Those coming out of university with an engineering degree have the potential to earn some of the highest graduate starting salaries in our economy. Four of the top 10 starting salaries for university leavers are in engineering subjects. Graduate chemical engineers score the third highest starting salary – behind dentistry and medicine – with an average of almost £28,500.

The financial rewards can continue throughout your career. According to data published by the Engineering Council in 2010, the median salary for chartered engineers was about £55,000, a rise of 10% since 2007. 

On average, graduates from all subjects earn an extra £160,000 across their lifetime compared with people who do not have a degree. But for engineering graduates this figure is 50% higher, at more than £240,000. Paul Jackson, chief executive of EngineeringUK, says: “Although the cost of going to university to study engineering may be higher than it has been in the past, there are payoffs.”

Public perceptions of engineering are also on the up. As the country recovers from the financial crisis, many people see engineers at the heart of rebalancing the economy and solving the challenges that the world is facing, says Jackson. “There has been a pretty dramatic shift in public attitudes,” he adds.

The engineering sector accounts for £1 in every £5 of the nation’s economy, and is almost three times the size of the financial services sector. “Those sort of numbers would have been a complete shock to the public three or four years ago,” says Jackson. “People are starting to see the broader picture and understand that Britain’s manufacturing base is still incredibly strong.”

Top 10 graduate salaries by subject

1. Dentistry: £29,805
2. Medicine: £28,913
3. Chemical engineering: £28,415
4. Economics: £25,726
5. General engineering: £25,455
6. Veterinary medicine: £25,206
7. East and South Asian studies: £24,769
8. Building: £24,755
9. Civil engineering: £24,473
10. Mechanical engineering: £24,446