Economic graduates earn 40 percent more than English graduates, new data from Emolument reveals.
Many students may be facing the prospect of further tuition fee increases, with the average student debt already falling at £44,000 for graduates. Young people are facing some difficult decisions about their education and what career they should pursue when they leave university.
Statistics have been gathered from crowdsourced data, submitted anonymously by over 55,000 individuals in order to access their own tailored salary benchmarking report for free. For the first time, candidates will be able to investigate what potential career options might offer in the short and long term.
Results from the report reveal that within five years of graduation, that average salaries of economics students are around 80 percent higher than those who studied Fine Art.
Average salaries within 5 years of graduation, by degree major:
| Major | Salary |
| Economics | £45,000 |
| Law | £42,000 |
| Mathematics & Statistics | £39,000 |
| Chemistry & Natural Sciences | £38,000 |
| Accounting, Business & Finance | £37,000 |
| Engineering | £37,000 |
| Computer Sciences | £37,000 |
| Physics, Life Sciences & Healthcare | £36,000 |
| Management & Strategy | £36,000 |
| Humanities (History, Geography, Politics…) | £34,000 |
| Modern Languages | £32,000 |
| Philosophy | £32,000 |
| English Literature | £31,000 |
| Media, Marketing & Communication | £27,000 |
| Fine Arts & Design | £25,000 |
Earning potential is also influenced by the industries graduates enter. Degrees in Economics, Finance, Mathematics and Statistics are shown to be the best route into lucrative careers in the financial services industry. In contrast, students of humanities such as Geography, History and Politics are the most likely graduates to follow careers in charities, not-for-profit organisations and the public sector.
| Majors | Industries most likely to hire graduates by major |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Business & Finance | Financial services | Industry | Telecoms |
| Management | Retail | Telecoms | Industry |
| Mathematics & Statistics | Financial services | Consulting | Retail |
| Chemistry & Natural Sciences | Public Sector | Industry | Engineering |
| Law | Law firms | Services, tourism, entertainment | Telecoms |
| History, Geography, Politics | Charity & Non-profit | Public Sector | Media & Advertising |
| Marketing & Communication | Media & Advertising | Retail | Charity &Non-profit |
COO of Emolument.com, Alice Leguay, says:
“Young people starting out on their careers have some pretty big decisions to make that will affect their lives in both the short and long term, so it is important for them to have access to as much information as possible to help them make smart choices. Having more transparency around the salaries in different industries and professions allows individuals to manage their own career and education more effectively, and work towards where they really want to be.”
Amie Filcher is an editorial assistant at HRreview.
