engineering phd graduate salary uk

• PhD Salary in UK – Explained
• Funding a PhD

What Are PhD Salaries?

The average cost of undertaking a PhD in the UK is approximately £20,000 per academic year for UK students and £40,000 for international students. To help offset the cost of this, many students question whether undertaking a doctorate comes with a PhD salary.

The salary of a PhD student is governed by three factors: whether they’re assisting in undergraduate teaching, assisting in research, or have secured a PhD with a stipend. Depending on which of the three categories a student falls within, they will receive an income during their studies, however, the amount will differ by a substantial amount.

To help show you how you can fund your postgraduate degree and how much you can expect to earn whilst doing so, carry on reading below.

Types of PhD Salaries

There are three types of PhD degree salaries:

• Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTAs) . In exchange for a salary, you’ll be required to assist in the delivery of one or more courses over a number of years. This includes, but is not limited to, marking student tutorials, supervising lab experiments and providing support to undergraduates during office hours. Besides this, you may have to teach a small section of the course itself. You can discover more about GTAs on King’s College London’s website.
• Research Assistantships (RAs) . In exchange for a salary, you assist a departmental professor with their research. In the ideal scenario, the professor you work with should also be your PhD supervisor and the research you’re asked to support with relates to your own doctoral project.
• Stipend via Studentship: A stipend is a non-repayable grant provided to doctoral students to help support their studies. A studentship covers a student’s tuition fees whilst a stipend covers a PhD student’s living costs. This includes outgoings such as rent, food, bills and basic travel. Unlike Graduate Teaching or Research Assistantships, stipends rarely have duties attached to them. The only expectation of receiving a stipend will be that you maintain continuous progress within your degree.

It’s worth noting these earning opportunities can be also be combined. For example, it’s possible to be a research assistant whilst also committing time to teach undergraduate students.

Average PhD Salary in UK

The average PhD student salary for teaching assistantships will vary depending on the level of responsibility you’re taking. However, to provide figures, past doctoral students have reported receiving approx. £10/hr for marking tutorials, £15/hr for leading laboratory sessions and up to £20/hr for leading undergraduate classes and tutorials.

The actual amount you can earn from teaching assistance will depend on the rate your department offers and the hours you can realistically take on. If you’re on a Graduate Teaching Assistantship programme, they will require you to dedicate a set number of hours per week. If you’re not on a GTA but would still like to earn an income through this scheme, you will likely need to commit several hours per week consistently. Although this can be a great way to earn whilst you study, you need to make sure you manage your time effectively as to not become overwhelmed by taking on an additional commitment.

The average salary for research assistantships will vary depending on the field of the doctoral degree you are enrolled in. Usually, these positions pay between £25,000 to £30,000 per year, however, it’s possible to come across positions which sit slightly outside of this. As a general rule of thumb, STEM assistors are paid more than non-STEM assistors.

In the UK, PhD students can receive a stipend which varies between £15,000 and £18,000 per annum. As part of the studentship your stipend is provided under, your tuition fees will also be paid for. UK tuition fees will vary between universities but are approximately £4,500 per year for doctoral courses starting in 2021/22 as per the UKRI recommendations .

Although £15,000 to £18,000 per year is the typical range for a stipend, some can be far greater than this. For example, Wellcome Trust , a research-charity based in London, offers an annual stipend of up to £23,300 and £26,000 for doctoral students located outside and within London, respectively.

Are PhD Salaries Taxed?

PhD stipends are tax free. Therefore, you don’t need to pay any income tax nor do you need to make any national insurance contributions. This means you’ll keep all the money you receive from an annual stipend. However, this is not the case for Research Assistants.

In the UK, Research Assistants are employed as university staff members and are paid a direct salary as opposed to a stipend. As a result, it will require you to pay tax on your earnings and make national insurance contributions.

To put this into perspective, for the 2019/20 UK tax year, you’re required to pay a 20% tax on any income above £12,500 but less than £50,000. You’re also required to make national insurance contributions of 12% of your weekly earnings over £166 but less than £962. This means that an annual Research Assistantship salary of £30,000 will equate to a take-home salary of £23,938 per year.

How to Get a PhD Stipend

To find research positions which offer stipends, we recommend you search our PhD database and filter by ‘funded’ positions.

Besides this, you can also secure a studentship from UK Research Councils or directly from your university as a scholarship. Independent organisations, such as charities and research trusts, and innovative firms within your industry also offer funding. You can read our PhD studentship guide to see how these work or our Where to find a PhD guide for further ideas.

Finding a PhD has never been this easy – search for a PhD by keyword, location or academic area of interest.

How to Get a Research Assistantship PhD

Unfortunately, research assistantships opportunities aren’t as common to come across compared to PhD stipends. Besides this, when they are available, they’re predominantly in STEM subjects such as computer science and engineering. The reason for this is these subjects usually have access to greater research grants and have a greater volume of practical work available.

To find a research assistantship, we recommend that you contact the university departments who host the courses you’re interested in directly. This is because research assistantships help professors with their research, and while they may require help, they may not be openly advertising for it. They may, therefore, be able to create a role for you within their department or put you into contact with one of their colleagues who already has an open position.

International Students

It’s worth noting that international students will have a harder time securing a funded PhD position than UK ‘home’ students will. This is largely because there are usually fewer funding opportunities available to international students, which as a result also attract significant competition.

Besides this, if you’re an international student studying in the UK you will most likely than not be on a Tier 4 visa. Although a Tier 4 visa will allow you to work to earn an additional income alongside any studentship you may have, there will be certain restrictions on what you can and can’t do. For example, during term-time, you won’t be allowed to work more than 20 hours per week. For a full list of restrictions, please refer to the government website.

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PhD Salary UK: How Much Do PhD Students Get Paid Compared to Graduates?

Considering whether to stay in university as a PhD student or to leave and get a job? If so, you may be wondering “How much do PhD student get paid?” and “How does a UK PhD salary compare to a graduate salary?” .

In this post I delve into the details and reveal that the difference in take home pay between a UK PhD stipend and a grad position can actually be much lower than it first appears!

If you’re looking to know how much a PhD could boost your career and salary after finishing your doctoral degree I’d suggest checking out my post: Is a PhD Worth It ?

I also have a complementary post covering my monthly expenses as a PhD student. You may also wish to check out my guide to the application process , PhD FAQs and article on how I got a PhD scholarship .

February 2024 : This post has been updated to include figures for the 2023/24 academic year.

Do PhD students get paid in the UK? If so, how much do PhD students get paid?

Before we delve into the details let’s first cover whether PhD students get paid in the UK. Generally, yes, most PhD students get what is called a PhD stipend to support themselves during their PhD. Importantly, a PhD stipend (in the UK at least) is tax free .

It is worth noting though that not all PhD projects automatically include funding. Funding may also not be applicable for every applicant. For example sometimes it may only be available to home students i.e. those from the UK.

Therefore some students may resort to self funding their PhD. In STEM subjects self funding a PhD is pretty rare and often only happens because of limitations in funding eligibility. I’ve personally worked with a mix of funded and self-funded (often by parents) PhD students, though most are certainly funded by grants and scholarships.

If your project doesn’t already include funding, for most people I strongly advise trying to find funding rather than considering self funding. For more information on this check out my post on PhD Funding in the UK.

2023/24 UK PhD Salary

• PhD salary outside of London: In 2023/24 most new PhD students in the UK will receive a PhD stipend worth at least £18,622 per year .
• PhD salary in London : In 2023/24 most new PhD students in London will receive an increased stipend to account for cost of living , which is typically around £20,622 per year .

Notice that the PhD stipend for outside of London is at least £18,622 per year. I’ve seen several advertised at the London rate. There are also some available at an even higher rate. For example I know of CDTs in Bristol paying more like £24,000 tax-free.

Your PhD stipend will usually provide funding for 3.5 years, although it can occasionally be for 3 or 4 years.

These values are for most PhD studentships including those awarded by all UK research councils following the UKRI guidelines .

Certain scholarship schemes pay upwards of £25,000 per year, such as the £25,150 (2024/25 rate) President’s PhD Scholarships at Imperial. For details on how to get such a scholarship, check out this article where I go over how I got awarded my own PhD scholarship.

The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network (ITN)  runs all across the EU. As well as nice training and exchange opportunities it pays a staggering stipend of approx £40,000 – £45,000 . The grant level is reviewed each year and increases if you have family dependents. I personally wish I’d known about it earlier and highly recommend anyone interested puts a reminder in their diary for when the next call opens!

Is a UK PhD stipend taxable?

Here is what PhD stipends look like compared to some fairly typical starting grad salaries in the UK:

At first glance a PhD stipend doesn’t stack up well against the higher wages of a graduate salary which can sometimes be twice this amount or more. But crucially PhD stipends for students are tax free !

