It comes as no surprise that unemployment in the UK started rising since the onset of the Coronavirus. With the new rules and regulations, companies were unsure how to get through since they could no longer have the same number of people in their offices with the updated social distancing rules. Additionally, countries were setting up lockdowns, where people were not allowed to leave their homes unless for essential services, which meant that remote working was the new norm. These changes did not allow companies to meet their targets or deadlines, forcing them to let some employees go. They filled the vacant positions by automation and delegated other tasks to companies who could handle them as a whole.

While companies and businesses stated that remote working decreased productivity, they no longer had to hire employees located in their vicinity to handle the work. Companies were now picking from the best, even if that meant the teams were in different cities or overseas. When reviewing the UK, many people were not planning on getting back to work until the economy started stabilising. Nobody wanted a job when the company could shut down after they started at the new one.

With companies making such changes, schools, colleges, and educational institutions were not that different. Most were, for the most part, afraid of starting classes with students, which could increase the spread of the virus. Since many had a lot of time, they were considering getting a degree or going through a course, and the pandemic allowed them to get it done, remotely.

Throughout the pandemic, there were a varied number of courses, organised through the multiple college websites. With the internet and overall ease when it comes to travelling, there were a large number of students considering studying in other countries. While the UK and the US were two of the worst affected countries concerning the COVID-19 pandemic, people from the country were still open to travel from one country to another.

There are a few changes made in the way they organized the system, with the UK allowing students to pick individual subjects they are looking to graduate in, while the US is more open to streams and complete courses. Additionally, the US pays more attention to extracurricular development as well. A majority of UK universities are publicly funded, seen as a benefit to courses and the split between subjects. When it comes to getting jobs, they are both relevant, and depending on how well they are recognised, the students graduating from the colleges can work in various parts of the world.

Some significant changes that came about during the pandemic were that students are now allowed to get through the application process by applying through one streamlined system. However, after graduating, some companies had a varied set of rules before hiring students. These depended on the qualification of the students and the jobs they were applying for. Getting a basic background check, through third party agencies like CRB Direct is now a practically mandatory process in the UK, with most applicants gathering the information so they have their documents together. If a student graduated in the United Kingdom, their information is easily available, however, for someone coming in from another country, the employer would have to get in touch with an agency, who might have to coordinate with their embassy for their background information.

According to a report by the U niversities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), UK

universities saw a 9% increase in undergraduate students, mainly from outside the UK and EU, getting themselves admitted for full-time courses. The courses surveyed were beginning in autumn, rising to a new record total of 44,300. Strangely, the research also noticed that there was a significant increase in the number of disadvantaged students completing their admission. To add to that, the Student Loans Company distributed more than £1 billion to look after loans sent out to 414,877 students, marking the biggest single payment date, this far. More students from the US have officially started making their way to the UK for an education which shows significant changes, one that reverses the trend that was followed for the last couple of years.

On the flip side, the US was usually one of the better-known college destinations however changes taking place in the country, the number of Coronavirus cases, and other factors were probably responsible for the changing trend. According to an American survey, the Institute of International Education, who reviewed more than 700 colleges and universities, found that the total international enrollment plummeted by 16% between fall of 2019 and fall of 2020. Statistics

on new international students was even grimmer with a 43% drop. Overall, tens of thousands of students deferred enrollment probably waiting for a point when the system would get better. A harsher immigration policy was also considered a significant reason for not selecting a US-based college, even for a scholarship.

Not all was grim in the United States, and some states within the country were better options when getting an education. People were now picking options that were not in densely populated metros, but options based in the countryside. Furthermore, they had to pay attention to the institutional ratings, as well, if they wanted to make sure they were signing up for a decent course.

There were changes taking place in the UK as well, and schools were making changes like not providing half term meals, or they were not providing regular COVID tests since it took too long and was more time consuming than solving a problem.

With the overall changes in the job scene and the subjects studied people were making significant improvements, accounting for updates to the workforce to improve their chances of finding work when they joined the workforce. The primary reasons for upgrades were companies delaying changes like automation and smoother systems, which they had to implement since people weren't allowed to come into work through the pandemic.