Use your interests to identify a career

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• Organisations are aware of going rates in a particular sector of the economy and for particular jobs. Many appear to keep in line with other employers.
• The highest paid jobs are those in consultancies and agencies, such as computer and management consultants.
• There is a wider variation between top and bottom levels of starting pay in the non-industrial sector than in the industrial sector. The non-industrial sector includes professional services such as accountancy, training and IT at the top end of the pay spectrum and much lower average salaries, for example, in the public sector at the bottom end.
• Salaries vary by location, with the highest average rates in East Anglia and the lowest rates in Scotland, North and North West England. In a survey by High Fliers, the average expected salaries in the 25 universities the survey covered ranged from £19,200 in Oxford to £14,400 in Glasgow.
• Some jobs abroad attract very high salaries but these often relate to vacancies for technical specialists.
• The Inner and Outer London allowance paid by some employers can vary enormously, from a few hundred pounds to over £2000
• Graduates with degrees in mathematical sciences and informatics are likely to obtain jobs with higher starting salaries than graduates in other disciplines. Current research suggests the opening up of a bigger gap between salaries offered for scientific jobs and those that do not require technological expertise. Statistically, graduates in arts and humanities are likely to end up with the lowest starting salaries.