Graduates of Scottish universities who have finished their first degree go on to enjoy the best average starting salaries in the UK — they are also more likely to find professional work

Graduates leaving Scottish universities after finishing their first degree have the best average starting salaries of the four nations in the UK, according to new figures.

Median earnings for those who left Scottish universities in 2014-15 and went into full-time work were £22,000, £1,000 more than the comparable figure for English students and £2,000 more than those who attended university in Northern Ireland or Wales.

Scotland also had the highest proportion of graduates finding professional work after their first degree. Some 65 per cent went into a job in 2014-15, according to the Higher Education Statistics Agency, of whom seven in ten were in a professional occupation.

Overall, 91 per cent of all students leaving higher education in Scotland — including those who had done