The average UK graduate scheme salary in 2026 is £28,000–£32,000. Finance and consulting schemes start higher at £32,000–£50,000. Public sector schemes pay £25,000–£30,000 but include pension contributions worth up to 27% of salary on top. Investment banking is the outlier at £60,000–£80,000 — but takes fewer than 1% of applicants.
Salary is one of the most searched topics around graduate schemes and one of the least honestly covered. Most sites either quote averages without context or focus only on the headline numbers from investment banking. This guide gives you the full picture: what schemes actually pay by sector, how salary changes across the programme, what benefits add in real terms, and how graduate scheme salaries compare to direct entry roles in the same fields.
Graduate scheme salaries by sector in 2026
The single biggest driver of graduate scheme salary is sector — not employer size, not location, not degree classification. Here is the honest salary picture across every major sector:
London weighting adds £2,000–£5,000 to most salaries at employers with a significant London presence. Some employers (Barclays, KPMG, Accenture) pay a separate London allowance on top of base salary rather than building it in. Always check whether the advertised salary is London-specific or UK-wide before comparing.
What specific employers pay in 2026
Averages are only useful up to a point. Here is what the major schemes actually pay at entry level:
| Employer | Starting salary | Sector | Notable benefit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goldman Sachs | £70,000 – £80,000 | Investment banking | Significant bonus on top |
| JPMorgan | £60,000 – £70,000 | Investment banking | Bonus + benefits package |
| McKinsey | £55,000 – £65,000 | Consulting (MBB) | Performance bonuses |
| BCG | £50,000 – £60,000 | Consulting (MBB) | Signing bonus at some offices |
| £45,000 – £55,000 | Technology | Equity, extensive perks | |
| Amazon | £38,000 – £48,000 | Technology | RSUs (stock) vest over 4 years |
| Deloitte | £32,000 – £36,000 | Accounting / consulting | ACA fully funded (£20k+ value) |
| KPMG | £30,000 – £34,000 | Accounting | ACA fully funded |
| PwC | £30,000 – £35,000 | Accounting | ACA fully funded |
| Barclays | £30,000 – £35,000 | Retail banking | Pension + annual bonus |
| Accenture | £30,000 – £34,000 | Consulting | Bonus + learning budget |
| Rolls Royce | £30,000 – £34,000 | Engineering | IMechE chartership funded |
| BAE Systems | £28,000 – £33,000 | Engineering / defence | Security clearance + pension |
| Unilever | £30,000 – £34,000 | FMCG | Bonus scheme + global mobility |
| Civil Service Fast Stream | £28,000 – £32,000 | Public sector | 27% pension contribution |
| NHS Management Training | £27,000 – £29,000 | Public sector | NHS pension (one of UK's best) |
| Santander | £27,000 – £30,000 | Retail banking | Low competition, rolling offers |
| Environment Agency | £26,000 – £29,000 | Public sector | KD 9 — easiest ranking scheme |
Why total compensation matters more than base salary
Comparing base salaries across schemes is useful but incomplete. The actual value of a graduate scheme includes funded qualifications, pension contributions, bonuses, and benefits — and these can add tens of thousands of pounds in real value over the course of the scheme.
Funded qualifications
The ACA (chartered accountancy qualification) costs around £20,000–£25,000 in course and exam fees if self-funded. Big Four schemes cover this entirely, plus give you study leave. The CIPD (HR qualification) costs £5,000–£12,000. Engineering chartership routes through employers like Rolls Royce and BAE Systems carry similar value. When comparing a £32,000 Big Four offer with a £36,000 role at an employer that doesn't fund qualifications, the funded ACA makes the Big Four offer worth considerably more over three years.
Pension contributions
This is where public sector schemes are systematically undervalued. The headline salary looks lower — but the pension contribution changes the comparison entirely.
"Students consistently make the mistake of ranking schemes purely on base salary, which means they systematically undervalue public sector and professional services offers. A £29,000 NHS Management Training Scheme salary with a 20%+ pension contribution and structured development is a better financial package than a £33,000 private sector role with a 5% pension and no training budget. Run the actual numbers before you decide a scheme isn't worth applying to."
