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A report published by the Higher Education Policy Institute showed that more UK male graduates are unemployed than female ones. According to it, young male graduates are less likely to get employed because they demonstrate lower performance in schools.

The economic crisis resulted in an increase in graduate unemployment from 11.1% in 2008 to 14% last year, according to the latest figures. If the numbers, however, are broken down by sex, then 17.2% of male graduates stay unemployed while the women are 11.2%.

“When I talk to graduate recruiters about how impressive candidates applying for jobs are, I do pick up a sense that female graduates are a little more mature and focused, that they put together good applications,” said Carl Gilleard, chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters.

“I think women generally are more level-headed and sensible,” he added. Other reasons could be that men think getting a degree is just enough to achieve their dreamed careers, and they are more careless about their professional appearance which is becoming crucial on the job market.

Gilleard explained that it will become even harder to get a job when the next graduates enter the market. “The class of 2010 are competing with the class of 2009 and it is going to be a feature of the graduate market until the economy really takes off again,” he said.