The best and worst universities for graduate salaries revealed

Students who choose to study at prestigious sandstone universities receive no larger salaries in their first job than those who complete their undergraduate degrees at other institutions.

An analysis reveals law graduates from Sydney University and the University of NSW are paid $10,000 more than alumni from other institutions in their first year in the workforce.

However, the analysis shows holders of a degree from those same sandstone universities in other fields can be paid much less on average than those from regional institutions.

Those who completed their degree at Charles Sturt University within the field of business earn a median salary of $78,100 straight away – more than graduates from the University of NSW and the University of Sydney. They earn about $10,000 more than graduates from the University of Technology, Sydney.

The figures come from the Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching graduate survey, which uses averaged salary data from 2021 to 2023 published on the government’s CompareEd website.

Monash University higher education expert Andrew Norton said when it came to graduate pay, the field in which someone studied was more important than the institution they attended.

“Typically, you don’t get any significant premium from attending a Group of Eight university in your first job,” he said.

Higher education expert Andrew Norton says a low starting salary does not necessarily reflect lifetime earning potential.Credit: Arsineh Houspian

However, his research has previously shown that graduates from more prestigious universities get larger pay rises in the years after graduation.

“Maybe it’s got nothing to do with Group of Eight in itself, just that these people have higher ATARs to start with, or are on average a bit smarter, maybe better connected, and that’s kind of starting to show as they get further into their careers,” he said.

While some graduates had low starting salaries, he said it was not necessarily reflective of their lifetime earning potential.

“Medicine has a very good long-term trajectory, even though the four- to six-month-out salary is not super impressive,” he said.

Norton said regional university graduates earned more initially because students typically had more work experience before starting their degree.

Psychology graduates from the University of New England were the biggest earners in their field, the data showed.

Psychology graduates from the University of New England were the biggest earners in their field, while that institution’s science and mathematics graduates were also around the top of the salary table.

Completing a degree in dentistry was one of the biggest earners, with someone from Charles Sturt earning a median salary of $93,000 straight out of university. Charles Sturt graduates were also the top paid in social work and computing and information systems when compared with other NSW institutions.

Charles Sturt vice chancellor Professor Renée Leon said the university had industry partnerships which gave students an advantage when competing for jobs.

“At the end of the day, our students deserve this reassurance that, after years of dedication and hard work in their studies, they have every chance of getting the job and salary they’ve dreamt of,” she said.

Independent economist Dr Kim Houghton said while there was a preconception that professionals were paid more in big cities, that was not borne out by research data.

He noted research from the Regional Australia Institute this year which revealed a significant income premium for workers in outer regional areas.

“The further west you go, the more inland you go, the higher those salaries are,” Houghton said.

Sydney University gives students advice on how to negotiate a salary.Credit: Sam Mooy

“Health specialists are in really short supply, so there are quite a lot of incentives, both Commonwealth and state, to induce people to come and practise those professions in regional places.

“The labor market is trying to function to the extent that you’re paying more people to fill a shortage, but there’s still chronic shortages in those sorts of skilled specialist medical professions across all the regions.”

The University of NSW had strong graduate salaries across fields including health services, science and mathematics. A spokeswoman said salaries post-graduation were a key factor when it came to choosing the university.

“Although UNSW does not influence graduate salaries directly, we are deeply committed to student success and continuously monitor graduate outcomes … This data informs our ongoing efforts to enhance the student experience and ensure our graduates are well prepared for the workforce,” she said.

Sydney University pro vice chancellor of educational innovation Adam Bridgeman said the university helped students understand what employers wanted and how to present themselves in the job market.

“While salaries aren’t the only thing students need to consider when deciding their career goals, they can be an important factor for many, and our career consultations include salary trends and coaching and advice on how to negotiate salaries,” he said.

“Our consistently high ranking in the QS Graduate Employability Rankings nationally and globally is a good indication our approach seems to be working.

“In some areas, our graduates may experience lower initial salaries but also find they climb more steeply as they progress in their careers.”

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