Students 'excessive drinking' impacting career prospects
Two thirds (63%) of these students, that consumed more than 20 units of alcohol per week, had no idea what they would be doing after graduating.
The research of more than 9,000 graduates was conducted by Magnet.me, the online network that connects both employers and graduates.
Government guidelines recommend that both men and women drink no more than 14 units a week.
The majority (58%) of graduates reported drinking only once a week and consuming no more than seven units. Three quarters (76%) of these were very optimistic about securing employment within the next six months.
One in five (18%) said they drank between two to three times per week, consuming between 10 and 14 units. Of these, 40% were confident of securing employment.
“It’s interesting to see that students in relationships or those with moderate drinking habits are more optimistic than single students or heavy drinkers,” said Vincent Karremans, founder of Magnet.me.
“Relationships teach life lessons and but also to be proactive, a characteristic that is also important in landing a first job.”
“What seems to clear is that the work hard, play hard culture is not quite fit for purpose anymore. Student lifestyles are changing and it’s refreshing to see that their drinking habits are more controlled than once was the case.”
Final year student Thomas Johnston at University of Exeter said: “The drinking culture is immense. I do feel a sense of peer pressure to go out drinking, all too often. Reflecting on it now, I do feel it has somewhat distracted me from my studies”.
In August, research found that Baby Boomers (over-50s) were continuing to drink heavily, while young people were drinking less. The research from Rahul Rao, visiting researcher at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and Ann Roche, director of the National Centre for Training and Addiction at Flinders University in Australia, was published in The British Medical Journal.
