 a glimpse of the university lifestyle of the future is emerging from one of Britain's newest universities, the University of Worcester. Soon, with the introduction of substantially higher tuition fees in 2012, students are likely to look at their future employment prospects before settling upon where they plan to study for their degrees. Employment chances could soon be the major factor in determining where youngsters plan to study.  It may surprise some potential undergraduates that, if they are thinking of studying in the West Midlands, it is Worcester that has the best record rather than its Russell Group neighbours, Birmingham and Warwick. Worcester, the fastest-growing UK university in terms of student numbers, also does better than Oxford in securing jobs for its undergraduates. Last year, 93 per cent of its graduates gained employment, placing it sixth in the country for its employment record.  By no means all potential applicants will be surprised by this, though, because the numbers seeking to go to Worcester are already increasing at a far faster rate than the average for higher education. "We've already had 10,000 applications for this September. Seven years ago it would have been 4,000 and that would have been by July," says Vice-Chancellor David Green. "There is no doubt we'll have 14,000 applicants by then. For those applicants we've got about 2,800 places."  The university places great emphasis on equipping its students for the world of work. Business students, for instance, spend a year on paid work placements in the course of their their four-year courses.  Twenty-two-year-old James Sheehy spent a year with air Technology Systems, a company based in nearby Bromsgrove, which supplies heating and ventilation systems. He admits to having had no experience of ventilation or how it works when he started - but picked it up while shadowing its sales manger for six weeks. He was then set a target of bringing in ?1 million worth of sales - and ended his secondment having netted ?3.4m. "They actually offered me a job full-time when I finished my degree," he says. They also paid him a bonus for his efforts and offered to pay for all his final-year books.  Both he and his former schoolmate Brandon Witkowski, who was also offered full-time employment after spending a year with Lidl, reckon spending a year in the real world would enhance any student's employment prospects. "Some things you can't learn in the lecture room," says James. "Working in an office is something you can't learn in a university."  Graduate recruitment experts would concur with that. a survey by High Fliers of the top 100 graduate recruiters in the country, published last month, revealed that this summer's graduates would stand little or no chance of getting a job with a leading employer if they had had no work experience.  Professor Green is adamant that students who go on internships should be paid a wage while they do their jobs. "We've been very clear that we can't expect these young people to go and work for nothing," he says. "Unfortunately, there are a lot of places where people do unpaid work during the summer but - if they do that - it then depends on their family background as to whether they can sustain themselves in that work. also, from the employers' point of view, how can you ensure that they complete the work if you are not paying them? What have you got to hold over them? We insist on a minimum wage-plus."  In addition, the university also offers employment to students on its campus - they can work as "ambassadors" for the university, doing a variety of jobs such as conducting campus tours for visitors and packing prospectuses for potential students.  Jonathan Hunter, aged 21, who is studying for a Ba in human geography, enlisted under the scheme and has been deployed to schools to try and lure potential students to the university. "It is not only good for the university but you talk about student life to the pupils - what it's like moving away from your home for the first time, the difference between a-level and university work," he says.  Fellow student Will Patz, aged 23, who is taking an MSc in sport coaching, wants to become a lecturer. "It projected me into that career path," he says. "It was the networking, meeting people and socialising with them. It builds people's confidence."  Worcester started off as a teacher training institution and won full university status seven years ago. Its strengths still lie in training teachers and offering courses in nursing and midwifery. Much of these courses centre around training in the job. Overall, it has around 10,000 students and three-quarters are female (as a result of the concentration on teaching, nursing and midwifery). It has a slightly older age profile than many universities, with 70 per cent of its students being mature on entry - ie over 21.  The university is anxious to dispel the myth that a concentration on work-related learning puts students studying for creative and drama degrees at a disadvantage. "a lot of students study creative and digital media," says Professor Green, "and go off and do a placement in a firm." It is also pioneering a new postgraduate internship scheme whereby students spend four days a week at work and one in college.  Ruth Johnson, who is studying for a postgraduate qualification in applied management, is working as a sustainability officer with Worcester City Council. During that time, she also works with Transition, a community group dedicated to reducing carbon emissions. David Thorpe, who is her boss at Worcester City Council, thinks the decision to employ her has proved invaluable. "If we hadn't, when it came to issues like sustainability, it would have been allocated to an existing officer, who maybe could have given it 15 minutes of their time," he says.  Those who question whether - at a time of austerity in public spending - the council should pay to take on a student for four days a week, have their answer in the recommendations Ruth makes: often, simple things, such as ensuring all the lights are switched off after work, can end up saving the council money.  Worcester also invests time in its relations with its student union. at a time when there is growing hostil 