The ‘Mickey Mouse’ degrees that could damage your career prospects

As universities launch modules on Harry Styles or entire courses on bakery and patisserie technology, the value of these so-called “Mickey Mouse degrees” has come into question once more.

The average university degree leaves graduates with £45,000 in debt, which they only start paying off once their salary exceeds £27,295, and even high earners face paying off university debt well into middle age. Those who begin their studies this autumn on the Government’s new “Plan 5” loans will start repayments once their earnings exceed £25,000.

But laying to one side the quirkier courses, which are only offered by particular universities, research has revealed the degrees which are the worst value for money in 2023, a list which includes academic staples such as English Literature.

Jobs website Adzuna analysed the career pathways grads of different subjects commonly take after leaving university, and what they could expect to be earning five years into their careers based on current market conditions.

The results found 10 degrees which are the worst value for money, with those on the lowest-ranking course making an average of £24,242 five years after graduation.

Despite soaring inflation and high wage growth, advertised salaries have remained stagnant, the jobsite found. 

In fact, some of these “Mickey Mouse degrees” lead to lower salaries on average than they did a year ago. Translation graduates, for instance, can expect to earn £234 a year less than they did in 2022, according to Adzuna, which analysed salaries as at March 2023.

Andrew Hunter, co-founder of the jobs website, said the figures proved the value of a degree “is being eroded by inflation”.

He added: “Things remain a bit brighter for grads, with hiring staying steady for the moment and over 14,000 advertised vacancies on offer in March. But on the ground, the price for this is sluggish advertised grad salaries. 

“It suggests employers may be channelling limited budgets towards pay rises to retain their more senior staff, while workers at the start of their career are feeling the full force of inflation and seeing limited raises.”

Adzuna’s research revealed that photography degrees offer the worst value for money, as graduates earn an average salary of £24,242 five years after graduation. 

It was followed by courses in translation (£24,581), criminology (£24,637), and fine art (£25,015). 

Of these, only those who studied fine art could expect to earn more than they did a year ago – average salaries for graduates rose by a measly £16 year-on-year. 

However, some have bucked this trend. Ben Galyas who studied fine arts at Chelsea College of Arts, a constituent of UAL, now earns over £100,000 a year plus bonuses. 

However, the 28-year-old has not carved out a lucrative living by becoming a professional artist, instead taking a sales job connecting media and tech businesses. 

But Mr Galyas said “being able to articulate difficult or intangible concepts is genuinely helpful in business”. 

He explains: “Fine art is probably the only degree that’s largely discourse-led – very little dictatorial teaching and obviously no exams – which definitely helps in a sales job.”

Mr Galyas has not entirely abandoned professional artistic pursuits either, and still has a studio practice through which he has put on two shows already this year. “I probably do two evenings and one Sunday a week in the studio,” he said.

“I think you have to be incredibly self-motivated to get through an art degree,” Mr Galyas explained. 

After graduating he found art graduates have very few options for corporate jobs outside of sales – and there are very few entry level jobs in the arts industry for the number of grads being churned out by colleges. 

Adzuna’s figures showed 40pc of university degrees do not lead to an average salary above £30,000 within five years – the same proportion as last year. 

Of the 83 degrees included, 13 did not exceed the student loan repayment threshold within that period.

Liz Emreson, of the Intergenerational Foundation, a think tank, said the stagnation of graduate salaries could make apprenticeships a “serious consideration” for young jobseekers.

“These figures paint a depressing picture for young graduates,” she said. 

“By going to higher education and taking on debt, students did what society told them would bring them a graduate premium. Now it seems that graduates get to keep the debt but not the pay premium promised.”