New research published by the Sutton Trust and upReach indicates that privately educated graduates in top paying jobs earn significantly more than those with a state education.
The findings are revealed in Private Pay Progression, a report based on research into graduate pay by Jake Anders from the National Institute for Economic and Social Research (NIESR).
According to the report, six months after graduation the average salary gap between a state educated (£22,735) and a privately educated (£24,066) employee in a high-status job is about 6 per cent. After three years, this has grown to 14 per cent, with private school alumni averaging £36,036 compared with £31,586 for state-educated employees.
“We know that graduates from less privileged backgrounds are under-represented in the top professions but (this) research shows that they face disadvantage when it comes to pay progression too,” said Sir Peter Lampl, chairman of the Sutton Trust and the Education Endowment Foundation.
“This new research shows us how vital is it that firms do more to improve social mobility through their recruitment practices. Enabling greater access to a wider pool of diverse talent will deliver real benefits for employers and employees alike.”
The report claims that the disparity in earning power can partially be explained by factors such as prior academic attainment and the type of university attended. However, soft skills such as confidence, articulacy and assertiveness are also believed to contribute to the gap.
“This research tells us that Britain’s social mobility challenge does not end on a graduate’s first day of work,” said Henry Morris, founder of upReach, which supports undergraduates from less privileged backgrounds to secure high-level employment.
“Despite doing as well academically, the pay of graduates from more privileged backgrounds rises more quickly than their peers.”
So, why the implied surprise at this finding? The RIPs- Rich, In-place and Powerful – have been rip-ing-off (pun intended!) citizen, corporation, the State itself for over 500 years: and they need to ensure that the secrets of continuing to do so are tightly held. So where better than with those born with silver-spoons (perhaps that should be golden cradles)
Yes, the occasional intelligent member of the lower orders is permitted to make their pile…be a super-barrow-boy (trader…) but ‘old money’ holds almost all the places at the top-table, the cards and sets the ‘odds’ for the ‘bets’: is that an analogy, simile, metaphor…or a statement of what is surely obvious?
Just accept your place towards the bottom of the heap and be thankful!
best
Mike B
Indeed MB.
In fact, the article should perhaps more correctly focus on being outraged. Why in the 21st century are we finding outmoded and supposedly discredited ideas such as why on earth your social standing & background matters at all in what should be a knowledge, qualification and competence driven environment, with reward based on skills & performance and not just the merit of ‘having the right sort of breeding’
The lack of career progression and pay disparity of working class graduates can only be explained by one thing, and the one thing that the article is dancing around so deftly…..regional accents.
The best investment any graduate from London, Liverpool, or Newcastle (or more especially the Black Country) could make in their future is a course of elocution lessons.
Then sit back and watch those promotions roll in….
Have just listened to a programme on radio 4 in which costs for a typical course were said to be £63,000. The people who are going to non-vocational courses are either lumbering themselves with debt or have rich families.
The presenters also seemed surprised that the system was unfair on the poorest section of society: makes you wonder what planet they live on, perhaps it would be a nice place.
The UK’s GINI index is almost as bad at the USA. The last election proves that most people are happy to be excluded from the trough and believe that they will get the overflow, despite centuries of evidence against this.
Would like to know what percentage of private schools actually produce engineers of any persuasion my bet is it is very low. There will be a significant science percentage but engineers I doubt. As a father of 2 privately educated kids I am amazed at the intense school day their schools provide AND the 3hours a day homework every day. I see this as both a strength and a weakness. My kids have very little social down time compared to their state educated pears. Discipline in class is excellent unlike the state schools. Teaching is excellent but my kids to my eyes have become workaholic before leaving school. (They don’t see it that way) Perhaps this accounts for the fast career progress?
Its called the ‘old boys network’.
Its not what you know, its who you know.
Sad comment on today’s UK.
This has been holding us as a country back for decades.
The anonymous coward makes an interesting point about regional accents. In 2014 I attended a meeting about improving education of Muslim children. I stress, education and not school performance. It was mentioned that Muslim children would benefit more in society if they improved their social skills and learned how to relate to white British middle aged middle class people in a civilised and professional matter rather than achieved high academically. The discussion then moved onto whether the strong local accents Muslim children who live in Birmingham, Lancashire, and Yorkshire develop put them at a disadvantage in the job market compared with Muslim children who live in London and the south of England. It was agreed that anecdotal evidence exists where Muslim children from London and the south of England generally do better in employment than those with similar levels of intelligence and qualifications from north of Bedford, so could their local accent be a handicap? After all, the way a person talks is of a comparable significance to the way a person dresses. A question was then raised in the minutes of the meeting as to whether Muslim children ‘unfortunate’ to develop a local accent would benefit more from elocution lessons to speak the Queen’s English in a Home Counties accent than academic support to achieve high GCSE or A Level grades? It could be argued that many Muslim children already have elocution lessons called tajweed used to ensure correct pronunciation when reciting the Qu’ran in Arabic because Arabic is not their communication language. Could this then be extended to their English?
