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More building and engineering graduates found a job within six months of leaving university last year than in 2009, according to new research.
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit (HECSU) has conducted a survey to determine how many building and engineering graduates were in employment six months after leaving university in 2010.
The organisation's annual What Do Graduates Do? survey shows that 70.9 per cent of architecture, building or engineering graduates were in work, a rise of 14.5 per cent compared to the class of 2009. Furthermore, unemployment among these graduates fell from 11.6 per cent to ten per cent.
Charlie Ball, deputy research director at HECSU, expressed his delight at the findings as it shows that the engineering and architecture sectors are recovering after being hit "particularly hard" by the economic downturn.
He said: "Despite some difficult recent times, students looking to start engineering and building-related degrees can expect to be in demand once the economy strengthens, as they were before the recession."
Overall, 69.7 per cent of all graduates were employed within six months of leaving university, an increase of 7.9 per cent compared to the previous year, while unemployment fell 0.4 per cent to 8.5 per cent.
In addition to being more likely to find a job after leaving university, building and engineering graduates are also able to earn above the average wage of all first degree graduates (£19,794).
University leavers who studied civil engineering, mechanical engineering, and electrical and electronic engineering earned on average £22,819, £23,993 and £21,852 respectively. The average salary of architecture and building graduates is now around £20,527.
HECSU's study also highlights the regional discrepancies in salaries, with electrical and electronic engineers in Scotland earning nearly £6,000 more a year than those in Humber. Moreover, London-based civil engineers take home an average annual salary of £25,600, compared to £19,000 in Northern Ireland.
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