, some for life now. Keep going back to them, use their online platforms, book 1:1 appointments and make the most of the employer networking events they will offer. The rules aren't unwritten, they're readily available
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Albert Pinto @70sbachchan.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
now thats an anecdote with a punch, from Gillian Tett www.ft.com/content/c0ae...
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Sarah Owen MP @sarahowen.org.uk · 01/05/2026
Applications are now open for my politics summer school! If you live in Luton North, are aged 18-22, and want to get a better understanding of politics, please consider applying.
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Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Crushingly predictable. Utterly unjustified by decades of research. A shibboleth in place of a policy.
inews.co.uk
New grammar schools set to return if Farage becomes PM
The creation of new selective schools was outlawed by New Labour in 1998
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
It is a tough jobs market that does require huge amounts of resilience but...the number 1 reason grads get an automated reject email is not following the application instructions. AI can help draft but what you send should be your voice, authentic and genuine and clearly formatted will be noticed
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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
‘Contra the narrow focus of policymakers on Stem subjects or coding, now more than ever our economy rewards broad skillsets: team players, problem solvers, good communicators and creative thinkers.’ @jburnmurdoch.ft.com www.ft.com/content/5e25...
ft.com
How to AI-proof your job
The data suggests soft skills more than quantitative competency equal success in a rapidly changing labour market
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Jim Dickinson @jimdickinson.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
NEW on Wonkhe: No longer "cardigans and chamomile" – graduate careers is a whole-university strategic agenda. Martin Edmondson explains why AGCAS is now the Graduate Futures Institute buff.ly/cuRukOw
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Jim Dickinson @jimdickinson.bsky.social · 02/01/2026
"UK universities extend careers advice to graduates in their 40s and 50s"
bit.ly
UK universities extend careers advice to graduates in their 40s and 50s
Growing numbers of institutions now offering lifelong careers support as older alumni seek help to change jobs
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
Out there article on where taking AI Career advice totally at face value will get you: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/28/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | When A.I. Took My Job, I Bought a Chain Saw
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 14/12/2025
📖 My annual visit to my blog to jot down some thoughts on the books I read in 2025 📖 careersrussell.wordpress.com/2025/12/14/m...
careersrussell.wordpress.com
My book Journey of 2025
Welcome to my annual revisit to this place to jot down some thoughts on what I read this year. Note for the judges: I will also include books I’ve read at bedtime with my 5 year old if I thin…
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
This week's FT AI shift newsletter is so far up my street, it's practically parked on my drive - On how, despite AI leaders predictions of doom, there are now growing numbers of radiologists and how those professionals are working with AI @sarahoconnorft.ft.com @jburnmurdoch.ft.com
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Stephen Evans @stephenevans.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
2. It made me sad to hear Govt ministers describe basic English & maths in apprenticeships (standard in other countries) as 'unnecessary red tape'. Real world result is fewer people improving these skills, holding back them, their employers & our economy. Grading for govt: must do better.
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Katy Morris @katymorris.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
From the always interesting AI Shift newsletter by @jburnmurdoch.ft.com and @sarahoconnorft.ft.com: AI is maximising job applications and word counts, in vicious circle of doom kind of ways
Extract from the FT AI Shift newsletter: 

