The GOS-L measures the medium-term outcomes of higher education graduates based on a cohort analysis of graduates approximately three years after they completed their course.
The GOS-L replaced the Beyond Graduation Survey (BGS) as part of the rollout of the Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) suite of surveys.
The BGS commenced in 2009 to provide an insight into the activities, outcomes and experiences of graduates from Australian higher education institutions several years after the completion of their studies. The BGS surveyed respondents to the Australian Graduate Survey (AGS) three years after course completion and was the first large-scale longitudinal study of Australian higher education graduates.
The BGS focused on the main activity of the graduate at the time of the survey, particularly in relation to work and further study. Additional information about activities in which the graduate had engaged between course completion and the present was also collected. Graduates were also asked to make a retrospective assessment of both their course experience and the contribution that their higher education experience has made to their lives.
From 2016, the GOS-L replaced the BGS. Elements of the BGS instrument were retained, however the GOS-L instrument was designed to link back to the Graduate Outcomes Survey (GOS), to allow longitudinal analysis of graduate outcomes, and enable comparison with the national labour force statistics.
The GOQ-L was designed to use, where possible, established and validated instruments to collect data; allowing an objective comparison to be made between graduate outcomes and national labour force statistics and other indicators such as over qualification and graduate attributes.
The core instrument is outlined in the questionnaire item summary here.
A copy of the core survey instrument can be found in the Appendices of each year’s GOS-L Methodological Report.