Graduates’ international salary expectations

A Universum survey of career expectations has highlighted the wide variations between what students from sixteen different countries expect to earn in their first job.

(Conducted in the first quarter of last year, the survey sought the views of almost 225,000 students reading for degrees in business, engineering, IT, humanities, law and natural sciences at some of the world's most renowned academic institutions.  Each was respondent asked specifically: "What is your expected annual salary before taxes (excluding commission and bonus) at your first employer after graduation?"  The results aren't necessarily representative of current salary levels per country, of course; they're simply an indication of levels of demand.)

The amounts (in GBP) are as follows: 1) Switzerland - £48,092; 2) Denmark - £43,134; 3) Norway - £38,686; 4) Germany - £34,171; 5) US - £29,822; 6) Finland - £29,025; 7) France - £28,396; 8) Sweden - £28,318; 9) Austria - 25,771; 10) Netherlands - 24,936; 11) UK - £22,195; 12) Spain - £20,076; 13) Italy - £16,580; 14) Poland - £8,980; 15) Russia - £7,885; 16) China - £5,049.

With the mean forecast salary across all sixteen countries coming in at £25,705, it can be seen that expectations in the UK - where the recession hit particularly hard - fall below the average.  Anne Margrethe Mannerfelt, Universum's western Europe market unit manager, says "Following this recession, graduates aren't expecting big pay cheques, and are willing to make concessions so long as they get the work experience they so badly need."