There are a few other financial perks that come with being a student so I was intrigued to find out how the two salaries really compared. The results may surprise you!

Below is a high level overview and I’ll delve into each of the numbers in depth later in the post.

Grad salary vs PhD salary starting numbers

As mentioned earlier, in 2023/24 a typical PhD stipend outside of London is at least £18,622 . Within London this will typically increase slightly to account for cost of living to around £20,622 . These rates rise every year for new students, but do not rise for each year of the PhD. So for new students considering starting in 2024/25 a UK PhD salary will likely be around £19,100 outside of London. 

For the sake of simplifying the comparison I averaged the 2023/24 PhD stipend to £19,622 for all PhD students studying in the UK.

A fairly typical grad salary, for someone qualified enough to be considering a science PhD, is around £30,000 . Of course this is an average salary so needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. As the number can vary dramatically it may be considered too low by some, but I think it’s a good benchmark accounting for different regions of the UK.

I’ve included higher and lower graduate salaries too in the summary charts for this post.

Salary Gap: £10,378

On the face of it the PhD student would be earning £10,378 less per year: around 35% lower! This is enough of a difference to put off a lot of potential PhD candidates who’ve likely spent the last few years building up student loans.

But unlike normal wages, PhD stipends are tax free so maybe things aren’t as bleak for PhD students as it seems? Let’s explore how they really compare.

Income Tax & National Insurance Contributions

The 2023/24 Personal Income Allowance is £12,570. This means that you can earn up to this amount and not pay any income tax. Earnings from £12,571 up to £50,270 fall into the basic rate bracket of 20% tax.

PhD Student Salary: PhD stipends are tax free and incur no income tax or national insurance contributions. Remaining stipend: £19,622

Professional Salary: On £30,000 you’d pay £ 3486 in income tax and NI contributions of £2004 . Remaining wage:  £24,510

Salary Gap: £4888 Income tax and national insurance contributions have immediately almost halved the difference in take-home pay from £10,378 down to £4888!

Student Loan Repayment

PhD Student Salary: Even with a PhD stipend you are officially an unwaged student so you won’t make student loan repayments as a PhD student. Remaining stipend: £19,622 [see footnote 1]

Professional Salary: The amount you may have to pay for student loan repayments depends upon when you started your undergraduate course. If you started your undergraduate course since 2012 you pay student loan repayments on earnings above £27,295. Meaning on a salary of £30,000 you’d pay £243 a year on student loan repayments. If you began your undergraduate course before 2012, repayments start on salaries above £22,015 and would be £541 a year . Most of you likely completed your undergrad degree recently so we’ll go with the more recent, lower, repayments. Remaining wage:  £24,267

Salary Gap: £4645

Council Tax

PhD Student Salary: Another cost that students are exempt from is council tax. Though be careful if you share a house with non-students since council tax must then be paid on the property. [2] Remaining stipend:  £19,622

Professional Salary: Council tax varies greatly between council boroughs, and depends on the property you live in. For example in Cardiff I lived in a one bed flat and the annual council tax was £1050 per year. During my PhD in London council tax for a lovely three bed house  in Clapham it was £1000! Now that I live in Bristol it is over £2000 per year for a three bed house. I’ll go to the liberty of saying on average it would be £1150 per year and would be divided between two people: -£575 each. Total: £23,692

Salary Gap: £4070

Private Pension Contributions

PhD Student Salary: Although universities pay a PhD stipend to students, you are not a member of staff and hence do not make private pension contributions. Remaining stipend:  £19,622

Professional Salary: Legislation has been phasing in making contribution to private pensions mandatory. The upside is that employers match your contribution up to varying percentages: sometimes up to about 10% of your salary. Additionally there are tax benefits to contributing so overall you could see it as boosting your salary looking at the longer term view. [3]

I believe there are troubling times ahead for 20-somethings and personally am not relying on a state pension existing by the time we all reach retirement age. Therefore I wholeheartedly recommend making a decently sized contribution at least up to the same amount that your employer matches. For the purposes of this comparison I won’t deduct anything for private pension since it’s not really being deducted so I’ll call this one a draw.  Total: £23,692

Student Discount

Ah the obvious one! Student discount may have been the first thing you thought of when you saw this article, but I’m not going to include it in this analysis.

A student card does allow a significant amount to be saved, not only on luxuries such as entry to attractions and deals in shops but also travel. For example in London, an 18+ student oystercard gets you 30% off travelcards. For a monthly zones 1-3 ticket this would save about £50 a month: over £600 a year!

The reason I’ve not included it? How much you use student discount depends on your circumstances and lifestyle and I wanted to keep the analysis widely applicable. Also, there are ways around needing to pay for travel at all: I started cycling to university every day in London .

Curveball: the £12,570 Tax-Free Personal Income Allowance

So far the recent grad is still earning an additional £4842 per year: almost a third more than the PhD student. Owing to the fact that PhD students are exempt from income tax, national insurance contributions, council tax and student loan repayments the gap in earnings has shrunk considerably.

One last calculation I wanted to try was to consider the scenario of a student earning some additional money on the side. It is a common thing to make extra money with teaching assistant, tutoring and consultancy opportunities. In fact I think every PhD student I know does at least a little. There are of course non-academic routes to make additional money too.

I have written a post about some of the ways that I make extra money , many of which are in fact available to non-students. Do be careful to check that this is acceptable at your institution. My favourite way to make extra money is matched betting which is tax-free for everybody. You can find my complete guide to matched betting here .

Tax-free side-hustle

Currently you can earn £12,570 tax free in the UK . Given that the PhD stipend itself is tax free, unlike an equivalent worker you wouldn’t pay any tax on extra earnings up to this threshold. This might sound insignificant but it’s not.

Admittedly, unless you’re very entrepreneurial, it is unlikely that you would make use of the whole tax-free opportunity. But earning several thousand pounds per year on top of the stipend is certainly common.

As pointed out by a reader, John, in the comments below: a consideration should be that that some universities limit how much paid work you can do per month. Even so, there are lots of ways to make money and your time as a student could even be a great time to start your own business .

I’ve been paid more than £25 an hour doing pretty simple work for the university , so these earnings can mount up quickly.

To illustrate the extra earning potential afforded to PhD students, let’s consider the most extreme case where the tax-free earnings are maximised.

Since 2017 there has been a £1000 tax-free trading allowance for workers in the UK , meaning even those in a normal taxable job can earn £1000 on top of their salary from side-hustle jobs. Therefore the grad will pay additional taxes on £11,570 instead of £12,570.

PhD Student Salary: An enterprising student maxing out the tax-free allowance could earn £12,570 a year and pay no national insurance either, leaving additional take-home pay of  £12,570 . With a PhD stipend of £17,062 the student would in total earn £32,192 for the year. They’d keep 100% of those extra earnings.

Again, yes it is unlikely that someone would really earn this much on the side but it is common to make at least several thousand throughout the year.

Professional Salary: As a grad on £30,000 per year in your main job, to have an equivalent side-hustle earning £12,570, in total you’d pay tax on £41,570. Income tax would be £5800: £2314 higher than on their base salary of £30,000. NI contributions would be £3335: £1331 higher. Plus student loan repayments would be £1284: £1041 higher. Student loan repayments really start increasing considerably when you’re earning more. These additional taxes and costs total deductions of £4686,  leaving the professional with extra take-home pay of  £7884 . Including their day-job the total they’d be left with is £31,576 .

For this extra £12,570 of work, the student would pocket 100% of it and the professional would keep £7884 ( 63% ). Looking at the pre-tax difference in their earnings: at face value the student would be earning £32,192 and the grad £41,570: a difference of £9378. Yet once taxes are considered the final result is two people with remarkably similar take-home pays: a difference of £616 in favour of the student!

Check it out:

Under these circumstances the student would in fact take home £616 more per year than the professional! I used the maximum tax-free allowance to highlight the point and yes it’s unlikely that many students will fully utilise it. Yet the point stands that any additional earnings are much better retained by PhD students.

If someone was running a fully-fledged business on the side then the difference becomes even bigger as the grad salary approaches the next tax bracket for earnings of £50,271 and above, at which point the rate of income tax doubles.

There are very few legal ways of making money which are tax-exempt for everyone. One of these rare cases is also my favourite way to make money on the side: matched betting. Intrigued? I’ve written a huge guide to it here . In this rare instance none of the grad’s extra earnings get eroded by tax.

Grad salary vs PhD student salary conclusion

Starting from a difference of £10,378 in salary, taxes and other outgoings have knocked £6308 off the graduate’s wage. This brings the difference in earnings down to £4070. This equates to £339 per month. More than nothing, but not a huge difference. And this doesn’t include any extra earnings on the side which the student can do a much better job of retaining.

Surprised how small the difference is? I certainly was whilst I was writing this.

