Our recent salary survey interviewed nearly 5,000 engineers and found that graduates now earn an average of 37,000, an increase of 20 per cent in just two years.

Genuine graduates have now achieved the agreement that the salary survey to be carried out in 2008 will only include the results of recent graduates.

It added that the findings of its start-up salary survey were also 'borne out by our day-to-day experience' of backing start-ups.

In one salary survey, chemical engineering was found to be highest-paying degree for first employment of college graduates.

It conducts regular salary surveys of the profession, providing valuable information about income levels and trends.