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UAL ranked number one UK university for producing entrepreneurs

Close up of a woman's hands holding papers against a yellow desk with a laptop and notebooks
  • Written byBeatriz Vasques
  • Published date 02 March 2021
Close up of a woman's hands holding papers against a yellow desk with a laptop and notebooks
Marianne Majluf in the studio. Foundation Diploma, Art and Design Camberwell College of Arts, UAL © Alys Tomlinson

A higher percentage of UAL’s graduates go on to found or co-found their own business than from any other UK university, solidifying UAL’s symbiotic relationship with the creative economy.

A new study, The Best Universities for Business, conducted by Capital On Tap analysing data from more than 10 million university graduates has found that 14% of UAL graduates went on to found businesses and almost 1 in 10 UAL graduates (13.7%) used their degrees to found their own start-up.

The figures — which surpass those from universities such as Oxford and LSE — were calculated by gathering Linkedin data, and analysing the proportion of accounts listed as a graduate with a corresponding job title.

As well as being ranked at number one in the UK for producing entrepreneurs, UAL is placed second overall for business: with 1 in 5 students (22.5%) of graduates now in business leadership roles.

The Capital On Tap statistics follow January 2020’s Hitachi Capital Invoice Finance figures, which revealed UAL graduates are leaders in entrepreneurship and social enterprise.

UAL is proud of its support for our enterprising students and alumni. Becoming a founder, a freelancer, a designer-maker, or an entrepreneur, are all ways that many of our graduates choose in order to establish themselves in the creative industries.  Over time, they will become the employers, mentors, and role models for future generations of creatives.

— Richard Sant, UAL Head of Careers and Employability