Here is a chart for comparing a wider range of salaries:

This analysis doesn’t take in to account the extra earning power that gaining a PhD could bring, nor the potential lifestyle benefits of being a student such as autonomy and flexible working hours which it could be argued level the playing field even further. Plus the opportunities afforded to PhD students, which everyone should seize. And yes, student discount if you use it.

Furthermore if you consider the opportunity to make an additional £12k+ per year before incurring tax  any difference in earnings can become close to negligible!

I hope that this post has helped explain that the wage gap between UK PhD stipends and grad salaries is not as dramatic it first seems. Perhaps it’s even encouraged you to consider a PhD. If so I’ve written posts to help with your application and an article on how to improve your chances of securing a PhD scholarship . Also if you’re curious you can read about life as a PhD student along with profiles of PhD students around the world .

If you’d like personalised help with your PhD application I am now starting to offer a small number of one-to-one sessions. Please contact me to find out more or click here to book a call.

What do you think about this comparison between a UK PhD stipend and grad salary? Do you think there are any additional factors that I have overlooked? Please share your thoughts in the comments below and if you’ve enjoyed this post you can subscribe to hear about more content:

[1] Some people might say that by continuing studying you’re simply delaying your student loan repayment.  Considering most people don’t pay it off in the 30 odd years until any outstanding balance is wiped I think it’s fair to say that this doesn’t ring true.

[2] No council tax is paid on a property if all occupants are students. If you live with one professional they can claim the single occupancy discount of 25% but with two or more professionals the full council tax amount must be paid. If you share in a mixed group it is up to you how you divide it within the group. Ironically given the spirit of this post, last year I voluntarily did pay an equal (third) share of council tax given that my partner was moving to London specifically to live with me…

[3] If you go on to work for a university after your PhD you’ll be enrolled in the USS pension scheme where you’ll usually pay in 9% of your salary and your employer pays in 19%: yes, nineteen! For comparison most often the best private companies may match contributions up to 10%. Pension contributions are often removed from your pay packet before taxes. This effectively leaves you with a smaller salary and hence pay less taxes and national insurance contributions. Between this and your employer’s contributions overall your salary could be “boosted” by quite a bit, around 20% in the USS example, if you consider the pension as part of your long-term salary.

All calculations were carried out using the tax calculator on Martin’s Money Saving Expert. A fantastic website for all things personal finance.

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17 Comments on “PhD Salary UK: How Much Do PhD Students Get Paid Compared to Graduates?”

It’s probably worth factoring in that most HEIs limit PhD students to a maximum I’m of 10hours pw of external work. By my rough estimate, the student would have to earn £25 an hour to make the money you’ve described here. The side hustle, should probably be halved to reflect a more typical salary. Still a fair whack though.

Hi John, yes that’s a good point and I’ll update the post to reflect this. In my experience £25/hour is realistic, at least here at Imperial, though I appreciate it would rarely get fully utilised. Thanks again

Hello Jeff! I am a Sustainability Consultant from India, looking at PhD opportunities in UK. It would be great if we can connect and discuss a bit about your experience and journey. Looking forward!

Hey Akhyata! Great, yes let’s have a chat. I’ve emailed you to arrange it. Best wishes, Jeff

Hi Jeff! I love your article, I’m a pharmacist juggling the idea of a PhD. I would love to take up on your offer to connect.

Hey Kai! Great, I’ll email you now to arrange it.

Hi Jeff, I am a law grad very interested in further study and pursuing a PhD.

I would love the chance to chat to you further about this article and your experience!

Thanks in advance

Hey Clara, Yeah no worries. I’ll send you an email now to discuss.

Hi Jeff, I’m putting together a PhD proposal at the moment and would really appreciate your input on a few things about the process when you have some free time. Cheers, Ben

Hi Ben, sure no problem, I’m happy to try and help. Let’s discuss over email.

Hi Jeff, Thank you for taking the time to write the articles you do. On this particular article, you have saved us all quite a lot of time. With such a minimal difference even without an additional income, it makes a lot of sense, especially with an increase when you graduate.

Those from the UK can take a £24k loan from the Gov (as if they didn’t have enough debt already). Still, it could enable a student to focus more on academia, speeding up the process and increasing the quality of work.

Apologies Jeff, the stipend and student loan are not available at the same time.

Thanks very much for your comments Tyrone. I’m pleased you find the website useful!

If you can get funding, I agree that there isn’t much of a reason to not do a PhD.

I must admit I’ve never looked much at postgraduate loans, in part because I encourage everyone doing a PhD (in STEM at least) to pursue funding. We’re doing PhDs which can help wider society and it doesn’t make sense for people to have to sacrifice even more by adding extra debt if they can avoid it. Interesting to hear that you can’t take out a loan if you have a stipend, thanks for letting me know.

Perhaps of interest to you, there is a post going live tomorrow which should put the length of a PhD in context of someone’s whole career. In short it doesn’t sacrifice much of a career but of course but make a very useful addition!

If there are any other topics you want to see covered please do let me know.

Best wishes.

Tax Free is not a perk. If you are not paying tax in the UK you cannot contribute to your pension. This may not seem important now, but it will later. This is especially important for mature students who can really lose out if there is a break in their NI contributions.

Thanks for your comment Marie.

The point is that normal tax-paying jobs don’t actually pay quite as much more than PhD stipends once you consider tax. I agree that over the long term avoiding paying taxes is neither a good idea because of things like pensions, nor is it socially ethical. But I don’t think there is any harm in taking 3-4 years out for a PhD:

You have to pay NI for a minimum of only 10 years to qualify for some level of state pension in the UK. After this the pension received simply increases linearly with the number of years of contributions, up to a max of 35 years. With retirement age edging up to 70 that gives at least 45 years between undergrad and retirement so most people will comfortably qualify (for now) for the full state pension. I’d argue that there is ample time to earn some tax free money as a PhD student without having to worry about making enough NI contributions. You can even voluntarily pay NI to gain additional qualifying years on your record. More generally I’d suggest also to not rely on receiving the state pension, I’m not personally betting on there even being a state pension by my own retirement (nor do I want to retire at 70+) so it’s always a good idea to build up your own private pension and savings too!

Hi Jeff, I was looking for funded PhD projects in the Marie Curie network and found a few on the EURAXESS website, but they all require a Master’s degree to apply. I was wondering if there is something I am missing or if you know where to find PhD funding opportunities in the Marie Curie network with only a bachelor’s degree. Thank you.

Hi Alex, thanks for your comment. I must admit I’m not an expert on all of the different Marie Curie funding routes available. If you’ve already done an extensive search then it sounds like yes they all may require a Master’s. By the way, when I first wrote this post I believed that all PhDs funded by UK research councils (UKRI) were at the very specific levels as mentioned in the post. However, I now know that there are some exceptions. For example, the Interactive AI CDT here at Bristol pays a stipend of £22,106: quite a bit higher than the standard non-London rate. CDTs such as this one include a foundation year and not everyone has a Master’s, so it may be worth considering schemes such as this. Best wishes, Jeff.

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Graduate engineering salary round up

Sophie White

9 Apr 2024, 11:49

Discover what a typical graduate engineer salary is, how much the top graduate schemes pay and the benefits, perks and bonuses offered by engineering companies.

Supported by:

Royal Air Force

A graduate engineer salary with a high-profile graduate employer in the UK is around the £25,000 to £32,000 mark. Graduate engineer salaries for schemes advertised with targetjobs tend to range between £20,000 and £35,000. A few engineering employers pay graduates more, typically (but not exclusively) oil and gas giants such as BP, who offer a starting salary of £37,000–£48,000 as well as additional joining and wellbeing allowances. Graduate engineer salaries for small and medium-sized or regional employers tend to be slightly lower, often between £20,000 and £25,000.

What is the average starting salary for a graduate engineer?

Data from the Higher Education Graduate Outcomes Statistics, which asked 2019/20 graduates about their jobs approximately a year after they graduated, found that most engineering and technology graduates who entered highly skilled jobs had starting salaries of £27,000¬–£29,999 – one of the highest starting salary levels by degree subject. However, bear in mind that this figure includes all graduates, not just those who had graduate jobs within engineering.

The Institute of Student Employers (ISE) 2022 Recruitment Survey reported that the median starting salary for graduates in the engineering, energy and industry sector was £28,667. However, bear in mind that this study was based on employees of ISE members, who typically pay more than other employers. It also reported the median starting salaries for graduates in the following sectors (covering graduates in all roles, not just engineering):

• Built environment : £25,500
• Health and pharmaceuticals : £28,500
• Retail and fast-moving consumer goods : £26,000

Employer graduate scheme salaries for engineering graduates

A lot of engineering employers simply state 'competitive salary' on their graduate careers websites, but other employers disclose their graduate starting salaries – and you can find some of them here.

