It is disturbing to begin a post on careers site knowing that gender pay gap is so engraved in our society.
Female students give themselves a 14% pay cut when estimating starting salaries.
- Male students think they’ll achieve £22,988 in their first graduate job; females only £19,662
- Men less likely to stress about loans, and more confident about finding work – despite being more likely to be unemployed after uni.
Women may be primed to expect lower wages from a young age, a student survey has revealed. Female students expect to make £3,326 a year less than their male counterparts when entering graduate employment.
The National Student Money Survey 2016 asked 2,217 university students to estimate their starting salary after university. While the average given by male students came in at £22,988, for female students it was just £19,662.
The surprise figures follow reports that female students hold the majority of university spaces¹, get better grades², and are more likely to be in work than male students six months after graduation³. But the message isn’t getting through to female students, who report feeling less confident about money in general.
The survey, conducted by student money site Save the Student, found male students stress less about their student loan, and are more confident about money management and finding work:
Both male and female students pitched themselves below the current UK average starting salary for graduates, which is £25,000. Student loan repayments in England and Wales start at £21,000 – so some graduates may be taken by surprise at how soon they start paying back student debt.
Save the Student’s Editor, Jake Butler:
“It’s sad to hear that female students are undervaluing themselves in comparison to their male counterparts.
The employment stats for graduates tend to be stronger for women so why is it that they lack the belief? It’s an important issue that needs addressing so that female graduates can start to smash the gender equality barriers.
It’s a wider concern that male students are also undervaluing themselves. Students across the board are starting to really question the value of their degree in terms of securing top level graduate employment, all against the backdrop of tuition fees increasing yet again.”
For full results, see our “Students & Money 2016” Infographic here.
The National Student Money Survey 2016 polled 2,217 students in May-June 2016: www.savethestudent.org
