Science : Types of work

Many graduates aspiring to enter science research and development take postgraduate degrees in order to improve their job prospects. This means that although scientific jobs remain important for many subjects, chemistry is the only course here where science is the most likely job outcome six months after graduation. In the most recent study 17.9% of employed chemistry graduates were working as scientific researchers six months following completion of their degree.

The types of work that physics graduates entered were perhaps more like their counterparts in mathematics than the other science subjects. Physics graduates were much more likely to enter a role in the finance industry than science. Nearly one in six, 16.2%, physics graduates went into business or finance jobs in a range of roles such as accountants, auditors, analysts and actuaries. This displays the adaptability of many science degrees and shows that there are more roles than the traditional science occupations open to science graduates.

Salaries

Access to accurate salary data for prospective students is becoming more and more important to the current government and much is now available on the Unistats  website and will soon be an integral part of Key Information Sets – comparable data which will be published about each course.

From the data available it is clear that physics graduates are well remunerated for their skills with an average salary of £18,300 in the North West of England and £27,200 in London just six months after graduation.

Biology and environmental science graduates earn slightly less than the national average with £14,100 (East Midlands) - £21,200 (London) and £13,700 (North East) - £21,600 (London) respectively. These graduates can however expect their salaries to rise quickly as they gain skills and experience within the workplace.

Chemistry graduates fare slightly better with averages of £16,800 in the East Midlands and £25,100 in London which is up on the averages seen around the UK. Sports scientists also receive a reasonable level of remuneration when compared to the national average at £15,100 (North East) - £19,800 (London).

A long-term study, conducted by Pwc on behalf of the Royal Society of Chemistry, last decade found that science graduates earned £40,000 more than the average graduate over their working lives and around £70,000 for those with a postgraduate qualification. Even those science graduates who enter on an average salary will be able to progress much quicker than those from some other subjects.