The following figures are based on starting salaries for graduate jobs advertised in 2022.

• AECOM graduate salary: reported to be £25,096–£32,601
• Airbus graduate salary: £27,000
• Babcock International Group graduate salary: £30,000–£35000
• BAE Systems graduate salary: £30,000
• Bakkavor graduate salary: £27,000
• BMW Group graduate salary: £31,000
• BP graduate salary: £37,000–£48,000
• Caterpillar graduate salary: reported to be £32,713–£35,817 depending on programme and experience
• Centrica graduate salary: £36,000
• DSTL graduate salary: £25,000–£29,500
• EDF Energy graduate salary: £30,000
• INEOS graduate salary: £36,000
• Jaguar Land Rover graduate salary: £29,000
• Manufacturing Technology Centre graduate salary: £30,000
• MBDA graduate salary: £30,000
• Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains graduate salary: £33,000
• Ministry of Defence – Submarine Delivery Agency graduate salary: £27,625
• Mott MacDonald graduate salary: £28,700–£30,900
• National Grid graduate salary: £30,278–£31,379 depending on qualifications
• Network Rail graduate salary: £26,500
• Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK graduate salary: £30,000-£31,000 depending on location
• Nuclear Graduates graduate salary: £26,000
• Raytheon graduate salary: £28,000
• Rolls-Royce graduate salary: c. £29,000
• Severn Trent graduate salary: £29,056
• Toyota graduate salary: £32,088
• UK Power Networks graduate salary: £31,199
• Unilever graduate salary: £32,000
• United Utilities graduate salary: £29,500

Will I get paid more if I have a postgraduate degree?

Some engineering employers do pay their graduates more if they have a master’s degree or PhD. National Grid , for example, offers graduates with a master’s degree a slightly higher starting salary (£31,379 v. £30,278 for a bachelor’s degree). It may be that a postgraduate degree also boosts your future salary. Back in 2013, the Engineering Council’s Survey of Registered Engineers and Technicians 2013, found that the median basic income for engineers educated to graduate level was £56,000 whereas for those educated to postgraduate level, the figure was £62,000 – but there hasn’t been a similar survey since.

What benefits and bonuses can I get from an engineering company?

A number of engineering companies offer their graduates appealing benefits and cash incentives. We’ve rounded up some of the most tempting.

Welcome payments

AKA joining bonus, welcome bonus, welcome package, golden hello, settling-in allowance. Whatever it’s called, it's a lump sum that a number of engineering graduate employers offer to students on joining. Others split it into two or more payments when their graduates achieve certain milestones.

The Royal Navy offers a joining bonus of £27,000 to graduates in certain roles, plus an extra £5,000 for earning their ‘dolphins’. Meanwhile, the construction consultancy Atkins, an SNC-Lavalin business gives £5,000 per graduate, split into two payments: half on joining and half on achieving professional qualification, typically three to five years later. Centrica , meanwhile, is not far behind at £3,000.

Rolls-Royce, Frazer Nash, Jaguar Land Rover and Network Rail all offer a £2,000 joining bonus, while Bakkavor and Caterpillar offer £1,000. Other employers, including Mace , also offer a welcome bonus but don't disclose how much it is.

Performance-related bonuses

Many employers offer discretionary and performance-related bonuses once in the workplace. They include:

• Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains
• Max Fordham
• UK Power Networks

Meanwhile, both Arup & and Mott MacDonald highlight that, as employee-owned businesses, staff share a proportion of the organisations' profits and have a say in how the business is run. Other employers, such as Rolls-Royce , Babcock International Group and National Grid , offer share purchase schemes for their staff.

Getting behind the wheel

If you see yourself behind the wheel of a flash car, Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains offers a car lease scheme to its employees. BMW Group and Jaguar Land Rover offer discounts on car purchases for staff and their family members while Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK offers car ownership schemes.

It's not just automotive manufacturers that offer car-related perks. Kloeckner Metals offers a car lease scheme and Laing O'Rourke gives its graduates a car allowance.

Transport discounts

OK, so the 07:18 to London Paddington doesn’t have the same glamour factor as putting the latest Jaguar through its paces. But a season ticket could set you back thousands of pounds a year, so wouldn’t it be nice if your employer paid for it?

If you take up a graduate job with a transport company, they might do. Transport for London provides two free Oyster cards and 75% off National Rail tickets for travel beyond the TfL network. Network Rail also offers subsidies of up to 75% on rail and underground season tickets.

Some other engineering companies, such as Frazer Nash and Colas Rail , also offer season ticket loans.

Other perks

Some employers also offer benefits designed to support you mentally and physically. For example, Babcock International Group , Kloeckner Metals and Gist offer free employee assistance programmes, while WSP and Laing O'Rourke provide 24-hour virtual GP services. Mace , ISG and Expleo offer access to health club and gym membership discounts, while Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains and Unilever have onsite gyms.

If personal development is important for you, Nuclear Graduates gives its graduates their own personal training budget and pays for membership to two professional institutions. Previous graduates have spent their budgets on attending conferences all over the world and training courses back in the UK. BMW Group also offers funding for professional and vocational training and UK Power Networks pays for membership with the Institute of Engineers and Technology.

Finally, if you want to be rewarded for doing your bit for the environment, numerous employers, including Frazer Nash , Rolls-Royce , Nuclear Graduates , Babcock International Group , take part in cycle to work schemes that offer discounts on bikes and cycling accessories.

What can a graduate engineer expect in terms of salary progression?

Many engineering employers state that their graduates can expect to see their salary reviewed – and potentially increased – on a regular basis. How much your salary will increase over the course of your graduate scheme will depend on the individual employer, though. The ISE 2022 Development Survey suggested that an average graduate salary in the engineering, energy and industry sector would typically progress from a starting salary of £28,000 to £38,000 after three years.

What is my earning potential as an engineer?

To give you an idea of what you might earn in the future, the 2022 salary survey by The Engineer , which looks at all engineers and not just recent graduates, reported a mean average salary level of £58,108, which was an increase of 2.3% on the mean average from the previous year.

The average engineering salary varies by area of expertise, location and sector. Engineers working in the manufacturing sector typically earn the highest salaries, with the average salary of respondents who were manufacturing engineers coming in at £65,340, according to The Engineer 's 2022 survey.

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Engineering graduate schemes 2024

Whatever your specialism, a range of structured engineering graduate schemes are offered by many of the leading names in the industry, providing you with a chance to learn on the job

According to The Graduate Market in 2023 , a report from High Fliers that surveyed major engineering and industrial sector employers featuring in The Times Top 100, graduate recruiters expected to fill 3,555 positions in 2023 - a 34% increase on the previous year.

The research also found that the volume of applications received in 2022/23 was nearly a tenth (9%) higher than the year before, showing how engineering graduates were eager to fill these emerging roles.

What engineering graduate schemes are available?

The primary branches of engineering can be divided into:

• chemical engineering - biomolecular, materials, process.
• civil engineering - environmental, structural, transport.
• electrical engineering - electronic, computer, power, renewable energy.
• mechanical engineering - aerospace, automotive, energy, industrial, manufacturing.

There are also engineering disciplines that relate to other sectors, such as:

• agricultural
• building and construction
• cyber security
• information
• transport (railway).

Most graduate vacancies will fall into one of these categories with engineering graduate schemes available at general as well as a more specialised levels.

In addition to opportunities to work with the biggest firms, you'll also find that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) also take on engineering graduates as they seek to prepare their businesses for the future.

Read our overview of the UK's engineering industry .

Which companies run engineering graduate schemes?

Many large UK employers in a variety of sectors run engineering graduate schemes, with streams focusing on the following areas:

• Accenture - digital engineering and manufacturing, and modern engineering.
• Airbus - general engineering and the wider business.
• Amey - civil, electrical and telecoms engineering, plus consulting.
• Arup - structural and civil engineering, and transport and ground engineering.
• BAE Systems - systems and software engineering and naval architecture.
• BBC - research and development (R&D), and software engineering.
• BP - a wide range of programmes, including chemical and process, construction, electrical, mechanical and project engineering.
• Dunbia - mechanical engineering, with projects involving electrical, mechanical and automation engineering.
• EDF Energy - nuclear engineering.
• GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) - engineering stream of its Future Leaders Graduate Programme.
• Jaguar Land Rover - software and electronics engineering, complex integration systems, hardware and mechatronics, plus industrial operations (manufacturing engineering).
• Mott MacDonald - civil and structural engineering and electrical engineering.
• Network Rail - civil, electrical, electronic and mechanical engineering.
• Rolls-Royce - automotive engineering and technology.
• RWE Generation UK - nuclear engineering.
• Sellafield Ltd - design engineering, engineering and maintenance.
• Sky - software engineering.
• Virgin Atlantic - engineering services and production.

