AUSTRALIA: Strong postgraduate earnings

Some new Australian postgraduates in their first full-time employment are starting work on salaries exceeding $60,000 (US$45,000) according to a report released by Graduate Careers Australia.

Postgraduates with a research master's degree or PhD in their first full-time employment in 2007 started work on a median annual salary of $60,000 (up from $56,000 in 2006). Graduates with a master's coursework degree began their full-time careers on $50,000 (also $50,000 in 2006) and those with a postgraduate diploma or certificate started on $49,100 in their first full-time job (up from $47,000 in 2006).

The median salaries for all full-time employed postgraduates at each of the three main award levels (postgraduate diplomas and certificates, master's degrees by coursework and research master's and PhDs) increased by between $2,000 and $3,300 from the 2006 figures.