ISE’s Student Development survey 2025 looks at how graduates progress over a three-year programme with salaries by sector and region.
This year’s ISE Student Development Survey 2025 gathered detailed insights from 148 employers across a range of sectors and organisation types to understand how employers are structuring, delivering, and improving their early career development programmes.
An important part of the findings is around how graduates progress after they have completed their programme including average salaries.
How do graduates progress after a 3-year programme?
Following the completion of an early career programme, 83% of employers reported offering a salary increase and 76% a new job title to their graduates, reflecting a pattern similar to the previous year.
While 28% of employers allocated graduates to a suitable role others must take a more proactive approach.
Over a third suggest graduates need to apply for a permanent position within their organisation, while 37% suggest graduates must apply for a specific role of interest.
What are average graduate salaries over a 3-year programme?
Salaries are a key component of developing and retaining early career hires and recognising their contribution. It is important to understand how employers strategically use development programmes and salary progressions.
The salary progression for graduates demonstrates notable growth over three years. In 2025,
graduates started with a salary of £32,000 (median), which increased to £50,000 (median) after three years, a 56% rise.
Comparatively, in 2024, the salary growth was less pronounced. Graduates started at £32,000 and reached £45,000 after three years, reflecting a 41% increase.
Although this suggests an improvement in salary progression in 2025, this trend appears to be partly driven by stagnant starting salaries rather than an overall enhancement of pay structures.
Graduate starting salaries remained unchanged at £32,000 between 2024 and 2025. This lack of growth in initial salaries may have contributed to a steeper percentage increase in earnings over three years, rather than reflecting a broader shift in employer pay strategies.
Sector and regional differences
A significant difference can be seen across sectors when we look at percentage changes in starting salaries and salaries after three years.
For graduates, the most significant salary increases were in the Legal sector (86% increase, to £90,000 after three years) and Retail, FMCG and Tourism (77% increase, to £55,000 after three years). They were the only sectors to have above average growth.
Meanwhile, the Built Environment sector (27% increase, to £38,000) and Digital and IT (29% increase, to £43,500) had the smallest salary increases.
Similarly, a significant difference can be seen across regions when we look at percentage
changes in starting salaries and salaries after three years.
For graduates, the most substantial salary growth occurs in Scotland (49% increase, to £45,000) and London (47% increase, to £50,000) after three years, reflecting strong career advancement opportunities in these regions.
Meanwhile, the Rest of the World shows the smallest increase at just 21%, indicating slower wage growth outside the UK. Within the UK, the North West has the smallest salary increase at 30%, to £40,000 after three years.
For detailed sector and regional salary breakdown download ISE’s Student Development Survey 2025.