What will I do on an engineering graduate programme?

By joining a more general or management focused engineering scheme, you'll typically get to spend time in a number of departments. This allows you to build up an understanding of the wider business and awareness of how each part functions.

This will still provide you with a platform to put your engineering ability to good use. For example, Network Rail offers a two-year scheme for aspiring mechanical engineers. During four rotational placements you'll gain a broad perspective of the railway and learn about the products, processes and systems that help to make it function.

The Rolls-Royce programme is similar in that you'll work across the lifecycle of the manufacturer's products and services, including its civil aerospace and defence operations. As a graduate, you could be working on the architecture and design side of things, innovation and concept development or testing.

On the other hand, if you land a place on the software engineering graduate scheme at Accenture, you'll be tasked with designing, building, testing and deploying innovative technical solutions for the organisation's clients.

What are the entry requirements?

Many graduate employers will expect a 2:2 degree rather than insist on a 2:1, but for engineering programmes this usually comes with other specific requirements.

For example, your degree subject will typically need to be related to the nature of the stream you're applying for, such as civil, mechanical or electrical engineering.

To gain a place on the Accenture programme you'll need a degree in a related field, such as computer science or software engineering.

For BAE Systems' systems engineer scheme, you'll require a Bachelors or Masters degree in a STEM (science, technology, engineering or maths) subject, such as aerospace, automotive, mechanical or structural engineering.

Additionally, you may be expected to hold an accredited degree with an industry body such as the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) .

For instance, Network Rail seeks candidates with a 2:2 in an Institution of Engineering Technology (IET) accredited degree for its electrical and electronic engineering scheme. They also point out that graduates will need to be flexible when it comes to occasionally travel, as training will be held at various locations.

In terms of skillset, they look for graduates who are:

• good at time management
• hardworking
• great communicators
• highly motivated
• logical thinkers
• problem solvers
• resourceful.

When and how should I apply?

With the majority of graduate programmes starting in September, you'll find that the application process for the next year's intake starts in the autumn and runs until the end of the year or January.

For example, to join Jaguar Land Rover's two-year engineering programme, you'll apply between September and November for a start date in the September of the following year.

To apply, you'll typically need to submit a CV and cover letter followed by an assessment centre and various stages of interview .

Read more about applying for graduate schemes in general.

How much will I be paid?

Here's what employers are offering to engineering graduates in 2024:

• Accenture - £33,500 per year, plus a £10,000 bonus (Digital Engineering and Manufacturing Programme), or £27,500, plus a £5,000 bonus (Modern Engineering Graduate Programme) in all locations except London, where the starting salary is £33,500 plus a £10,000 bonus.
• BAE Systems - £34,000, plus a £2,000 welcome payment and optional 20% salary advance.
• EDF Energy - £35,000, with annual bonus.
• Jaguar Land Rover - £31,000, with a £2,000 joining bonus, rising to £38,000 on completion of the graduate programme.
• Rolls-Royce - £29,000, plus a £2,000 joining bonus.
• RWE Generation UK - £37,937, plus a £2,000 joining bonus.

Find out more

• Explore engineering apprenticeships .
• Consider how to become an engineer .
• Read about opportunities for women in engineering .

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Engineering PhD

University of gloucestershire.

What is Engineering Undertake postgraduate research while drawing on a wide range of expertise from more than 50 academic staff. There’s a Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £5,100 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree: £3,400 per year (UK)

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City, university of london.

Working alongside leading experts, you will research topics at the cutting edge of electrical and electronic engineering. Develop Read more...

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• 3 years Part time degree: £3,180 per year (UK)

PhD Medical Engineering

University of hull.

The challenges facing the world today are complex and require a multidisciplinary approach. As a general engineering department, we are Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,712 per year (UK)
• 5 years Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

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The Faculty of Science and Engineering is based at Thornton Science Park – a major research and innovation hub for the Northwest. The Read more...

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PhD Postgraduate research opportunities in Electronics and Electrical Engineering

Liverpool john moores university.

Excellent research opportunities await in the Dept. of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, enabling you to work at the forefront of Read more...

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• 7 years Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

MPhil/PhD in Engineering

Manchester metropolitan university.

RESEARCH CULTURE You will join a creative team of researchers committed to pursuing rigorous applied and fundamental research. Our Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,850 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree

PhD Postgraduate Research in Engineering

University of east anglia uea.

We are a top tier, research-led university and are committed to making a substantial impact on the global challenges facing society. Our Read more...

• 6 years Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

PhD in Electronic and Electrical Engineering

University of bath.

Study a PhD in a department dedicated to exploring the latest research from advanced sensors and bio-technologies to power, and radio and Read more...

• 2 years Full time degree: £4,800 per year (UK)
• 3 years Part time degree: £2,400 per year (UK)

PhD Plasma Surface Engineering

Sheffield hallam university.

Course summary Undertake a period of intensive, supervised study as part of Sheffield Hallam's research community Study at the Read more...

PhD - Faculty of Science & Technology

Bournemouth university.

From Archaeology & Anthropology to Environmental & Biological Sciences, Technology, Assistive Technologies, Design & Engineering, or Read more...

Engineering - Research, MPhil/PhD

Faculty of engineering & science, university of greenwich.

Enjoy world-class specialist laboratories and a diverse community when you study a research degree in Engineering (MPhil/PhD) at the Read more...

Electronic Engineering PhD

Royal holloway, university of london.

About us The innovative and exciting new Department of Electronic Engineering links excellent engineering with the ingenious application Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £4,786 per year (UK)

MPhil PhD Architecture, Computing and Engineering

University of east london.

Studying for an PhD with UEL’s School of Architecture, Computing and Engineering (ACE) will push you to the limit - and you’ll be Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £5,740 per year (UK)
• 5 years Part time degree: £2,870 per year (UK)

PhD Computing and Electronic Systems

University of essex.

Our research activity and supervision for PhD Computing and Electronic Systems is concentrated in the following principal research areas Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £9,375 per year (UK)

Engineering PhD,Mphil - Aerospace

University of leicester.

The School of Engineering offers supervision for the degrees of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) - full-time and part-time Master of Philosophy Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,786 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree: £2,393 per year (UK)

Electrical and Electronic Engineering PhD

Newcastle university.

The School of Engineering offers postgraduate research degrees at PhD level in all of our major research areas. Our PhD in Electrical and Read more...

• 36 months Full time degree: £4,712 per year (UK)
• 72 months Part time degree: £2,356 per year (UK)

University of Nottingham

The Electrical and Electronic Engineering PhD brings innovation in science and technology to applications ranging from the generation and Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £5,100 per year (UK)

PhD Mechanical Engineering

University of plymouth.

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is awarded for a research study, normally over a three-year period, which makes a significant Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,500 per year (UK)
• 4 years Part time degree: £3,030 per year (UK)

PhD/MPhil/MRes Acoustics and Audio Engineering Postgraduate Research

University of salford.

The University of Salford is an international centre for audio and acoustics research. Since 1958, our academics and researchers have led Read more...

• 3 years Full time degree: £4,780 per year (UK)
• 5 years Part time degree: £2,390 per year (UK)

Micro- and NanoMaterials and Technologies EngD

University of surrey.

Why choose this programme The Engineering Doctorate (EngD) in Micro- and NanoMaterials and Technologies (MiNMaT) is a four-year doctoral Read more...

• 54 months Full time degree

1-20 of 169 courses

Course type:

• Distance learning Doctorate
• Full time Doctorate
• Online Doctorate
• Part time Doctorate

Qualification:

Universities:.

• University of Warwick
• University of West London
• Royal College of Music
• University of Portsmouth
• University of Sussex
• University of Brighton
• Royal College of Art
• University of Sunderland
• Birmingham City University
• UCL (University College London)
• University of Kent
• University of Lincoln
• Loughborough University
• Imperial College London
• University of Oxford
• University of Birmingham
• Anglia Ruskin University
• University of York
• University of Manchester
• Aston University, Birmingham

Related Subjects:

Average graduate salaries by university and subject: Where to go and what to study to earn top dollar

By: William Turvill

Going to university at Oxford or Cambridge pays. But it doesn’t pay as much as the London School of Economics or City University London. But it pays a lot more than going to Cardiff Metropolitan University.

And if you want to earn top dollar as a graduate it’s also worth aiming for an economics degree rather than fine arts and design.

Salary benchmarking site Emolument.com has compiled a ranking of 84 UK universities by analysing 2,400 salaries from graduates (defined as those with less than two years of experience in the workplace) with bachelor degree.

It marks the latest in a long line of graduate pay studies undertaken by Emolument, including research into which universities produce the most business leaders and which MBA courses are best for pay .

London School of Economics grads can expect to earn an average of £38,000, slightly above £36,000 at City University. Cambridge (£35,000) pips Oxford to third place (£34,000). Bath, Edinburgh and Durham, with £33,000, £32,000 and £31,000, come next in the ranking.

