A third of this year’s grads already have job offers

An astonishing third of jammy finalists have managed to line up jobs for after uni.

An unprecedented 37 per cent admitted they were able to score work straight out of uni, according to a new survey.

What’s more, new grads can expect to earn at least £23,700 in their first job, which is nearly three per cent more than last year.

Call them delusional, but a sixth of students graduating this year reckon they’ll be on a staggering £100,000 a year by the time they turn 30, according to the Graduate Careers survey.

They asked 18,412 finalists finalists about their post-uni prospects, and discovered most of us are feeling pretty smug about our job chances.

A confident 26 per cent of those without a job said they expected to be in the workplace straight after they graduate.

But it’s not all good news. We face a crippling average debt of £30,000 once leaving uni.

It comes as no surprise that those at London unis have the biggest pile of debt, with Imperial facing the biggest bill at an average £39,300.

Away from the costly capital, Durham students had the second highest payback plan, with an average £33,700 due.

Meanwhile lucky Scots have the easiest ride, with Strathclyde grads owing just £13,000, all because they avoid tuition fees.

Overall, around half revealed they’d slaved away at work placements or internships, while a very keen 64 per cent had applied to at least one job by March of their last year.

They say if you can’t a job just do a masters, and it looks like recent grads share this ethos.

A quarter of finalists confessed they were considering delaying unemployment and studying a postgrad qualification, while an enterprising four per cent planned to start their own business.

Martin Birchall, managing director of High Fliers Research who carried out the survey, said: “So although the Class of 2015 face the highest-ever graduation debts, an unprecedented number have already secured a graduate job offer before leaving university and the proportion who are uncertain about their future is at its lowest level for seventeen years.”

He described us as “the most careers-orientated, motivated and ambitious of their generation” as a massive 48 per cent of finalists began to research their career options by the end of their fresher year.

Martin added: “By researching their employment options earlier than ever and completing an average of six months’ work experience during their studies, they have prepared more thoroughly for the graduate job market than any other cohort in the last 20 years.”

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