Jobs for graduates predicted to hit record high

A study by High Fliers Research predicts that employers will create 8.1 per cent more entry-level vacancies in 2015, building on an increase of 7.9 per cent in 2014.

This represents the third consecutive annual increase, after a sharp dip in the aftermath of global financial crisis in 2008.

The research – which examined 100 employers including Barclays, Shell, the Civil Service, Rolls-Royce, Deloitte and Marks & Spencer – also revealed that starting salaries are set to hit a median of £30,000 for the first time in 2015.

University leavers working in law firms and investment banks can expect starting salaries in excess of £40,000.

This pay increase comes as the first undergraduate students to pay £9,000 tuition fees get ready to leave higher education.

The study also shows a big increase in paid work placements and internships available for students and recent graduates.

More than four-fifths of recruiters now offer paid work-experience programmes to students and university leavers, with 13,049 placements available this year.

The research found that graduates with no work experience are unlikely to find employment, while a third of graduates who went on to work at a firm have already held a position there.

Two-thirds of recruiters offer paid placements during the summer holidays.

Martin Birchall, the managing director of High Fliers Research, said that graduates leaving university in 2015 can expect a “buoyant jobs market”.

He said: “It’s great news that students leaving university this summer who’ve paid higher tuition fees for their degrees will be emerging into the most buoyant graduate job market for over a decade, with a wider choice of graduate vacancies at the country’s most sought-after employers and better starting salaries.”

Universities minister Greg Clark said: “Confidence in the economy continues to grow, and this is reflected in the fact that Britain’s top companies will recruit more graduates this year than they have for a decade.

“This report will be warmly welcomed by the record number of students who started university this year and highlights how a degree remains one of the best routes into a rewarding career.”