Cardiff Metropolitan props up the table, with an average graduate salary of £18,000, slightly behind Liverpool John Moores, Goldsmiths, Anglia Ruskin, University of Central Lancashire, Queen’s University Belfast and Aberystwyth on £19,000.

As for degree subjects, economics pays £33,000, ahead of engineering in second with £28,000. Fine arts and design is at the bottom of the table, with £19,000, just behind English literature and media, marketing and communication, both of £21,000.

Read more : Three-quarters of millennials will never pay off their student loan

And here is what you need to study…

Economics: £33,000

Engineering: £28,000

Management & Strategy: £27,000

Mathematics & Statistics: £27,000

Computer Sciences: £27,000

Accounting, Business & Finance: £27,000

Physics, Life Sciences & Healthcare: £27,000

Law: £26,000

Modern Languages: £26,000

Humanities (History, Geography, Politics…): £25,000

Chemistry & Natural Sciences: £23,000

Psychology: £23,000

Media, Marketing & Communication: £21,000

English Literature: £21,000

Fine Arts & Design: £19,000

Read more : This PE firm's slashed grad salaries – it's buying them houses instead

Subscribe to the City A.M. newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Graduate Statistics for the UK

Graduates make a huge impact in the UK economy, job market and workplace, so we wanted to record all of the facts and figures surrounding graduates in one place.

We’ve scoured a huge amount of UK graduate information sources to provide you with all of the latest graduate statistics.

If you want to know the current number of graduates in the UK, the average graduate salary, or which universities have the lowest drop-out rates, and more… It’s all below.

Key UK Graduate Statistics

• As of 2023 , estimates show there will be 36.4 million graduates in the UK .
• Undergraduate figures increased by 0.4% from 527,070 in 2021 to 529,360 in 2022.
• Recent graduates (2020 onwards) currently face an unemployment rate of 12.7% , which equates to over 96,000 unemployed graduates each academic year.
• Universities in the UK awarded 133,995 first-class honours qualifications in 2022 , a 14.1% decrease from the 155,955 awarded in 2021.
• Business studies graduates achieved the highest number of qualified degrees, with a total of 175,670 graduates in 2022.
• Women made up 57.6% of higher education graduates in 2022, with 530,170 women graduating.
• On average, 6 in 100 (6.3%) students in the UK drop out of university, an average of 48,548 students each year since 2014.
• Male graduates typically at the age of 25 earn 5% more than the average female graduate
• The average student loan debt is £46,150 in England and takes and average of 29 years and 4 months to pay off.

Get the latest stats and studies delivered to your inbox

Get our studies on jobs, salaries, recruitment and more as soon as they are published, number of graduates per year in the uk.

In the UK, there are over 800,000 undergraduates and postgraduates leaving higher education each year. Importantly, this is the number of people graduating and does not include those who do not successfully complete their degree .[1]

“There were an estimated 36.4 million graduates in the UK in 2022”

In 2017 (the latest study of this kind), 42% of adults aged 21 to 64 years held a graduate degree, meaning there were over 34 million graduates then. [2] Using annual graduate figures, estimates would show that the figure in 2021 would be around 36.4 million graduates in the country.

Undergraduate numbers have steadily increased in the 2010s. The following graph shows this increase in the number of graduates per year in the UK.

Undergraduate figures increased by 7% from 492,355 in 2019/20 to 527,070 in 2020/21.

However, from 2020/21 to the 2021/22 academic year, undergraduate figures increased by only 0.4% from 527,070 to 529,360.

Similar to undergraduates, postgraduate numbers also increased in 2020/21 by 12%. The sharp increase in both undergraduate and postgraduate figures in 2021 is likely due to the drop seen in the 2019/20 year as a result of the pandemic. Postgraduate numbers saw a similar increase in 2021/22 with a 12.9% increase on the previous year, from 345,700 to 390,585.

Gender split of graduates in the UK

The table below shows comparisons of UK graduates by gender from 2019 to 2022: [34]

Female graduates made the largest contribution to the total number of graduates over the previous five years. In fact, females made up 57.6% of higher education students in 2021/22, totalling 530,170. The number of females studying in higher education has increased by 13.5% since 2019/20.

Male numbers have also steadily increased from 332,925 in 2019/20 to 387,690 in 2021/22, a 16.4% increase in male graduates. Graduates who identify as other genders have also increased since 2019/20 from 1,000 to 2,080 in total. A large increase of around 108%. [34]

Which course has the highest number of graduates?

In the UK, typically business studies is the course with the highest number of graduates at a total of 141,125 graduates achieving a degree in this selected field in 2020. In second place, science subjects allied to medicine and biological sciences awarded 159,520 students with a degree in that same year. [1]

At the other end of the scale, veterinary science courses typically have the fewest number of graduates in the UK with just 2,480 graduates entering the market in 2022.

Undergraduate enrolment by ethnicity

The vast majority (71.5%) of undergraduates are white, while Asian students account for the second-largest demographic at 12.9%. The third-largest ethnicity demographic in 2022 was Black students (8.5%), followed by just under 1 in 20 (4.8%) who were from mixed ethnic backgrounds, as well as 2.3% who were from other minority ethnic groups.

Over a six-year period prior to 2022, the percentage of Asian, Black, Mixed and other ethnic groups beginning an undergraduate course has increased from 24% to 28.5%. [3]

Black students have seen the biggest increase in postgraduate study as figures rose from 5.8% in 2010/11 to 8.3% in 2019/20. Postgraduate entrants who were Asian rose by 2.4% from 9.4% over the same period.[4]

Graduate achievements by ethnicity

A higher proportion of white graduates (36.1%) complete their degree with a first-class qualification than any other ethnicity, closely followed by those with mixed ethnicity (31.3%).

The data below breaks down degree achievement by ethnicity:

According to the UK government, the percentage gap decreased from 26.3% to 20.0% between white and Black graduates getting a first-class or upper second degree from 2015 to 2022. The data suggests the trend is shifting but could take many more years to get to similar levels. [5]

Student dropout rates in the UK

On average, 6 in 100 (6.3%) students in the UK drop out of university. Since 2007/08, dropout rates have decreased by 1.1%, from 7.3% in 2008, to 6.2% a decade later. [6] This would mean an average of 48,548 students each year drop out.

Universities with the highest dropout rates in the UK

The graph below shows the universities with the highest dropout rates:

The university with the highest dropout rate as of the 2019/20 year is Arden University with a dropout rate of 32.3%. This is followed by Point Blank Music School at 19.2% [7]

Universities with the lowest dropout rates

The universities with the lowest dropout rates in the country as of 2019/20 are the Royal Veterinary College (0.4%), the University of Cambridge (0.6%), and the University of St Andrews (0.6%). [7]

Studies show that the majority of universities with the lowest dropout rates can be found in the top 20 on the Complete University Guide’s league table. St George’s and the University of London are just two universities that have one of the lowest dropout scores and don’t sit in the top 20 league table.

Undergraduate courses with the highest dropout rates

IT and computing degrees, such as computer science, have the highest dropout rates with 9.2% not making it.

Undergraduate courses with the highest dropout rates were as follows: [7]

In 2020, 29,360 students in the UK deferred their studies for a gap year due to the pandemic, a 9.4% increase compared to 2019. [8]

Which universities have the best grades in the UK?

Overall, universities in the UK awarded 133,995 first-class honours qualifications in 2022, a 14.1% decrease from the previous year where 155,955 were awarded.

We ranked data based on which universities awarded the most first class honours awards in 2022 below, with the University of Manchester coming out on top with 2,855 given. [9]

Universities with the most first-class degrees in the UK

The University of Leeds ranked second awarding 2,750 first-class honours classifications.

Overall, 197,345 upper second class honours qualifications were awarded in 2020/2021, a 4.1% increase compared to the year before.

UK universities with top employment figures

The University of Cambridge has the highest employability ranking for the 2022 academic year, with the University of Oxford coming in second.

The table below shows the UK universities with the highest employability rank in the 2022 academic year. [32]

Which universities have the best career prospects?

Five institutions based in London ranked in the top ten for the best career prospects in the UK.  Imperial College London scored the highest (95%) based on the success of graduates after leaving university with the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) scoring slightly lower at 91%. [10]

The graph below shows the top ten universities in the UK ranked by their career prospects:

Best UK universities for business founders

Whilst many graduates full of ambition go on to secure a full-time role, many also opt for a different path and become business founders. The best UK university for the proportion of business founders was found to be the University of the Arts London (15.83%), followed by LSE (14.03%).[11]

The table below shows the top ten universities for producing business founders ranked by the percentage of founders that came from there:

The percentage of business founders is made from the number of graduates from that institution who go on to become business founders.

