Creative arts degrees offer ‘negative’ financial benefit

Financial returns for creative arts graduates are negative or close to zero – depending on your gender.

Research from the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) says one in five students would be better off if they skipped university altogther. An analysis of tax data found creative arts graduates had the worst financial returns of any degree subject. "The losses are substantial," IFS economist Ben Waltmann said.

Men studying creative arts can expect negative financial returns across their lifetime, compared to men who studied medicine or economics whose average returns are more than half a million pounds.

On average, financial returns for female arts graduates over a lifetime are close to zero, compared to £250,000 for women with degrees in law, economics or medicine.