For decades, the deal for Britain’s brightest young minds was clear: study hard, go to university and high pay would be among the rewards.
That contract has been steadily breaking down. A Bloomberg analysis shows that the graduate pay premium over minimum-wage salaries in England has been cut in half since 2007. When adjusting for increased living costs, pay for the typical single working-age graduate is 30% — or £8,000 ($10,500) — lower than it was back then.