Graduate schemes: what are they?

Graduate schemes are designed to help someone gain industry experience whilst earning a competitive salary. The aim of the scheme is to allow new candidates to explore various areas of a business in order to broaden their knowledge whilst following a structured program, leading to a successful career for many.

Companies such as Google, KMPG, NHS, and the UK Civil Service are just a few of many large corporations offering graduate schemes on a yearly basis in Britain.

Who is eligible for a graduate scheme?

Graduate schemes require a minimum grade in order to be considered for the role. In most cases, a 2.1 or higher is the grade most companies will look for when recruiting new candidates .

How many graduate schemes do students apply for?

Recent reports show that students on average were applying up to 29 graduates schemes with different employers.

“The NHS receives an average of 85 applications for every graduate position”

In terms of NHS graduate schemes, reports show the public health service receives around 85 applications for each graduate position; they have 17,000 applications for just 200 spaces. [12]

On average, reports show that overall graduate job applications have increased by 41% from 2020 to 2021. [13]

What is the average graduate scheme salary?

The average graduate scheme salary is £30,362 and ranges between £25,000 and £32,000 according to Glassdoor [14] .

If you require more information on this topic, our research team has also compiled a complete analysis of graduate salaries in the UK   including a comparison to non-graduates and a variety of job-specific data.

How much do graduate jobs pay by region?

As you would expect, London pays the highest starting salary for graduates at £31,423, with the East of England following at £26,216. In the UK, Northern Ireland pays the least at an average of £22,143 to start. [15]

The table below shows the average starting salary for graduates around the UK:

Graduate starting salaries can clearly vary with a clear financial divide between the North and South of the UK. The total average salary in the UK is £29,669 as of 2023, therefore, only London graduates meet and exceed this.

Which graduate schemes pay the highest?

The highest-paid graduate scheme in the UK is a private finance role for Rothschilds, with a salary of £65,000 followed by investment banking positions with J.P. Morgan, who will pay graduates £58,000 a year. [16]

Most commonly, the highest-paid graduate schemes sit within finance and banking and often exceed the average amount by tens of thousands of pounds.

How many undergraduates gain work experience?

Studies show that the majority (64%) of undergraduates undertake some period of unpaid work experience, with 41% of this group doing so for at least one month. [17]

In 2020, that would mean around 512,227 (64%) students did some period of work experience before entering the job market as graduates, and 210,014 did so unpaid.

“Over 210,000 students work unpaid during their degrees each year”

A separate study from 1995 showed that 82% of undergraduates had some work experience during their degree, comparatively this could indicate modern students are less likely to do work experience. [18]

In terms of employability, most (94%) interns are offered job roles once they have completed work experience, therefore, it is a valuable decision for students to add to their CV. [17]

How long does it take graduates to secure a job?

Securing a job role is a process many students start prior to graduating with many beginning applications in an attempt to begin full-time work as soon as possible once qualified.

Studies show the time it takes for graduates to secure a job varies anywhere between three to 18 months.

Graduate outcomes and employment figures

In 2023, 82% of UK graduates from 2021 were in full-time or part-time employment. That’s around 314,450 graduates employed from that year. [33]

“A typical graduate cohort will see around 82% enter into employment or further studies within a year”

Below is an example of typical graduate outcomes showing the many different paths students choose once they have completed their degrees. The data refers to the graduates who graduating in 2020 and what they were doing when data was analysed in 2022.

Using 2021 graduates the data shows a typical outcome for a year’s cohort of students: the majority 89% are in some form of education or employment, a further 5% go into caring for loved ones and/or travel, while the remaining 5% are unemployed, or unknown.

Degrees with the highest employment in the UK

Degrees related to professional services, tech , and science, had the highest percentage of high-skilled graduates employed in the UK at 93%, closely followed by information and communication professionals (90%).[19] Therefore, the degrees with the highest employment in the UK, are likely those in I.T., tech, and science related fields.

Below is a table which displays the percentage of graduates and/or postgraduates working in various professional industries by the level of skill, giving some indication of employment by degree subject:

9 in 10 (90%) postgraduates who completed their course in 2018/2019 were in high-skilled jobs in 2021. In comparison to this, undergraduates equated to 69% suggesting that postgraduate study makes a prospective employee more likely to be hired.

How many graduates are self-employed?

In 2021, 13,275 graduates (from 2018 onwards) were self-employed , using graduate figures, that would mean only 0.42% of graduates from four academic years became self-employed after graduating.[19]

The table below demonstrates graduate numbers (from two academic years) for self-employment, and those running their own business, or working on creating projects.

What is the average graduate salary?

The average graduate salary in the UK is £30,000 and has been this way since 2015. As we’ve discussed, this varies per region, and graduate schemes often inflate the average when compared to an entry-level role outside of such schemes.

Data from the UK government states that as of 2022, the median nominal graduate salary in the UK is £38,500, however, when adjusted for inflation, the median real-terms salary for graduates is £26,500. [30]

UK graduate salaries per subject area

Science-based subjects such as medicine, dentistry, subjects allied to medicine, biological science, and veterinary sciences pay the highest salary to graduates who achieve a first-class degree and are highly skilled with starting salaries ranging between £31,000 to £35,000. [19]

A medium skilled dentistry role could be a dental assistant, while the high-skilled role in the field could be a dentist. This designation is not a choice we have made in the analysis and comes from the various data sources.

For most roles, if graduates possess a lower range of skills when starting out, the average salary earned is £18,000 with the potential to progress as skillsets are improved.

Best universities for high salaries in the UK

The best university for high salaries is the University College of Estate Management (UCEM), as 29% of its graduates receive a salary of £51,000 or more. This is a remote learning institution specialising in construction and real estate graduates, leading to roles that have higher salaries.

London School of Economics (LSE) is the next highest university with 12% of its graduates hitting the £51,000+ salary mark. [13] In 2021, LSE was offering 41 undergraduate courses therefore not having a specialised pool of undergraduates like UCEM.

The following is a list of the top ten universities ranked by the percentage of graduates earning above £51,000:

The highest published graduate starting salaries for 2021 include law firms White & Case (£50,000), Clifford Chance (£48,000), Baker McKenzie (£48,000), Linklaters (£47,000), technology company TPP (£45,000) and retailer Aldi (£44,000.) [13]

Other studies [31] on universities with the highest graduate salaries have shown:

• Graduates of Bayes Business School (formerly Cass) earn an average of £52,167 five years after graduating.
• Students leaving the University of Oxford can expect an average salary of £47,618 after five years.
• Imperial College graduates earn an average of £45,741 per year after five years.
• The average salary five years after graduation for students from the University of Cambridge is £44,190.
• University College London graduates achieve an average salary of £40,855 five years after graduation.

Gender pay gap for graduates

Male full-time high-skilled graduates who obtained first-class degree qualifications and entered full-time paid employment in the UK in 2019 were paid on average £26,000 compared to high skilled females who were paid £24,500. [19]

On average, male graduates at the age of 25 earn 5% more than the average female graduate. By age 30, the gender pay gap in annual earnings stands at 25%. [20]

The graph below demonstrates the portion of graduates and their earnings for men and women. [19] Studies do not offer comparative information for anyone identifying as other than male or female.

Lower salary bands on average have a higher percentage of women earning more than men. Whilst an average of 6% more women than men earned more in the salary bracket £24,000 – £26,999, it seems that the gender pay gap widens as the salary band increases. In particular, 7% of males earn £51,000+ compared to just 3% of females.

How many unemployed graduates in the UK?

The graduate unemployment rate is 12.7% for graduates who obtained a degree in recent years (2020 onwards). In 2021, the graduate unemployment rate was 12%, meaning the rate has decreased by 0.7 percentage points.[30]

With the rate of 12%, this would mean, in recent years, there are approximately 96,041 unemployed graduates each year in the UK, based off 2021’s academic year.

When looking at the data regionally, we can see that England, Wales, and Scotland have an average graduate unemployment rate of 5%, while Northern Ireland has just 3%. [2]

How many jobs do graduates apply for?

Most graduates who apply for graduate schemes and job roles will never receive a response from the majority of their applications. With most graduates applying on average to around 25 job roles, they find that the ratio of receiving an invitation to an interview to job applications is just over twenty to one .

Degrees with the highest unemployment in the UK

There are some degree subjects that are more likely to land you a job when you graduate than others. One study analysed the employability of different degrees by asking students to give a rating on the job prospects available to them after graduating.

Media and cultural studies came out as the worst degree subject for employment with students rating it a 2.5/5 on average. As a broad degree, students found that jobs in media were highly competitive and applicants with more specific skills generally fared better.

The degree subject with the second lowest employability rating was European studies (2.8/5). Similar to international relations (3/5), graduates in this sector are often competing for a small number of roles in global organisations, making it a tough job market.

