In a previous article last year, we discussed whether university is still worth it in a labour market placing greater value on practical skills, experience and alternative training routes. The conclusion was not that higher education had lost its value. It was that the value of a university degree had become more conditional.
In Brief
A university degree can still offer strong value, but its return now depends more heavily on subject choice, career pathway, employer demand and practical experience. Recent analysis of graduate earnings shows that some degrees continue to lead to stronger employment outcomes, while employers should think carefully before using degree requirements as a general recruitment filter.
Key Points
- A university degree is no longer a simple guarantee of higher earnings, secure employment or career progression.
- Oxford Learning College analysis found that medicine and dentistry, veterinary sciences, and engineering and technology ranked highest for earning potential.
- Graduate outcomes vary significantly by subject, with some courses offering clearer professional routes than others.
- Business and management produced the highest number of graduates and enrolled students, suggesting strong demand but also high competition.
- Degree apprenticeships, modular learning and the Lifelong Learning Entitlement are changing how people access higher-level education.
- Employers should assess whether a university degree is genuinely required for a role or whether practical skills, experience or vocational routes may be equally relevant.
That point has become even more important. A university degree is no longer a simple guarantee of higher earnings, secure employment or professional progression. Its value increasingly depends on the subject studied, the career path chosen, the institution attended, and whether the course provides a realistic route into skilled work.
Why a University Degree No Longer Guarantees the Same Return
The debate about higher education is no longer simply about whether young people should go to university. It is about which courses provide a return, which degrees lead to stronger employment outcomes, and whether students are being prepared for a labour market shaped by AI, automation, technology, skills shortages and changing employer expectations.
Report
Recent analysis by Oxford Learning College looked at 20 degree sectors using HESA data, median graduate salaries, graduate and enrolment figures, high-skilled employment rates, and the number of degree-related entry-level jobs available through Indeed. Each sector was then scored out of 900 points. The results show why subject choice matters.
Results
Medicine and dentistry came top, scoring 533.32 out of 900. That sector had a median starting salary of £34,000 and a high-skilled employment rate of 98%. Veterinary sciences followed with 521.63 points, a median graduate salary of £31,000 and a particularly strong ratio of degree-related entry-level jobs to graduates. Engineering and technology ranked third with 430.75 points, an 81% high-skilled employment rate and an estimated 2.32 degree-related entry-level jobs per graduate.
Those figures do not mean a university degree is only worthwhile in a small group of subjects. However, they do show that the financial and employment return can vary sharply. A student considering medicine, dentistry, veterinary science or engineering is often looking at a clearer professional pathway than a student entering a broader academic subject with less direct labour-market demand.
Degrees With Stronger Earnings Potential
The Oxford analysis also highlights the scale of difference between subjects. Business and management had the highest number of graduates in 2021/22, with 176,985 graduates, and the largest number of enrolled students, at 350,660. It also had the largest average number of degree-related entry-level jobs per month. That suggests strong employer demand, although competition will also be high because of the size of the graduate pool.
By contrast, some subjects showed weaker immediate earnings potential. History, philosophy, and religious studies scored 28.16 out of 900, with a median salary of £23,000 and a much lower number of degree-related entry-level jobs. Psychology was also placed towards the lower end of the table, with an average median graduate salary of £21,500. Design, creative and performing arts recorded the lowest entry-level salary at £20,000.
This does not mean those subjects lack value. Many graduates from humanities, social sciences and creative disciplines develop strong writing, research, communication and analytical skills. Those skills may be useful across a range of careers. The problem is that the link between the university degree and a specific career outcome may be less direct. Students may need to be more proactive in building work experience, gaining technical skills and identifying realistic employment routes.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies has also found that average graduate returns hide substantial variation. It determined that undergraduate degrees produce an average net lifetime earnings gain of around 20%, but that returns differ significantly by subject, institution and individual outcome. Medicine, economics and law perform strongly in the IFS analysis, while some subjects produce much lower average financial returns.
How the University Degree Is Changing
Universities are adapting because the labour market is changing. The traditional route of leaving school, studying full-time for three years and then entering a graduate job is no longer the only model. Degree apprenticeships, part-time study, modular learning and employer-linked qualifications are becoming more important.
Degree apprenticeships are a clear example. They allow students to gain a degree while working, earning a salary and building industry experience. For some students, that may be more attractive than a conventional university degree because it combines qualification, work experience and reduced student debt. It also gives employers earlier access to developing talent.
The Lifelong Learning Entitlement is another important development. From 2027, eligible learners in England are expected to be able to access funding for full courses and certain modules at levels 4 to 6. The policy is intended to make higher-level learning more flexible, allowing people to train, retrain and upskill across their working lives rather than treating education as something completed only in early adulthood.
This matters because the value of a university degree is increasingly linked to flexibility. Workers may need to update their skills several times during their careers. Employers may also need employees who can combine academic knowledge with practical, digital and commercial capability.
What Employers Should Take From the Changing Graduate Market
For employers and HR professionals, this debate links directly to workforce planning. If a role genuinely requires specialist academic knowledge, a university degree may remain essential. Medicine, dentistry, engineering, law and some healthcare roles are obvious examples where formal qualifications can be central to competence and regulatory standards.
However, in other roles, employers should ask whether a university degree is genuinely necessary or merely being used as a convenient filter. If the role does not require degree-level knowledge, insisting on a degree may narrow the talent pool and exclude capable candidates who have come through apprenticeships, vocational routes or direct work experience.
This is particularly important in a labour market where employers frequently report skills shortages. A candidate without a degree may still have the practical ability, communication skills, digital competence or commercial understanding needed to do the job. Conversely, a graduate may still require significant workplace training before becoming fully effective.
The better approach is to identify the skills, knowledge and behaviours the role actually requires. Where a university degree is necessary, employers should say why. Where it is not, recruitment criteria should allow alternative evidence of ability, including apprenticeships, professional certificates, portfolio work, technical assessments or relevant experience.
Is a University Degree Still Worth It?
The better question is not whether university is still worth it. It is when, why and for whom it is worth it. A university degree still has clear value in many areas, especially where it leads to recognised professional pathways, strong earnings potential or high-skilled employment. The strongest outcomes are often found where academic study is closely connected to employer demand.
However, students now need to look more carefully at subject choice, graduate earnings, course design, placements, professional accreditation and the availability of entry-level roles. Graduate Outcomes data also shows why this matters: headline figures can be useful, but the real value of a university degree depends on the type of course, the career route and how effectively the qualification is used after graduation.
University education is not disappearing. It is being forced to justify itself more clearly. That may ultimately be positive if it leads to better course design, stronger employer engagement, more flexible study routes and more honest conversations about graduate outcomes.
Employers: What This Means
The changing value of a university degree has practical implications for recruitment, workforce planning and early-career talent pipelines. Employers should ensure that degree requirements are justified by the role, rather than used automatically as a screening tool.
- Review job descriptions to check whether a university degree is essential, desirable or unnecessary for the role.
- Where specialist academic knowledge is required, explain clearly why a degree-level qualification is needed.
- Consider alternative evidence of ability, including apprenticeships, professional certificates, technical assessments, portfolios and relevant work experience.
- Develop graduate, apprenticeship and entry-level routes that reflect actual skills needs rather than relying solely on traditional academic pathways.
