Most young people won’t achieve their salary expectations by the age of 30

Emma Finamore
30 Nov 2018

There are striking differences between the expected earnings of 16-21-year olds by the age of 30 compared to real-life earnings.

Placeholder — Only a very small amount of 16-21-year olds expected to be earning over £60,000 by the time they were 30.

Deciding what you want to be when you’re older is by no means feat, with a large majority of young people still unsure on how they wish to spend their working hours even after completing three or more years at university. However, many can relate to the job aspirations of young people, with careers such as doctor, nurse, teacher, sportsmen or the emergency services among the most commonly cited.

A recent report supported by University College London (UCL) found that 36% of children aged seven and over base their career aspirations on people they know, and the 45% of those that didn’t, stated film and TV was the biggest influence on their future job choice.

However, according to a new study conducted by YouGov.co.uk for the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), 49% of young people do not feel prepared for the world of work. With 21% stating they feel there is a lack of opportunities in the sector they wish to work in.

As a result, training and qualification provider TheKnowledgeAcademy.com sought to uncover the realities of young people in the UK job market, though an analysis of research conducted by The Office for National Statistics.

Of those polled, 6% predicted they would be earning between £70,000-£79,999, when in reality only 1% earn this much

It revealed the striking differences between the expected earnings of 16-21-year olds by the age of 30 compared to the real-life earnings of a 30-year-old in 2017*.

32% of 16-21-year olds expected to be earning from £0-£19,999 by the time they were 30 in 2015-16 (including with a degree and without). Of the 32%, 7% expected to be earning within this bracket if they had a degree, whilst 25% stated that they predicted to earn this much without a degree. Fascinatingly, they weren’t far off with 37% earning this salary.

Interestingly, only a very small amount of 16-21-year olds expected to be earning over £60,000 by the time they were 30. With only 8% (6% with a degree and 2% without) expecting to earn between £60,000-£69,999 vs. the 1% who earn that figure each year.

Thereafter, 6% (3% with a degree and 3% without) predicted they would be earning between £70,000-£79,999, when in reality only 1% earn this much. Finally, 5% aimed to be earning at least £80,000 or more if they had a degree, when in fact 2% do.

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