Other subjects that students rated poorly for job prospects were Psychology (2.9/5), which often requires further study to obtain a job, and civil engineering (3.1/5) which saw a 50% decrease in new apprentices in 50% as the sector has struggled to offer new jobs.[28]

UK graduates and Covid-19

The pandemic had a detrimental impact on the opportunities available and career prospects for everyone, but especially graduates who entered the market at the time.

As many were ordered to stay indoors, 75% of graduates noticed a fall in the number of available opportunities in 2020 and 2021, with many (72.6%) graduates feeling less confident about their future. [38] According to the University of Southampton, 83% said that the pandemic had a detrimental impact on graduates’ employment prospects with most graduates saying they had to rethink their future (79.4%). [21]

Furthermore, the ONS found that UK graduates reported a lower life satisfaction score (6.7) than people of their typical age (6.9) and average adults (7.0) during that time. [22]

The pandemic also saw many more graduates in roles that aren’t typically filled by people with degrees. In the UK in 2020, 25.5% of graduates were in a role that was requiring skills less than they had gained in their degree, referred to as a ‘skills mismatch’, this was 5% more in 2019 during the pandemic. [2]

Student finance statistics in UK

Fees to study at university were first introduced in 1998. In 2006, a new system was introduced which would make studying for a degree more accessible. The cost to study was raised to £3,000 in England which would be classed as a tuition loan. As fees gradually increased, the Government raised fees further to £9,000 per year in 2012.

Whilst the pandemic caused record unemployment, graduates were also unable to make repayments. [40] In fact, 201,900 graduates (From various academic years) failed to make repayments through their salary in 2020-21.

How much is the average student loan debt in the UK?

As students in England pay £9,000 a year to study for their chosen degree, they will incur an average of over £46,150 of student loan debt in the 2021/22 year.

In comparison, the average student loan debt varies in other regions, for example, Wales has an average of £33,830, and Northern Ireland has £24,360. Scotland has the lowest average student loan debt at £14,840, this is due to Scottish students not having to pay tuition fees. [23]

When does a student debt have to be paid off?

Whilst the new system implemented in 2012 allows students to defer their student loans during their study, these debts still have to be repaid within 30 years.

The table below shows a graduates minimum earnings (before tax) to have to pay back their student debts:

As you can see, England has the highest repayment threshold allowing graduates to earn up to £27,295 a year before having to start making repayments. In comparison, Northern Ireland has the lowest threshold with graduates beginning repayments once earning £19,895.

The average annual repayment via HMRC per region in order was England (£930), Northern Ireland (£840), Wales (£800), and finally, Scotland (£660.)

How long on average does it take a graduate to pay off their student loan?

As students start making repayment at different thresholds, the average time to pay off a student loan may vary per person. A study revealed that a student loan takes an average of 29 years and 4 months to pay off with the average debt being just under £48k in England. [25]

According to the UK Government, it is expected that just 25% of current full-time undergraduates will repay their full student loan. [26]

Outstanding student debt

The Students Loan Company states that as of 2021, outstanding student loan debt in the United Kingdom reached over 177 billion British pounds starting from 2013/14 when student debts were increased to £9,000 a year.

“Estimates say by 2050, there will be £560 billion of student loan debt in the UK”

England owes the majority of this debt standing at £160 billion with Scotland totalling £6.5 billion, Wales £6.2 billion, and Northern Ireland £4.1 billion. By the middle of the century, the Government predicts that the value of outstanding loans will be around £560 billion. [27]

In 2021, 1,117,000 students took a student loan. The value of student loans equalled £15,908 million.

[1] HESA: Higher Education Student Statistics: UK https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students

[2] ONS: Graduates’ labour market outcomes during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/articles/graduateslabourmarketoutcomesduringthecoronaviruscovid19pandemicoccupationalswitchesandskillmismatch/2021-03-08

[3] Gov: First year entrants onto undergraduate study

https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/education-skills-and-training/higher-education/first-year-entrants-onto-undergraduate-and-postgraduate-degrees/latest/

Accessed February 2024

[4] Office for Students: Equality, diversity, and student characteristics data.

https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/data-and-analysis/equality-diversity-and-student-characteristics-data/

[5] UK Gov: Undergraduate degree results

https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/education-skills-and-training/higher-education/undergraduate-degree-results/latest

[6] Debut: Degree Dropouts

https://debut.careers/degree-dropouts/

[7] HESA: UK Higher Education Performance Indicators –

https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/performance-indicators/non-continuation

[8] Teaching Abroad Direct: Gap Year Statistics UK

https://www.teachingabroaddirect.co.uk/blog/gap-year-statistics-uk

[9] HESA: HE qualifiers by HE provider and level of qualification obtained 2014/15 to 2021/22

https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students/table-16

[10] Complete University Guide: University League Tables 2022

https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?sortby=graduate-prospects

[11] Hitachi Capital Invoice Finance: Which university produces the most CEOs? Via

https://www.businessleader.co.uk/which-university-produces-the-most-ceos/#

[12] NHS: Multi-award winning Graduate Management Training Scheme doubles its intake

https://www.hee.nhs.uk/news-blogs-events/news/multi-award-winning-graduate-management-training-scheme-doubles-its-intake

[13] Highfliers: The Graduate Market in 2021

https://www.highfliers.co.uk/download/2021/graduate_market/GM21-Report.pdf

[14] Glassdoor: Graduate Scheme Salaries in the UK

https://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Salaries/graduate-scheme-salary-SRCH_KO0,15.htm

[15] Prospects Luminate: Graduate Salaries in the UK

https://luminate.prospects.ac.uk/graduate-salaries-in-the-uk

[16] Glide: Highest Paid Graduate Schemes

https://glide.co.uk/guides/highest-paid-graduate-schemes/

[17] Prospects: Students urged to focus on longer work experience for employability boost

https://www.prospects.ac.uk/prospects-press-office/students-urged-to-focus-on-longer-work-experience-for-employability-boost

[18] HEFCE: Nature and extent of undergraduates’ work experience

https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/5159/1/rd19_02.pdf

[19] HESA: Graduates’ salaries

https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/graduates/salaries

[20] IFS: Gender differences in subject choice lead to gender pay gap immediately after graduation

https://ifs.org.uk/publications/15657#:~:text=At%20age%2025%2C%20the%20average,annual%20earnings%20stands%20at%2025%25 .

[21] AGCAS : The Impact of Covid-19 On Recent Graduates’ Career Decisions And Outcomes

https://www.agcas.org.uk/write/MediaUploads/Resources/Research%20and%20knowledge/826_The_impact_of_Covid-19_on_recent_graduates_career_decisions_and_outcomes_-_July_2021.pdf

[22] ONS: Coronavirus and higher education students. November 2021  https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/healthandwellbeing/bulletins/coronavirusandhighereducationstudents/5to15november2021

[23] UK Gov: Average Loan Balance on entry into repayment

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/62a9a6c8d3bf7f03744c7c90/Average_loan_balance_on_entry_into_repayment.pdf

[24] STS: Student Loan repayment guide 2021

https://www.savethestudent.org/student-finance/student-loan-repayments.html#plan2

[25] Cosmopolitan: It takes a depressingly long time to pay off your student loan

https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/worklife/campus/a12443209/how-long-uni-students-pay-student-loans/

[26] UK Parliament: House of Commons Library: Student loan statistics https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn01079/

[27] Statista: Outstanding debt of student loans in the UK 2013-2021

https://www.statista.com/statistics/376411/uk-outstanding-student-loan-debt/

[28] Ice: Is COVID-19 a friend or foe of civil engineering? – https://www.ice.org.uk/news-and-insight/ice-community-blog/august-2021/covid-19-friend-or-foe-civil-engineering

[29] Edu Opinions: Student reviews of the best degrees for job prospects – https://www.eduopinions.com/blog/what-to-study/eduopinions-student-reviews-guide-best-degrees-for-job-prospects/

[30] UK Gov: Graduate Labour Markets 2022 – https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/graduate-labour-markets

[31] Adzuna: Which Universities Produce the Highest Earning Graduates? – https://www.adzuna.co.uk/blog/which-universities-produce-the-highest-earning-graduates/

[32] Times Higher Education: Graduate Employability – https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/best-universities/graduate-employability-top-universities-uk-ranked-employers

[33] HESA: Higher Education Graduate Outcomes – https://www.hesa.ac.uk/news/16-06-2022/sb263-higher-education-graduate-outcomes-statistics/activities

[34] HESA: Higher Education Student Statistics: UK, 2021/22 – Qualifications achieved – https://www.hesa.ac.uk/news/19-01-2023/sb265-higher-education-student-statistics/qualifications

[35] HESA: Higher Education Student Statistics: What are HE students’ progression rates and qualifications?- https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students/outcomes

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