Gender in the graduate labour market

Women have a higher employment rate than men, but the gender pay gap is visible as early as graduation

Over half (58%) of respondents to the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education 2016/17 survey were female, and female graduates have outnumbered males since 1995.1 Does this numerical dominance of women in the higher education system translate into success in the graduate labour market?

The gender pay gap

In April 2018, the UK became one of the first countries in the world to introduce mandatory gender pay gap reporting for larger organisations, raising awareness of this issue in the national consciousness.

The gender pay gap across all organisations in 2017 was 9.1%, a slight fall from 9.4% in 2016.2

The Longitudinal Education Outcomes (LEO) data shows us that the gender pay gap also exists among graduates. In fact, 'for all subjects except Mass Communication and Documentation, male median earnings exceed female median earnings at more than 50% of institutions.'3

Even in nursing, a female-dominated profession, with little salary variance overall, male graduates are still earning more than female graduates from 92% of institutions.4

It should be noted, however, that the LEO data has significant limitations. It doesn't identify all graduates who are self-employed, or distinguish between those who are working full or part time.

It also doesn't take into account differences in salary by region. Therefore, we cannot use it to draw any definitive conclusions about graduate salaries, or outcomes from a particular subject or institution.

Reasons for the pay gap

A recent analysis by the Office for National Statistics showed that 23% of the difference between men's and women's pay could be explained by differences in occupation.5

This also holds true for graduates, as four of the top five subjects with the highest gross annual earnings have more male than female graduates; medicine, engineering, technology and physical or environmental subjects.6

However, the graduate pay gap is particularly puzzling in that we observe it between male and female graduates from the same subject at the same institution, who are similarly qualified and able to enter similar occupations.

To explain and begin to address the gap will require the co-operation of government, higher education institutions, employers and others to produce more comprehensive data than we have at present.

Other gender differences

The 2016/17 DLHE data identifies the occupational areas where women were heavily represented, the most striking being health (24.2% of female graduates and 9.4% of males). Conversely, business and finance was more common among male graduates (14% of males and 8.6% of females).

We can also see that women are slightly more likely to be employed than men, with 72.3% of females in some form of work (full or part time) versus 69.3% of males.

However, there are also many similarities between men and women, such as in the proportions being based in each region, and how they found their jobs.

In terms of their reasons for taking the job, there's a slightly larger group of male graduates whose main reason was 'the job was well-paid' (3.4%, versus 2% of females). It's worth noting however that this percentage is relatively small for all, suggesting that salary was not the primary motivation for most.

Addressing gender inequalities

Although the salary data available has limitations, and one could argue that it tells us mainly about the behaviour of employers, the fact that the gender pay gap exists immediately on graduation does suggest that universities also have a role to play in addressing it.

Some initiatives exist for female students, such as the Sprint professional development programme for women7 and those encouraging women into particular industries such as Women into Science and Engineering (WISE).8

However, it's clear that there's still some way to go before we can celebrate true gender equality in graduate outcomes, and cooperation between universities and employers is needed to make this happen.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of HECSU/Prospects

Notes

1. First Destinations of Students Leaving Higher Education Institutions: 1994/95, HESA, 1996
2. Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings: 2017 provisional and 2016 revised results, Office for National Statistics, 2017.
3. Graduate Outcomes (LEO): Subject by Provider, 2015 to 2016, Department for Education, 2018.
4. Ibid.
5. Understanding the gender pay gap in the UK, Office for National Statistics, 2018.
6. Graduates in the UK labour market: 2017, Office for National Statistics, 2017.
7. The Springboard Consultancy.
8. WISE Campaign.

Written by

Helen Kempster

Senior careers consultant

The Careers Group, University of London