The publication methodology provides additional information on the generation and interpretation of figures and should be referenced together with the data. The methodology is available on the publication report.
Coverage
The graduate labour market statistics publication reports on the labour market outcomes of graduates and postgraduates, and compares them with those of non-graduates. The statistics use the data collected via the Labour Force Survey (LFS) relating to individuals domiciled within England.
This release explores:
Employment and earnings outcomes of graduates by their specific characteristics of gender, age group, ethnicity, disability status, degree class. Further breakdowns are available in the data downloads.
Employment and earnings (nominal and real) outcomes of graduates, post graduates and non-graduates by their age group and gender.
Proportion of graduates and non-graduates that work part time by their gender and age group.
File formats and conventions
‘:’ samples are unavailable or sizes small.
Employment rates are rounded to one decimal place.
Median salaries are rounded to the nearest £500.
Labour Force Survey (LFS) datasets are routinely reweighted in line with population estimates. In 2022, a reweighting was applied to the LFS, with 2022 (PWT22) population weights applied to quarterly data since Q1 2020, superseding the previous PWT20 population weights
Data files
All data files associated with this releases are listed below with guidance on their content. To download any of these files, please visit our data catalogue.
Graduate Employment Rates by Demographics
Filename
gradbreak_employ_demographics_2022.csv
Geographic levels
National
Time period
2022
Content
Graduate employment rates by different demographics in 2022 . (By gender, age group, ethnicity, disability status, degree class, subject group, and region)
Variable names and descriptions
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
employ_accuracy_flag
Employment Rate Accuracy
Employment_rate
Employment Rate
graduate_breakdown
Graduate Breakdown - Select the Graduate breakdown you are interested in
graduate_group
Graduate Group - Select the Graduate group you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
High-skilled Employment Rate
hse_accuracy_flag
HSE Rate Accuracy
Inactive_accuracy_flag
Inactivity Rate Accuracy
Inactivity_rate
Inactivity Rate
unemploy_accuracy_flag
Unemployment Rate Accuracy
Unemployment_rate
Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Disability status – Disabled/ Not Disabled. This breakdown is based on the legal definition found in the Equality Act (2010) which defines a disability as “a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
age_group
Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you are interested in
employ_accuracy_flag
Employment Rate Accuracy
Employment_rate
Employment Rate
graduate_type
Graduate Type - Select the Graduate Type you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
High-skilled Employment Rate
hse_accuracy_flag
HSE Rate Accuracy
Inactive_accuracy_flag
Inactivity Rate Accuracy
inactivity_rate
Inactivity Rate
unemploy_accuracy_flag
Unemployment Rate Accuracy
Unemployment_rate
Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
Labour Force Survey (LFS) datasets are routinely reweighted in line with population estimates. Further details are set out within the methodology.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Time Series for Salaries by Gender and Graduate Type
Filename
yearly_salaries_by_gender_2007222.csv
Geographic levels
National
Time period
2007 to 2022
Content
Median nominal and real salaries by different demographics time series 2007 - 2022
(By gender, age group, and graduate type)
Variable names and descriptions
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
accuracy_flag
Accuracy Flag
age_group
Age Group
gender
Gender
graduate_type
Graduate Type
median
Median Salary to the nearest £500
median_real
Median Salary to the nearest £500 in real (2007) terms
Footnotes
Caution should be exercised when interpreting nominal salary data - figures are not adjusted for inflation and are rounded to the nearest £500.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Graduate Employment Rates and Salaries by Age Group
Filename
gradbreak_agegroup_20222.csv
Geographic levels
National
Time period
2022
Content
Graduate employment rates and salaries in 2022
Variable names and descriptions
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
accuracy_flag
Accuracy Flag
employ_accuracy_flag
Employment Rate Accuracy
Employment_rate
Employment Rate
graduate_breakdown
Graduate Breakdown - Select the Graduate breakdown you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
High-skilled Employment Rate
hse_accuracy_flag
HSE Rate Accuracy
Inactive_accuracy_flag
Inactivity Rate Accuracy
Inactivity_rate
Inactivity Rate
median
Median Salary to the nearest (£500)
unemploy_accuracy_flag
Unemployment Rate Accuracy
Unemployment_rate
Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Caution should be exercised when interpreting nominal salary data - figures are not adjusted for inflation and are rounded to the nearest £500.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Graduate median nominal salaries by different demographics in 2022
(By gender, age group, ethnicity, disability status, degree class, subject group, industry, occupation and region)
Variable names and descriptions
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
accuracy_flag
Accuracy Flag
graduate_breakdown
Graduate Breakdown - Select the Graduate characteristic you interested in
graduate_group
Graduate Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you interested in
median
Median Salary to the nearest (£500)
sample_size
Sample Size
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Caution should be exercised when interpreting nominal salary data - figures are not adjusted for inflation and are rounded to the nearest £500.
