Graduates from research-intensive universities like Essex are more likely to be better paid than those who go to study elsewhere.

A study by the 1994 group of smaller research universities, of which Essex is one, shows that attending a university in the 1994 Group or the Russell Group of 20 large, research-led institutions, increases earning potential across most subjects compared with other institutions.

The Graduate Employment and Earnings report used data from a survey which provides information on a group of 2002-03 graduates and the positions they hold three and a half years after graduating. It also used information from a survey of full-time undergraduates about why they picked their institution.

Three quarters of graduates of research-intensive universities were earning more than £20,000 after this time compared with 59 per cent of graduates from other institutions. Graduates were more likely to hold a graduate-level job and were likely to be happy retrospectively with their choice of university.

The news comes as Essex celebrates its recent ranking in the top ten universities for research. The recent Research Assessment Exercise placed Essex top in the UK in the social sciences, with Politics and Sociology both ranked first, Economics third and Linguistics fourth. History and Accounting and Finance were ranked second.

It also comes as the University’s innovative Frontrunners scheme, which gives its students the opportunity to gain valuable paid-for work experience within the University, enters its second year.

The University is delighted to end 2008 on such a high note and believes its success is a testament to its commitment to providing students with the knowledge, skills and experience that they need to go on and have the brightest of futures.