How graduate scheme salaries progress after year one
Starting salary is only half the picture. Graduate schemes are designed as fast-track programmes — the salary trajectory after qualifying is typically steeper than for peers who entered the same industry through direct routes.
| Sector | Year 1 (on scheme) | On qualification (yr 2–3) | Year 5 post-scheme |
|---|---|---|---|
| Investment banking | £60,000–£80,000 | £90,000–£120,000 | £150,000+ (VP level) |
| MBB Consulting | £55,000–£65,000 | £75,000–£95,000 | £120,000+ (Manager) |
| Big Four (post-ACA) | £32,000–£36,000 | £42,000–£52,000 | £65,000–£90,000 (Manager) |
| Technology (big tech) | £40,000–£55,000 | £55,000–£75,000 | £80,000–£120,000 |
| Engineering | £28,000–£36,000 | £38,000–£48,000 | £55,000–£75,000 (Chartered) |
| Civil Service Fast Stream | £28,000–£32,000 | £38,000–£44,000 | £55,000–£70,000 (Grade 6/7) |
The Big Four post-ACA trajectory is worth particular attention. The starting salary looks modest against consulting or technology, but newly qualified chartered accountants at Deloitte or KPMG typically earn £42,000–£52,000 within three years — and the qualification opens doors to industry finance roles paying considerably more. The scheme salary is a short-term cost for a long-term asset.
"I almost didn't apply to the Civil Service Fast Stream because the salary looked low compared to the consulting offers I was chasing. Then I actually did the maths on the pension and realised the total package was comparable. Two years in, I have friends on higher base salaries who are also paying for their own professional development and getting a 5% pension. The headline number really doesn't tell you much."
Graduate scheme salary vs direct entry: which pays more?
In year one, direct entry roles in the same sector sometimes pay slightly more than scheme salaries — particularly in technology startups, agencies, and specialist roles where demand for skills outstrips supply. The difference is typically £2,000–£5,000 in favour of direct entry.
By year three, the picture reverses. Graduate scheme alumni have faster progression, structured promotions built into the programme, and (in professional services) a funded qualification that directly increases earning potential. The research consistently shows that graduate scheme alumni overtake direct-entry peers in the same sector within two to four years.
The exception is investment banking and MBB consulting — where the scheme salary is already substantially above what most direct-entry roles in adjacent fields pay. The question there is not whether to do the scheme but whether you can get onto it.
"The salary question is almost always framed as 'what do I earn now?' when the more useful question is 'what do I earn in five years and what options does this role give me?' A £26,000 HR scheme at Unilever with a structured promotion path and global mobility looks very different from a £30,000 HR coordinator role with no development structure, when you map out the trajectory over a career rather than just year one."
FAQs on graduate scheme salaries
The average starting salary across all UK graduate schemes in 2026 is £28,000–£32,000. Finance and consulting schemes start higher at £32,000–£65,000 depending on the employer. Public sector schemes sit at £25,000–£30,000 but include pension contributions that add significant value. Investment banking is the outlier at £60,000–£80,000, but represents a tiny proportion of total graduate scheme places.
In year one, graduate scheme salaries are broadly comparable to direct-entry roles in the same sector — sometimes slightly lower. The advantage of schemes shows up over three to five years: structured progression, faster promotion timelines, and funded qualifications mean scheme alumni typically overtake peers who entered the same sector via direct routes. The long-term trajectory favours schemes in most sectors.
Investment banking schemes at Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan pay £60,000–£80,000 at entry — the highest graduate scheme salaries in the UK. MBB consulting (McKinsey, BCG, Bain) follows at £50,000–£65,000. Big tech (Google, Amazon) pays £40,000–£55,000. These are also the most competitive schemes, with acceptance rates well under 5%. For most students, the realistic high-paying targets are Big Four accounting (£32,000–£38,000) or retail banking (£28,000–£35,000).
Yes, most schemes include at least one salary review during the programme. Professional services schemes (Big Four, consulting) typically increase salary significantly on qualification — a newly qualified ACA at Deloitte earns £42,000–£52,000, up from a starting salary of £32,000–£36,000. Engineering and public sector schemes have structured pay bands that progress annually. Retail and commercial schemes vary — some have fixed scheme salaries, others review annually.
The NHS Management Training Scheme pays £27,000–£29,000 at entry — below the graduate scheme average in raw salary terms. But the NHS pension is one of the most generous in the UK, with employer contributions of around 20–23% of salary. On a £28,000 salary that adds approximately £5,600–£6,400 in pension value annually, making the total compensation package comparable to many private sector offers at £33,000–£34,000. The training quality and development structure are also genuinely excellent.
Rarely. Most large graduate scheme employers have fixed salary bands for scheme entrants with no negotiation. The salary is set by the programme, not by individual bargaining. The exceptions are: smaller employers running their own informal schemes, employers where you have a competing offer from a similar-tier organisation, and schemes in sectors where talent is genuinely scarce (some specialist technology roles). If you have a competing offer, it is worth disclosing it professionally — but don't expect movement on salary at a FTSE 100 scheme.