LONDON / RankWire.AI / – According to recent data from Adzuna, the number of graduate job openings in the UK declined by nearly 46% in July compared to the same month in the previous year. The platform reported a total of 8,383 live graduate vacancies, decreasing from 15,397 in July 2025, marking the lowest figure since Adzuna initiated its monthly graduate jobs series in April 2016. This figure is also considerably below the peak of over 55,000 vacancies recorded during 2017.
At the same time, competition within the broader UK job market has intensified. Adzuna’s data indicates there were 2.14 jobseekers per vacancy in July, up from 1.93 a year earlier. This metric encompasses the entire labour market rather than just graduate roles and is based on aggregated online job ads from more than 1,000 sources, which means the count of graduate opportunities does not include every position accessible to university graduates.
Official government figures also reflect a decline in vacancies across the UK economy. The Office for National Statistics estimated there were 707,000 job openings from May through July 2026, which is 6,000 fewer than the previous three-month period and 19,000 less than the same period a year earlier. Additionally, the ONS’s data from April through June shows there were 2.5 unemployed people for each vacancy, an increase from 2.3 a year earlier.
Recruitment for new graduates slows amid rising competition
The downward trend occurs as more young individuals are preparing to enter higher education; UCAS reported that by August 13, 262,820 UK 18-year-olds had secured undergraduate placements, which is a 3% increase from the 255,130 accepted at the same point last year. Despite this rise, the acceptance rate for UK 18-year-olds remained steady at 31.6%, indicating that the proportion of those gaining university places has not changed significantly despite the higher number of accepted applicants.
Meanwhile, recruitment figures suggest fierce competition for well-established graduate schemes, with the Institute of Student Employers revealing that during the 2024/25 cycle, participating companies received just over one million applications. The latest survey indicates an average of 140 applications per graduate vacancy, and the organization noted that application volumes remain at record levels among the employers surveyed.
Overall UK vacancy levels remain subdued
Changes in hiring costs since April 2025, driven by previously announced tax policies, have also contributed to the subdued market. The employer National Insurance rate increased from 13.8% to 15%, while the secondary threshold dropped from £9,100 to £5,000 annually. The Office for National Statistics reported that feedback from its vacancy survey indicates some small businesses are limiting recruitment efforts due to rising labour and operational expenses. Its most recent data shows vacancies have declined across nine of the 18 industry sectors.
Artificial intelligence remains a point of discussion concerning entry-level employment opportunities, although official evaluations remain cautious about its immediate impact. Skills England noted in August that isolating AI’s influence from broader labour market trends continues to be challenging. Meanwhile, ONS data revealed that 1.012 million individuals aged 16 to 24 were not engaged in education, employment, or training between January and March 2026, representing 13.5% of this age group and an increase of 89,000 from the previous year.