Disability status – Disabled/ Not Disabled. This breakdown is based on the legal definition found in the Equality Act (2010) which defines a disability as “a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”.
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
Degree_class
Degree class - Select the Degree Class you are interested in
employ_accuracy_flag
Employment Rate Accuracy
Employment_rate
Graduate Employment Rate
graduate_group
Graduate Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
Graduate High-Skilled Employment Rate
hse_accuracy_flag
HSE Rate Accuracy
Inactive_accuracy_flag
Inactivity Rate Accuracy
Inactivity_rate
Graduate Inactivity Rate
unemploy_accuracy_flag
Unemployment Rate Accuracy
Unemployment_rate
Graduate Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Where no figure is shown, the data has been suppressed due to sample size.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Graduate employment rates by disability status in 2022
Variable names and descriptions
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
Disability_status
Disability status - Select the Disability Status you are interested in
employ_accuracy_flag
Employment Rate Accuracy
Employment_rate
Graduate Employment Rate
graduate_group
Graduate Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
Graduate High-Skilled Employment Rate
hse_accuracy_flag
HSE Rate Accuracy
Inactive_accuracy_flag
Inactivity Rate Accuracy
Inactivity_rate
Graduate Inactivity Rate
unemploy_accuracy_flag
Unemployment Rate Accuracy
Unemployment_rate
Graduate Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Disability status – Disabled/ Not Disabled. This breakdown is based on the legal definition found in the Equality Act (2010) which defines a disability as “a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Graduate nominal median salaries by industry and gender in 2022
Variable names and descriptions
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
accuracy_flag
Accuracy Flag
Gender
Gender - Select the Gender you are interested in
graduate_group
Graduate Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you are interested in
Industry
Industry - Select the Industry you are interested in
median
Median Salary for Graduates (to the nearest £500)
sample_size
Sample Size
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Caution should be exercised when interpreting nominal salary data - figures are not adjusted for inflation and are rounded to the nearest £500.
Where no figure is shown, the data has been suppressed due to sample size.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Median Salary Premium for Graduates over Non-graduates
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
employ_accuracy_flag
Employment Rate Accuracy
Employment_rate
Graduate Employment Rate
ethnicity_major
Ethnicity - Select the Ethnicity you are interested in
graduate_group
Graduate Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
Graduate High-Skilled Employment Rate
hse_accuracy_flag
HSE Rate Accuracy
Inactive_accuracy_flag
Inactivity Rate Accuracy
Inactivity_rate
Graduate Inactivity Rate
unemploy_accuracy_flag
Unemployment Rate Accuracy
Unemployment_rate
Graduate Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
High, medium and low skilled employment rate by graduate type time series 2007 -2022
Variable names and descriptions
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
age_group
Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you are interested in
Employment_rate
Employment Rate
graduate_type
Graduate Type - Select the Graduate Type you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
High-skilled Employment Rate
inactivity_rate
Inactivity Rate
med_low_skill
Medium/Low-skilled Employment Rate
Unemployment_rate
Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
Labour Force Survey (LFS) datasets are routinely reweighted in line with population estimates. Further details are set out within the methodology.
Caution should be exercised in making comparisons to years prior to 2010-2011 as SOC codes were revised by the ONS at this point. Further details are set out within the methodology.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
graduate_breakdown
Graduate Breakdown - Select the breakdown you are interested in
graduate_characteristic
Graduate Characteristic - Select the characteristic you are interested in
graduate_type
Graduate Type - Select the graduate type you are interested in
proportion_part_time_workers
Proportion Of Part Time Workers
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Labour Force Survey (LFS) datasets are routinely reweighted in line with population estimates. Further details are set out within the methodology.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
employ_accuracy_flag
Employment Rate Accuracy
Employment_rate
Graduate Employment Rate
gender
Gender - Select the gender you are interested in
graduate_group
Graduate Age Group - Select the Graduate Age Group you are interested in
High_skill_emp_rate
Graduate High-Skilled Employment Rate
hse_accuracy_flag
HSE Rate Accuracy
Inactive_accuracy_flag
Inactivity Rate Accuracy
Inactivity_rate
Graduate Inactivity Rate
unemploy_accuracy_flag
Unemployment Rate Accuracy
Unemployment_rate
Graduate Unemployment Rate
Footnotes
The graduate group does not include postgraduates.
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:
Variable name
Variable description
accuracy_flag
Accuracy Flag
age_group
Age Group
gender
Gender
graduate_type
Graduate Type
median_real
Median Salary to the nearest £500 in real (2007) terms
Footnotes
Some figures have been calculated using small sample sizes and therefore should be interpreted with caution due to uncertainty. Please check corresponding CSV data downloads for information on which groups are affected.
Caution should be exercised when interpreting real-term salary data - 'real-term' salaries are calculated in 2007 prices using CIP-H, and are rounded to the nearest £500.