Another way of putting all of this is that the use of LLMs in job applications made the market much less meritocratic, with a 19 per cent fall in hiring for the most capable workers and a 14 per cent boost for the least capable. Oh, and the number of applications and length of cover letters roughly doubled, meaning more time needed to sift through less useful and often actively unhelpful submissions. Good job, everyone!
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
These data points do look like they have been planned in unison
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
media.tenor.com
a white dog standing on a sidewalk with a bottle in the background
ALT: a white dog standing on a sidewalk with a bottle in the background
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 01/11/2025
media.tenor.com
a few household chemicals in the proper proportions is written on the screen
ALT: a few household chemicals in the proper proportions is written on the screen
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 19/10/2025
@lutontown.co.uk could think of a few things
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Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 10/10/2025
What the graduate unemployment story gets wrong on.ft.com/42wdJ82 | opinion
on.ft.com
What the graduate unemployment story gets wrong
People with a degree are faring better, not worse than their non-graduate counterparts
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NICEC @instcareer.bsky.social · 22/09/2025
Good morning from a wonderfully sunny Birmingham for the NICEC AGM! A safe journey to all joining us throughout the day for the Skills & Growth Network meeting and 50th anniversary drinks
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Just one of the very best to dance the dance
media.tenor.com
a close up of a man 's face wearing a jacket and a blue shirt .
ALT: a close up of a man 's face wearing a jacket and a blue shirt .
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Charlie Ball @lmicharlie.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
This whole thread demonstrates the consequences when a crucial and successful part of the UK social and economic fabric is the subject of incessant negative coverage.
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The Policy Institute @policyatkings.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
NEW: The public hugely overestimate how many graduates regret going to university and significantly underestimate the importance of higher education to the UK economy. Our new study with @hepi-news.bsky.social also reveals widespread misunderstandings about tuition fees, student loans and more ⬇️ 🧵
The public hugely overestimate how many graduates regret going to university and significantly underestimate the importance of higher education to the UK economy. 

Many also have misunderstandings about tuition fees, student loans and the financial returns from a university education.
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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 11/08/2025
This is why education systems shouldn't chase "jobs of the future"....
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Charlie Ball @lmicharlie.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
The UK has one of the world's strongest graduate labour markets and most graduates get jobs quickly. But it's very urban, and most graduates are not very mobile so graduates who go home to non-urban areas after graduating are amongst those most likely to struggle.
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
What is common knowledge in your field, but shocks outsiders? AI or automation isn't used by as many employers or as commonly when recruiting as applicants seem to think. Mostly it's still just HR or line managers scanning applications to shortlist
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Adam Drummond @adamdrummond.bsky.social · 16/06/2025
It's not the biggest problem education is facing but at some point the preference of parents and students for coursework and fewer exams is going to collide with the fact that AI probably necessitates a big return to in-person exams
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Charlie Ball @lmicharlie.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
Just going to hammer home a point I keep making. In 2004, 60 per cent of the UK workforce were in jobs below professional level - they didn't usually need post-18 qualifications. In 2024 47 per cent are in jobs that don't need post-18 qualifications. The crossover happened during COVID.
Occupational composition of the UK workforce from 2004 to 2024. In 2004, 60 per cent of the UK workforce were in jobs that did not need degrees and 40 per cent in jobs that benefit from them. Now 53 per cent of the UK workforce are in jobs for which degree or equivalent qualifications are appropriate and 47 per cent in jobs that don't need them. The crossover happened during COVID and is sustained.
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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
It isn't possible to design a school system where everyone leaves with the skills needed for the workplace because *they're all going to do different jobs*. Workplace training needs to be done by employers.
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no. @joles.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
applying for jobs again
screenshot from an online job application form. the question reads "Can you describe specific ways you have integrated AI tools into your development workflow? Please include any custom setups, automations, or use cases beyond single prompt usage" (a red asterisk indicates that this is a required question).

an answer has been typed in the textbox below the question:

"there is a monster in the forest and it speaks with a thousand voices. it will answer any question you pose it, it will offer insight to any idea. it will help you, it will thank you, it will never bid you leave. it will even tell you of the darkest arts, if you know precisely how to ask.

it feels no joy and no sorrow, it knows no right and no wrong. it knows not truth from lie, though it speaks them all the same.
 
it offers its services freely to any passerby, and many will tell you they find great value in its conversation. “you simply must visit the monster—i always just ask the monster.”

there are those who know these forests well; they will tell you that freely offered doesn’t mean it has no price

for when the next traveler passes by, the monster speaks with a thousand and one voices. and when you dream you see the monster; the monster wears your face."
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
A lot of Graduate Schemes were not feasible for International Graduates already due to employer's baulking at sponsorship. This removes them completely from International Graduates options
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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 11/05/2025
Really good, really important reporting by @georginaq.bsky.social:
ft.com
Students lured to UK universities by ‘fake promises’ from recruitment agents
Cash-strapped institutions turn to unregulated firms to reel in lucrative overseas income
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
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Russell George @careersrussell.bsky.social · 28/04/2025
All of this thread. And add in they do this after paying some very high fees to our educational institutions
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