In our role as a graduate recruitment consultancy, we are delighted to extend job opportunities to graduates every week. After evaluating the average starting salaries for graduates throughout this year, we’ve observed that our graduates, on average, are beginning their careers with a salary of £27,000, showing an increase from £25,000 in 2023.
It’s important to note that the starting salary you can anticipate varies depending on factors such as the specific role you apply for, the geographical location of the position, and your existing level of experience. For instance, graduates embarking on their careers in London should expect a higher salary, with average figures currently hovering around £29,500.
We’re pleased to see that the majority of our graduates also have their salaries reviewed and increased within 6 months of starting their roles.
Search and apply for our graduate jobs here >
Leading graduate job board, graduate-jobs.com, estimates the average starting salary for graduates in 2024 is £25,856. This is based on the hundreds of graduate roles that they see being advertised on their site over the past year.
They’ve also created a graph of realistic starting salaries based on the whole market using their salary data from the past 10 years.
High Fliers’ research suggests that the average starting salary for graduates in the UK is £33,500. However, given their research only covers the 100 largest and best-known graduate employers in the UK, this figure will only apply to a small minority of graduates.
Related Article: Top 100 Graduate Employers: The Real Truth
Graduates should approach salary expectations with a realistic perspective, steering clear of being overly influenced by research figures. While the idea of commencing a career with a wage exceeding £30,000 is appealing, it’s essential to recognize the potential disparity between these figures and real-world offers.
Setting overly high salary expectations may lead to missing out on job opportunities, as it could be perceived as a lack of commercial awareness. Moreover, passing up on initial offers that fall short of £33,500 shouldn’t be viewed as a reflection of your value or future potential in the job market. Keep in mind that the right opportunity can pave the way for swift progression and an accelerated increase in your salary.
| Sector | Salary(GBP) |
|---|---|
| Accounting | £27,460 |
| Advertising & PR | £25,363 |
| Architecture & Construction | £25,250 |
| Arts & Design | £26,178 |
| Banking | £29,755 |
| Buying & Merchandising | £28,988 |
| Charities | £26,706 |
| Computing & IT | £28,146 |
| Consultancy | £28,152 |
| Customer Service | £28,437 |
| Distribution & Logistics | £28,146 |
| Education & Teaching | £22,700 |
| Energy & Utilities | £27,687 |
| Engineering | £27,920 |
| Environmental | £27,648 |
| Finance | £27,681 |
| Food & Drink & Catering | £27,344 |
| Health | £30,034 |
| Human Resources | £26,582 |
| Insurance | £33,250 |
| Internet & Digital Media | £28,486 |
| Languages | £31,676 |
| Legal & Law | £25,427 |
| Management | £29,919 |
| Manufacturing & Production | £27,199 |
| Marketing | £29,715 |
| Media | £31,653 |
| Military & Defence | £25,481 |
| Property | £25,627 |
| Public Sector | £25,988 |
| Recruitment | £26,819 |
| Research & Analysis | £27,895 |
| Retail | £28,113 |
| Sales | £28,140 |
| Science & Technology | £29,069 |
| Secretarial & Business Admin | £25,068 |
| Sports & Recreation | £22,525 |
| Telecommunications | £24,500 |
| Training | £26,603 |
| Travel & Hospitality | £22,705 |
What subject you studied at university can also have an impact on the salary you take home afterwards. Take a look at the data below to see how your subject measures up.
| SUBJECT | HIGH-SKILLED | MEDIUM-SKILLED | LOW-SKILLED |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accounting & Finance | £25,100 | £21,000 | £19,000 |
| Acting | £20,000 | £17,500 | £18,000 |
| Aeronautical & Aerospace Engineering | £28,000 | £22,000 | £21,000 |
| African & Middle Eastern Studies | £25,700 | – | – |
| Agriculture & Forestry | £24,500 | £19,000 | £20,000 |
| American Studies | £23,000 | £19,000 | £18,550 |
| Animation | £22,000 | £19,000 | £18,000 |
| Anthropology | £25,000 | £21,000 | £18,000 |
| Archaeology | £21,100 | £19,100 | £16,800 |
| Architecture | £22,000 | £19,000 | £18,000 |
| Art & Design | £22,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Artificial Intelligence | £32,000 | – | – |
| Asian Studies | £27,000 | £21,000 | £19,000 |
| Astrophysics | £27,000 | – | – |
| Biological Sciences | £25,000 | £20,000 | £18,500 |
| Biomedical Sciences | £25,000 | £20,000 | £18,700 |
| Building | £27,500 | £24,000 | £20,000 |
| Business & Management Studies | £26,000 | £21,900 | £20,000 |