Wey man, as a Geordie aah have been discriminated against by the posh southerners for allll me life, but ah still luv them; am ah a soft touch?
but seriously, the accent issue is well known and is very divisive, just listen to the BBC: Southerners, Scots and Irishmen only need apply.
No surprise here. As an engineer who did go to a private school (albeit on the old “assisted places” scheme whereby local authorities contributed to the fees for pupils with academic ability) and with a wife who teaches at a private school, I see many other ways in which the state sector should be emulating the private sector to produce more motivated and able alumni. This cuts across the academic options on offer, the opportunities for extra curricular activities – sports, music etc which help engender the competitive spirit and teamwork – even as shown by the previous correspondent an attitude to work hours that is not 9 to 5. There are those that will attack the “privilege” of private education but really we need to bring the state sector up and invest more in the state sector to provide smaller classes, better sports facilities, greater ranges of opportunities for other activities. Even the relatively young children (Yr 7/8) at the school my wife works at don’t leave until 5:30-6pm giving them the opportunity to become more complete individuals and discover their individual talents through the activities on offer – not just teaching them to pass one exam after another which often seems the purpose of much of the state sector. I should add that my daughters went / are going to a state grammar school and did / are doing very well academically but I can see what they are missing. As a parent I have spent many hours ferrying them to out of school clubs but having these contained within the school day / environment would make life a lot easier and give more children whose parents who, for whatever reason, cannot do this far greater opportunities.
“I see many other ways in which the state sector should be emulating the private sector to produce more motivated and able alumni. This cuts across the academic options on offer, the opportunities for extra curricular activities – sports, music etc which help engender the competitive spirit and teamwork – even as shown by the previous correspondent an attitude to work hours that is not 9 to 5.”
“Even the relatively young children (Yr 7/8) at the school my wife works at don’t leave until 5:30-6pm giving them the opportunity to become more complete individuals and discover their individual talents through the activities on offer.”
It is very debatable whether and how extra curricular activities – like sports and music – that are commonly offered by private schools are an advantage when it comes to employment. Remember that good sportsmen are not necessarily good businessmen (and vice versa) and that there is a bias towards classical music in fee paying schools which may not be as useful in the commercial world as more modern musical styles or to every student’s taste.
Finishing school at 5:30-6PM means that children have less time to spend with their families; friends outside of school; in community activities; or with certain hobbies and self study that could be useful for a future career.
Also bear in mind that the schools you are referring to are aimed at the top 20% of society and may be unsuitable or fail to offer the services that are required by the remaining 80% of society. There are plenty of lesser private schools for the more common folk where students finish at the normal time or only have extra curricular activities comparable to the average state school.
The state school system is a one size to fit all institution which inevitably means that it is a compromise whereas private schools can tailor themselves towards particular audiences and sections of society.
“As a parent I have spent many hours ferrying them to out of school clubs but having these contained within the school day / environment would make life a lot easier and give more children whose parents who, for whatever reason, cannot do this far greater opportunities.”
The problem with this is that children will only mix with other children who attend the same school whereas if they attended activities out of school then they will mix with children who go to different schools. ANY school can become an insular place with the result that if children spend too much time at one school over a period of several years then there is a danger that they do not know many people outside of the school apart from their own family.
Some fellow bloggers have occasionally expressed concerns at my approach, attitude(s) and so on: so let me declare an interest.
I went to a rather special boarding school (and prior to that a series of ‘dame’-boarding schools) -and all from the age of 3 years, 8 months! until I was 18! frankly, that school life was the only life I knew and my time (like that of my 700 contemporaries) was almost totally regulated, filled, enhanced? for 15 years. I did make a ‘vow’ to myself that I would never later belong to anything unless I choose to do so: and I have not!
Arran comments about ‘those’ private schools catering for the 20% -presumably whose parents can afford to pay (and out of taxed income?) I would suggest that we presently permit something much more damaging: University teaching is primarily concentrating on looking after the needs of the 2% of students who will remain in universities as academics and researchers (and most of those do so because they are not ‘up’ to doing a proper job outside….: and not those of the 98% who will not!
Change that and a generation actually fit to lead might emerge: