Engineering and tech graduates least likely to regret their degree in the UK
Key Points
- Engineering and technology graduates least likely to regret their degree at 21.4%
- Only 14.5% of engineering and tech graduates say their degree was not worth the money
- Biology and sport sciences graduates most likely to regret their degree at 52.2%
- 54.2% of UK graduates reporting a salary earn under £40,000
- Students now start repayments owing an average of £45,800
Engineering and technology graduates are the least likely of any subject group to regret their degree, at 21.4%, against 52.2% for biology and sport sciences, according to new research from Careerminds UK.
The careers firm surveyed 1,000 recent UK graduates on whether their degree was worth what it cost, with tuition now capped at £9,790 a year and students forecast to start repayments owing an average of £45,800.
Engineering and technology graduates also came out top when asked directly whether the degree was worth the money, with only 14.5% saying it was not. Computing graduates gave a similar verdict, with 27.7% saying their degree was not worth the cost.
Across all subjects, 53.5% of graduates said their degree was worth the money, 31.1% said it was not and a further 15.4% were unsure. More than a third (37.5%) said they regret their degree, and 22.5% said they would not go to university at all if given the choice again.
Engineering and technology graduates reported a median salary of £32,250, the second highest of the 12 subject groups, while biology and sport sciences graduates earned a median of £23,450. Creative arts and design graduates earned the least at £21,000, with 47.1% regretting their choice.
Two subjects broke the link between pay and regret. Medicine and dentistry graduates earned the most at £35,500, yet 43.9% still regret their degree, and economics graduates on £31,000 recorded the second-highest regret rate at 47.2%.
Education and teaching graduates were the most likely of any group to say their degree was not worth the money, at 46.4%, a gap of almost 32 percentage points from engineering and technology. Nursing and allied health graduates earned the same typical £28,000 as teachers, but only 24.6% said the degree was not worth the cost.
Among graduates who reported their current salary, 54.2% earned under £40,000, roughly the UK’s typical full-time salary of £39,039 according to the Office for National Statistics. Around one in six (15.6%) earned under £25,000, while 18.4% earned £60,000 or more.
Pay tracked the value judgement closely, with 39.9% of graduates earning under £30,000 saying their degree was not worth it, compared with 11.2% of those on £60,000 or more.
The findings sit alongside Institute for Fiscal Studies analysis that one in four graduates may end up financially worse off over their lifetimes than if they had never gone to university.
“A degree doesn’t have to dictate the rest of your career, but these findings show how much career outcomes can shape the way graduates feel about their education,” said Amanda Augustine, resident careers expert at Careerminds UK.
“The job market graduates are entering looks very different from the one they were sold when they took the debt on. AI is reshaping entry-level work, and employers increasingly want evidence of practical skills and experience alongside the qualification,” Augustine added.
The firm said graduates cannot change what their degree cost, but can change what they get back from it through work experience, additional training and new skills.
