What is the average cost to hire a graduate?

According to 2020 ISE Student Recruitment Survey, the average cost per hire for a graduate was £4,794.

Here's the breakdown by sector for average cost per hire;

- Finance and Professional Services £3,414
- Built Environment £3,177
- Health and Pharmaceuticals £1,265
- Energy, Engineering and Industry £2,825
- Retail and FMCG £3,549
- Digital and IT £8,123
- Law £8,714
- Charity and Public Sector £2,837

Here's the breakdown by company employee size for average cost per hire;

Small (1-49) £7,771
Medium (50-249) £3,624
Large (250-1000) £2,252
Very large (1000+) £2,126

Here's the breakdown by number of graduates recruited for average cost per hire;

1-15 graduates £5,263
16-25 graduates £5,092
26-50 graduates £5,124
51-100 graduates £3,351
101-250 graduates £2,276
251 or more graduates £1,805

Cost per hire shows economies of scale and decreases for larger intakes. Employers who recruit less than 15 graduates typically spend £5,263 per hire, while the largest intakes spend £1,805 per hire. Selection & assessment spend also appears to drop dramatically for intakes of more than 50 hires, while attraction & marketing spend appears to drop dramatically for intakes of more than 100 hires.

“I hire people brighter than me and then I get out of their way.”
- Lee Iacocca, Ford