Degree gives women bigger salary advantage than men, official report finds

Analysis of salaries at the age of 29 carried out by the Department for Education and Institute for Fiscal Studies, shows women with a degree earn 28 per cent more than non-graduate women.

Men with degrees earn an average of 8 per cent more than non-graduates.

But almost a third of male graduates went to a university likely to give them a “negligible” earnings advantage.

The report, based on tax records of people who went to school in England and then went to university in England, Wales or Scotland, shows a woman who has a degree earns £6,700 more per year, on average, than a non-graduate woman.

But a male graduate earns £2,700, on average, more than a man without a degree.

The gender difference is partly explained by the better-paid semi-skilled jobs chosen by men without degrees but with good GCSEs in subjects such as engineering or mechanics. Many women without degrees end up in low-paid jobs in retail or childcare.

Another factor noted in report is that women who do not go to university are more likely have children earlier than graduates - which means on average they are more likely to be working part-time in their twenties.

So the big gains for women described in the report can be comparisons between full-time graduate earnings and those non-graduates working part-time.

Jack Britton, co-author of the report with Chris Belfield, said the study shows “university is an excellent investment for women”.

For men, the figures might look “disappointing”, the IFS researcher noted. But he added that it is “important to bear in mind that returns are likely to grow quickly later in life since graduates tend to see faster pay growth than non-graduates”.

The data also showed differences in salary depending on what subject was studied and where.

Medicine was the most lucrative overall, with men earning 24 per cent more than non-graduates, and women 75 per cent more, by 29.

Economics carried a premium of 33 per cent for men and 61 per cent for women.

Men who studied the creative arts earn about 14 per cent less than non-graduate peers and 5 per cent less if they studied English.

Universities minster Sam Gyimah said that the data would help school leavers to make more informed choices, with salaries a factor.

“There is a clutch of courses that don’t produce a positive financial return,” he said. “Transparency is the best disinfectant. If we put this information out there so that prospective students can see it, the courses will either have to improve or delist.”