graduate starting salary

SarEl

Barrister. But it's perhaps a little late for that answer now! I love my job, I make a difference, and I couldn't ever complain about what I earn. But it's hard to get into, hard work, and long hours too. I never wanted to do anything else, I have never regretted it for a minute, and knowing what I know now, I would do it all again.

the182guy

IMO it's a meaningless statistic, if you're trying to estimate your own starting salary you'd be better off looking more specifially at the starting salary of jobs that you have a chance at getting rather than the UK wide average across all industries. To me 25k sounds extremely inflated, as others have said it must be the big London salaries that are having that influence.

If I was a graduate now I'd be more concerned with getting anything that's in the field I studied in as there is big competion these days and not as many jobs. Example my girlfriend recently graduated from one of the top uni's for teachers and only about a quarter of the graduates from her course have managed to get a job (including her), and that was for a 'graduates wanted' subject.

[Deleted User]

Yup, i'd be more worried about finding a job than the salary it pays. Back in the old days (2005-2007) my firm use to hire hundreds of graduates (London-based IT consultancy). Believe the salary was 24k. However, we're now on a hiring freeze and we've only take on 2-5 experienced people in the last year.

soolin

ringo_24601 wrote: »

Yup, i'd be more worried about finding a job than the salary it pays. Back in the old days (2005-2007) my firm use to hire hundreds of graduates (London-based IT consultancy). Believe the salary was 24k. However, we're now on a hiring freeze and we've only take on 2-5 experienced people in the last year.

This is what my son has experienced. The two years before he graduated the fairs at uni were full of people offering a chance to sign up for the possibility of graduate training and employment. The year he graduated the fair was a damp squib, mainly the various military arms were represented . He applied online to various graduate intakes but many never actually opened their books at all for the past year.

Holly25

dealgirl wrote: »

wow...thanks eveyone...this is really helpful stuff! It's good to get people's experiences, and you all seem to know a lot more than me! Just out of interest, is anyone in a job that is a perfect medium between job satisfaction and good salary? I know the two can come together, but often they don't, and I just wanted to get peoples experiences (I dont know if i should start this on a new thread)

A perfect medium between salary and job satisfaction i'd love to know what job has that lol.

When you start working I think you quickly realise that its better to have a job you like and less money rather than loads of money and a job you cant bear to go to everyday. As long as you have enough money to live on a bit left for fun money its fine, you have plenty of time to work your way up the ladder and get more money.

One bit of advice, have you any work experience in the field you want to go into? I did a 'year in industry' and its helped me no end. You need something to pick you out from everyone else, not to mention it gives you contacts for the future (they may end up giving you a job at the end of your degree or even sponosorhip). Even a summer placement is good

pinkshoes

ringo_24601 wrote: »

Yup, i'd be more worried about finding a job than the salary it pays. Back in the old days (2005-2007) my firm use to hire hundreds of graduates (London-based IT consultancy). Believe the salary was 24k. However, we're now on a hiring freeze and we've only take on 2-5 experienced people in the last year.

Although if the article in The Sunday Times is anything to go by today, many companies are struggling to recruit graduates due to the quality!!

Waitrose had 4900 applicants for its 20 graduate jobs, and they seemed to have problems actually recruiting 20, as the quality was so poor.

Same where I work; lots of applicants for the vacancies, but terrible candidates.

kr15snw

Am I the only one that has never seen a 'graduate' role in their area? I'm assuming I'm just in the wrong area for this.

All of the roles in my industry (design) want a minimum of 3 years experience even for the most junior positions, which obviously I'm not going to have!!

Lara44

Holly25 wrote: »

Furthermore, there are a lot of highly qualified people about that have been made redundant and who are taking on graduate jobs for which they are over qualified just to get a wage. As a result employers really do have 'the pick of the bunch' and dont feel the need to offer big graduate salaries to reel people in.

Yes, when I left my job in April the role was split, with project management going to one of the designers, and then a new 'graduate' role for studio management paying 16k (not a lot in central London). The girl who secured the position had an MA and was on her third job :eek:

kr15snw wrote: »

Am I the only one that has never seen a 'graduate' role in their area? I'm assuming I'm just in the wrong area for this.

All of the roles in my industry (design) want a minimum of 3 years experience even for the most junior positions, which obviously I'm not going to have!!

I worked in design and it's really difficult to do this. One way to go is freelance, then building up a portfolio, perhaps alongside another kind of part time job. Design is notoriously badly paid at the junior levels

emilyteach1

kr15snw wrote: »

Am I the only one that has never seen a 'graduate' role in their area? I'm assuming I'm just in the wrong area for this.

All of the roles in my industry (design) want a minimum of 3 years experience even for the most junior positions, which obviously I'm not going to have!!

I think the concept of a 'graduate' job is now largely redundant, or at least on hold due to the recession.

There are only a relatively small handful of professions where a degree is an absolute must, i.e. teaching, medicine [+ certain other health-related careers], legal practice, investment banking. I'm struggling to think of other professions that are absolutely impossible to enter without a degree? [Pilot? Architect, perhaps?]

On the flipside, there are too many graduates. I'd never actively discourage anyone from higher education, but I'd ask people to assess whether or not that degree is really worth it. Not just in monetary terms [considering the generous funding, and preferential loan stop-start repayment terms], but also in terms of effectively wasting 3 or more years on something that may actually set you back when applying for jobs in a dire economy [perceived as too qualified for many jobs, underqualified for others, and far too inexperienced for most].

Employers have got it good right now. They expect to have their pick of 1st class redbrick graduates with a wealth of experience [look how many averagely-paying, relatively low-level graduate schemes ask for evidence of leadership skills!], but don't expect to pay very much, or advertise very many positions at all. And they have hundreds of candidates fighting for every slot, eating out of their hands.

I predict; or hope to see; a shift towards savvy young persons foregoing endless qualifications, working their way up the ladder through hard work and experience, taking on modest pay initially, to be reviewed as the years go by [assuming the economy picks up sufficiently to provide adequate opportunities], taking on further qualifications and degrees whenever absolutely necessary, and avoiding a whole load of frustration and heartache along the way.

snowqueen555

The statistics are based on the Top 100 businesses in the UK, and ignores graduates who do not get graduate jobs, or are part time etc.

I notice a lot of jobs these days add "executive" or "graduate" at the start to attract graduates, thought the same roles were not classed as such some 5-10 years ago. Since when were executive positions paying only 15k a year?


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