What do creative arts graduates do?

Dr Leo Burtin, careers education manager at the UCL School for the Creative and Cultural Industries, and Matthew Halfin, careers consultant at Queen Mary University of London, provide an overview of how creative arts graduates fared 15 months after leaving university

The decade-long economic growth of the creative industries has led to an overall increase in jobs in the sector to 2.4 million in 2023.1 It is in this context that the latest Graduate Outcomes data shows that 45.8% of creative arts graduates secured full-time employment, with a further 27.7% progressing to part-time roles after graduation.

Design graduates were the most likely to find full-time employment (52.4%) with fine arts graduates least likely to secure such a role (34.3%). The rate of full-time employment among creative arts graduates is significantly lower than the all-subjects average of 56.4% and a significantly higher proportion of creative graduates secured part-time employment by comparison with the overall survey respondents' average of 12%.

The high portion of part-time working patterns is consistent with the prevalence of portfolio careers across the creative industries where 28% of the overall workforce is self-employed, rising to 70% in some sub-sectors.2 Graduate Outcomes data shows up to 24% of creative graduates had a creative portfolio, ran their own business or were self-employed (compared with 8% overall).

Types of work

The top occupations for creative arts graduates were in creative fields, with 27.1% employed in arts, design, and media, followed by 22.1% in retail, waiting, and other customer service roles. The most common creative roles were graphic designer, photographer, arts officer, actor and artist.

Others found work in clerical, secretarial and admin roles (9.7%), as well as marketing, PR and sales (9.1%). Teaching was a popular role for performing arts (12.6%) and fine arts (9.1%) graduates, often alongside their creative pursuits.

Creative arts graduates had a professional-level employment rate of 56.3%, falling 2.3 percentage points from last year, reflecting labour market conditions with fewer graduate roles available but skills gaps in the sector for more highly-skilled positions.3

This is well below the average for all graduates of 71.9% although it is important to recognise the fact that 'creative graduates show consistently higher multiple employments than other graduates' as they balance developing their creative practice with other types of paid employment.4 Design (61.5%) and media studies (57.9%) graduates had the highest rate of professional-level employment, whereas fine arts graduates had the lowest at 44.7%.

However, 71% of creative arts graduates felt their activities were meaningful, suggesting a sense of positivity about their outcomes, with fine arts (64%) and performing arts (65%) graduates the most likely to say their work fits with their future plans.

Graduate salaries

Average salaries for creative arts graduates ranged from £23,655 to £29,081. The highest earnings were reported by females in the performing arts sector. Male graduates with a fine arts degree reported the lowest salaries. Those who pursued further study reported higher average salaries than those who did not, particularly for those pursuing further study in fine and performing arts. All creative arts graduates earned a salary below the overall average (£30,031).

Further study

Just 3.1% of creative graduates pursued full-time further study 15 months after graduation, while an additional 8.7% balanced work and study. Graduates from fine arts (16.6%) and performing arts (15.2%) were the most likely to continue their studies with media studies graduates above average (12.6%), whereas design graduates (8.7%) were the least likely to do so.

The majority of those in further study were working towards a Masters (49.1%), while others were mainly working towards a postgraduate diploma or certificate (20.1%, with fine arts graduates highest at 29.2%) or a professional qualification (19.7%). Design (24.5%) and cinematics & photography (25.2%) graduates were the most likely to take this route.

The launch of the Creative Industries government plan in June 2025 acknowledges the importance of creative freelancers to the sector and further research on the impact of portfolio careers would paint a more accurate picture of graduate outcomes in the sector.5

Notes

1. Skills Mismatches in the UK's Creative Industries, Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre, 2025.
2. Delivering for freelancers: Creative UK proposals for a new Freelance Champion role, Creative UK, 2025.
3. Skills Mismatches in the UK's Creative Industries, Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre, 2025.
4. The value of creative graduates, GuildHE, 2024.
5. Creative Industries Sector Plan, Department for Business and Trade & Department for Culture, Media and Sport, 2025.