When looking for graduate opportunities in the UK, it is common to have heads tuned by the highest salaries. Of course, cities such as London, Cambridge, Oxford and Edinburgh are going to pay you well – but it is all relative.
If you are being paid well for your work but also have a high cost of living, are you really benefiting from your degree? Some will argue that you are because you will be working your way up the career ladder. Others may disagree and say owning a home in these locations is almost impossible.
So, what are the best opportunities for upcoming UK graduates in the UK? Instead of flocking to the capital and astronomical renting prices, why not consider these cheaper cities where you can find graduate jobs that pay less, but where you may just end up with more.
- Hull
Check out the graduate jobs in Hull on Jobrapido and you will be surprised at how many opportunities are on offer for degree holders. Once a fishing epicentre, the city has gradually become more gentrified with tech businesses and the university employing grads, and schools crying out for teachers.
Hull also has some of the cheapest properties in the UK, which can make a great family home or be the start of a property portfolio.
- Newcastle
Newcastle is known for its friendly people and its nightlife, but did you know it also has a thriving graduate job market? The city offers two universities and a host of companies specifically offering graduate programmes. It also has some of the cheapest rental and home prices in the UK, so if you do take a pay cut to move here, you may end up with more disposable income each month.
- Manchester
Manchester is becoming the new home for London companies who want to escape the high business fees associated with renting office spaces in London. Even more so considering the high-speed rail links that will run between Manchester and the capital. As Manchester is fast becoming the capital of the north and attracting more companies, it is also getting ready to become a future hotspot with graduates as well.
Manchester’s cost of living may not be as low as some of the other options here, but it is still significantly lower than the cities of the Golden Triangle and Edinburgh.
- Glasgow
Glasgow offers high graduate starting salaries that can compete with some of those offered by companies in London. Coupling this with cheaper rent and living costs, Glasgow has become a magnet for graduates in recent years, even competing with the more characterful but more expensive, Edinburgh.
The Bottom Line
The great news is that there are so many opportunities for graduates in the UK. Whether you choose lower wages and lower mortgages or the best wages in return for a higher cost of living, you will be able to find what you are seeking in the UK’s graduate job market.
