More than 70 people made their way to Wapping in East London to hear a debate organised by the Recruitment Society on the role of universities in preparing graduates for work.

The motion was: 'Should recruiters expect higher education to deliver graduates who meet the expectations of employers?'

Carl Gilleard, chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters, spoke in favour. Anne-Marie Martin, The Careers Group, University of London, spoke against.

Gilleard said: "There is a real role for education for education's sake." However, he said that universities were now receiving a "mind-blowing" £17bn a year from the taxpayer and said: "We should see some clear bottom-line returns from this."

He added: "The students are onside. They say the main reason they are at university is the desire for a better life, and that this will come from having a better job."

He added there was a need to address skills shortages, and pointed to the proportion of students studying engineering falling from more than 11% a few years ago to just 5.4% now.

However, Martin said that universities were about "research and the pursuit of knowledge at the highest level" and "learning for learning's sake". She added that, in any event, this approach usually resulted in graduates better equipped for the workplace. Universities should not just be a training institution for employers.

Both sides agreed that career services could do more for students and that employers should offer more work experience opportunities.

At the end of the debate, Recruitment Society chairman Steve Huxham said he had originally intended that the audience would vote by a show of hands. However, he said he decided not to, due to "the degree of unanimity" and high level of "joined-up thinking".