While many claim the gender pay gap grows later in the careers of women, new data* shows twice as many male graduates will earn over £50k in their first job than female graduates. 

The most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics shows 20% of male graduates take jobs earning £39,000 and above, compared to just 12% of women – and that gap continues to grow with higher wages, where double the amount of men (11%) earn more than £51,000 than women (5%).

Across every single wage band analysed, overall outcome for men is better than women. Fifty-seven percent of female graduates take roles paying under £30,000, compared to 44% of men.

However, male graduates earning over £50,000 isn’t representative of all graduates, as the data reveals that three quarters of students who graduate this year will enter jobs paying less than the UK average salary.

The most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics show a median average earnings of £37,000 across the British workforce. But in our detailed study of graduate pay, Office Freedom has discovered that 75% of those who come through University take up employment in jobs which pay less than that figure.

Research* has found that just seven percent of graduates start work in roles which pay £51,000 and above – while only 12% are paid £42,000 or more in their graduate role.

Instead, the norm is to enter full time work on wages well under the UK average, with over half (52%) earning under £30,000-a-year.

This comes as the national minimum wage increase means some graduates may be earning minimum wage at their first graduate job. At £12.21 per hour, the adult minimum wage rate is equivalent to an annual full-time salary of around £22,000 to £25,500, depending on the number of working hours, meaning many graduates may fall into this salary range. 

Richard Smith, Founder and CEO of Office Freedom commented on the report: “Students have an extraordinary number of pressures on them today. With increasing tuition fees, rising costs of living, and stagnant wages after education all make university education less and less appealing.”

“Many graduates will be leaving full time education earning less than they may hope, with female graduates earning less on average than their male counterparts. More needs to be done to ensure all graduates have equal opportunities to earn a fair market rate, regardless of their gender.”

*Compiled by Office Freedom