| Celtic Studies | £26,100 | – | – |
| Chemical Engineering | £30,000 | £23,000 | £23,000 |
| Chemistry | £25,600 | £21,500 | £19,000 |
| Childhood & Youth Studies | £23,000 | £18,000 | £18,000 |
| Chinese | £28,000 | £21,600 | – |
| Civil Engineering | £28,000 | £20,500 | £19,000 |
| Classics | £25,300 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Communication & Media Studies | £22,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Complementary Medicine | £28,000 | – | – |
| Computer Science | £28,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Counselling, Psychotherapy & Occupational Therapy | £25,000 | £19,000 | £18,000 |
| Creative Writing | £22,000 | £18,000 | £16,700 |
| Criminology | £23,000 | £20,000 | £18,100 |
| Dentistry | £39,500 | – | – |
| Diagnostic Radiography | £25,000 | – | – |
| Dietetics | £25,000 | – | – |
| Drama, Dance & Cinematics | £22,000 | £19,600 | £18,000 |
| Ecology | £22,000 | £21,000 | – |
| Economics | £30,000 | £23,000 | £20,000 |
| Education | £25,700 | £17,000 | £18,215 |
| Electrical & Electronic Engineering | £30,000 | £25,000 | £18,500 |
| English | £24,000 | £19,000 | £18,000 |
| Fashion | £21,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Film Making | £22,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Food Science | £25,000 | £21,000 | £17,000 |
| Forensic Science | £23,000 | £19,000 | £19,000 |
| French | £25,700 | £21,100 | £20,000 |
| General Engineering | £30,000 | £24,000 | £20,000 |
| Geography & Environmental Science | £25,000 | £21,000 | £18,500 |
| Geology | £25,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| German | £26,000 | £21,000 | £20,000 |
| Health Studies | £23,500 | £19,000 | £18,525 |
| History | £25,000 | £21,000 | £18,000 |
| History of Art, Architecture & Design | £24,000 | £20,000 | £17,000 |
| Hospitality & Catering | £23,000 | £20,900 | £21,000 |
| Human Resources Management | £24,000 | £21,000 | £20,150 |
| Iberian Languages | £25,000 | £20,000 | £19,000 |
| Information Technology & Systems | £25,500 | £20,000 | £19,000 |
| Italian | £25,000 | – | – |
| Journalism | £21,600 | £20,000 | £17,500 |
| Land & Property Management | £25,000 | £23,000 | £19,300 |
| Law | £23,000 | £20,000 | £18,600 |
| Linguistics | £25,000 | £19,000 | £16,500 |
| Manufacturing & Production Engineering | £29,000 | £23,000 | £20,800 |
| Marine Biology | £23,000 | £20,000 | £19,000 |
| Marketing | £24,000 | £21,000 | £19,000 |
| Materials Technology | £29,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Mathematics | £28,500 | £21,500 | £19,890 |
| Mechanical Engineering | £28,000 | £23,000 | £20,000 |
| Medical Technology & Bioengineering | £25,100 | £23,000 | £22,600 |
| Medicine | £33,000 | – | – |
| Midwifery | £25,000 | – | – |
| Music | £23,500 | £18,900 | £18,000 |
| Neuroscience | £27,000 | £20,000 | – |
| Nursing | £25,000 | £21,000 | £18,000 |
| Nutrition | £25,000 | £20,000 | £17,000 |
| Optometry, Ophthalmics & Orthoptics | £18,000 | – | – |
| Paramedic Science | £25,000 | – | – |
| Pharmacology & Pharmacy | £32,000 | £23,000 | £21,000 |
| Philosophy | £25,700 | £20,000 | £19,000 |
| Photography | £21,000 | £18,000 | £18,000 |
| Physics & Astronomy | £28,000 | £20,000 | £18,500 |
| Physiotherapy | £25,000 | – | – |
| Podiatry | £25,000 | – | – |
| Politics | £26,000 | £22,000 | £19,000 |
| Prosthetics | £25,700 | – | – |
| Psychology | £23,000 | £19,000 | £18,000 |
| Robotics | £30,000 | – | – |
| Russian & East European Languages | £26,000 | – | – |
| Social Policy | £24,500 | £20,400 | £18,400 |
| Social Work | £30,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Sociology | £24,000 | £20,000 | £18,000 |
| Spanish | £25,000 | £20,000 | £19,000 |
| Speech & Language Therapy | £25,000 | – | – |
| Sports Science | £24,000 | £19,000 | £19,000 |
| Statistics | £30,000 | – | – |
| Theology & Religious Studies | £25,000 | £19,700 | £19,000 |
| Therapeutic Radiography | £25,000 | – | – |
| Tourism, Transport, Travel & Heritage Studies | £23,000 | £20,000 | £19,360 |
| Town & Country Planning and Landscape Design | £25,000 | £23,000 | £19,000 |
| Veterinary Medicine | £31,000 | £26,000 | – |
| Youth Work | £24,000 | £18,500 | – |
| Zoology | £22,000 | £19,000 | £18,000 |
Copyright Complete University Guide © October 2023
Earning plenty of money is great, however, there’s no point in earning £30,000 a year if you dread going to work every day. It’s important to find the balance between what you enjoy, what you earn and the other benefits on offer.
What’s important is different for each of us, so try to make the best decision for you. If you change your mind later, you can always learn from your mistakes and look for a graduate role that is better suited to you going forward.
