Most sixth form students struggle with an eternal dilemma – study something you actually enjoy at uni, or sell your soul to some boring subject that might earn you more money. The Higher Education Statistics Agency’s (HESA’s) annual graduate survey reveals whether you’ve made the right decision.
HESA surveyed over 100,000 graduates from UK universities who were in full-time employment 15 months after leaving university and found out which subject will earn you the most money.
It’s not surprising that graduates who studied a subject related to medicine and engineering earn the most in 2024. Guess that’s what comes from having an education that actually contributed something useful to society. Finance students clearly didn’t find out the figures for their own degrees, because their median salary is just £27,000 – the same as theology and forestry students.
The funniest sounding degrees will get you the smallest starting salary in 2024 – guess that’s the price you pay for actually enjoying uni. Maybe your parents were on to something when they warned you against drama GCSE because theater graduates earn just £23,500 15 months after their degrees.
Here are the median salaries for 2021-2022 grads, sorted from lowest to highest:
70. Creative writing – DKK 23,000
=68. Drama, dance and cinema – DKK 23,500
=68. Animal Science – £23,500
=63. Music – DKK 24,000
=63. Linguistics – £24,000
=63. Communication and Media Studies – £24,000
=63. Art and Design – £24,000
Tragically, creative topics won’t make you much money
(Credit: Rebecca Mayer)
=63. Architecture – £24,000
62. Law – £24,248
61. Celtic Studies – £24,550
60. Archeology and Forensic Science – £24,840
=52. Sports Science – £25,000
=52. Sociology – £25,000
=52. Social policy – DKK 25,000
=52. Psychology – £25,000
=52. Hospitality, Leisure, Recreation and Tourism – £25,000
=52. English – £25,000
=52. Criminology – £25,000
=52. American Studies – £25,000
=46. Italian – £26,000
=46. Art History, Architecture and Design – £26,000
=46. East and South Asian Studies – £26,000
=46. Classics and Ancient History – £26,000
Look mom, the Classics course was a great idea
=46. Biological Sciences- £26,000
=46. Anthropology – £26,000
45. History – DKK 26,446
=35. Theology and Religious Studies – £27,000
=35. Philosophy – £27,000
=35. Land and Property Administration – £27,000
=35. Geology – £27,000
=35. Geography and Environmental Science – £27,000
=35. French – £27,000
=35. Business, Management and Marketing – £27,000
=35. Anatomy and Physiology – £27,000
=35. Agriculture and forestry – DKK 27,000
=35. Accounting and finance – DKK 27,000
34. Food science – DKK 27,300
=32. Nursing care – DKK 27,500
=32. Iberian Languages – £27,500
=22. Town, Country Planning and Landscape – £28,000
=22. Other items connected with medicine – £28,000
=22. Radiography – DKK 28,000
=22. Politics – £28,000
=22. Physiotherapy – DKK 28,000
=22. Middle Eastern and African Studies – £28,000
=22. Liberal Arts – £28,000
=22. German – £28,000
=22. Education – £28,000
=22. Chemistry – £28,000
21. Information Systems and Management – £28,980
=16. Russian – £30,000
=16. Computer Science – £30,000
=16. Civil Engineer – £30,000
=16. Building – £30,000
=16. Bioengineering and Biomedical Engineering – £30,000
15. Natural Sciences – £30,279
The sluggishness of a STEM major is offset by the higher salaries that science graduates are likely to earn in 2024
(Credit: Emily Baldock)
14. Physics and astronomy – DKK 30,500
=11. Mechanical Engineering – £31,000
=11. Mathematics – DKK 31,000
=11. Aerospace and Manufacturing Engineering – £31,000
=6. Social work – DKK 32,000
=6. Materials Technology – £32,000
=6. General Engineering – £32,000
=6. Electrical and Electronic Engineering – £32,000
=6. Economy – DKK 32,000
5. Chemical engineering – DKK 32,300
=2. Veterinary medicine – DKK 35,000
=2. Pharmacology and Pharmacy – £35,000
=2. Medicine – DKK 35,000
1. Dental care – DKK 42,000