NEARLY a fifth of University of Bolton students are unemployed six months after graduating — making it the third worst in the country for employability.

The number of students finding jobs has increased compared to last year and the university has moved up one place — but it is still in the bottom part of the table with 18.9 per cent of its graduates failing to secure work or a place on postgraduate course six after months of gaining their degree in 2012. The figures come just days after research revealed that about 46 graduates are applying for every job.

University of Bolton, Pro Vice Chancellor, Professor Rob Campbell said: “This year’s national figures show we have moved up one place with a 2.3 per cent improvement in employability and we fully intend to see further progress next year.

“Employability is a key focus for the University of Bolton and in the past year we have launched a number of initiatives which are beginning to have an impact. One such example is that we now have a new Employability Manager in place whose role is to engage and work with more employers and develop more placement opportunities with the ultimate aim of preparing students for their professional lives.”

The figures were released by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) . The majority of the 163 UK institutions surveyed saw between 90 and 95 per cent of graduates in work or study, compared to the University of Bolton’s 81.1 per cent.

More students who went to the universities of Derby and Northampton were in work than those who went to Oxford or Cambridge. And among the Russell Group universities, considered to be some of the best in the country, all but one had an employment and study rate of above 90 per cent.