AS thousands of Welsh teenagers get ready to begin their university lives after the highest ever percentage of students achieved A* results at A-level last month, is spending at least three years at college still the best career move? Will your university degree be worth the paper it’s written on?

Many graduates will leave saddled with debts of £40,000, often with little prospect of fulfilling their dreams, following a satisfying career with a high salary to match their early expectations.

Gaining a place at university was once a rare achievement and one that almost guaranteed a graduate a well-paid profession for life.

These days the academic system has become an industry that is arguably bloated and out of control and going away to college is so now common that nearly one in two students become undergraduates.

The figures are stark. Back in 1945, just 2 per cent of the population of United Kingdom went to university.

Today, more than 43 per cent of young people do, meaning that, staggeringly, there are more than 2.3 million higher education students.

With hundreds of thousands of graduates now entering the job market every year with either sub-standard, useless degrees or competing against against hundreds of graduates with the same qualifications, is it, at as one described it, “bubble waiting to burst?”

And experts are forecasting that an extra 300,000 places will be needed by 2030.

Graduates been told that the extra money a degree student can expect to earn over a lifetime is £100,000.

But recent Office of National Statistics research revealed that a third of graduates from some of the most popular degree courses in the country – including agriculture, psychology, English and creative design – are likely to be earning substantially less than the national average salary up to five years after leaving university.

While the average UK salary is £27,600 a year, an ex-student with a degree in English is likely to be earning £24,000 – more than £3,500 less.

A degree of course stretches the mind, encourages critical thinking, is character building and great for developing social skills.

The trick for enjoying a successful, satisfying and profitable career post-university it would seem would be to ensure you choose the right subject to study.

It is hardly surprising that the top earners are in disciplines like medicine, dentistry, veterinary science and engineering.

A study was compiled using data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), as well as the latest figures from the UK House Price Index (HPI) and graduate earnings one, three, five and 10 years after leaving university.

The results below show what the top 20 degrees will earn you on average five years after graduating:

1. Medicine and dentistry £47,300

2. Economics £37,900

3. Veterinary science £34,900

4. Mathematical sciences £33,100

5. Engineering and technology £32,600

6. Nursing £28,500

7. Computer science £27,800

8. Languages (including English studies) £27,400

9. Physical sciences £27,100

10. Business and administration studies £26,800

11. Historical & philosophical studies £25,400

12. Law £25,200

13. Biological, studies £24,500

14. Social sciences (excluding economics) £24,500

15. English studies £24,000

16. Education £23,700

17. Mass communication and documentation £22,800

18. Psychology £22,600

19. Agriculture and related £20,500

20. Creative arts and design £20,200

Of course many professions demand you have a degree. One graduate who has seen the benefits of obtaining a BA Honours in History is Alun Davies.

He is a 37-year-old assistant headteacher from Rogerstone, Newport, who said: “I would definitely recommend studying at university if it is part of the career path that you have chosen.

“I would especially recommend living away from home for the full experience and for greater independence. University gives you the opportunity to broaden your horizons, opens doors to new opportunities and make new friends of which you will share the best experiences of your life.

“It can also as secure educational qualifications that will set you up for the future.”

Mr Davies added: “However, I studied at a time when the financial implications were less strenuous, therefore cost is a much greater consideration for young people today, especially when there are many apprenticeships and other routes into work that are equally as appealing. University was a brilliant experience but it must be the right pathway for a person’s future career.”

One former student from Chepstow, who preferred to remain anonymous, had to realign his sights after setting his heart on following a career in journalism.

He spent three years at a leading university studying history, gaining a first class honours degree, and then began training for a career in the media.

Once he discovered that journalism wasn’t for him, he decided to become a teacher.

But he is sceptical of the system and the crippling cost implications.

He said: “These days, the bare minimum of debt is £27,000 just from tuition fees (three years for a standard degree at 3x £9,000).

“You can get up to £9,000 a year in maintenance loans with some lower-income students given partial grants (means tested).

“But you’d be doing well to come out with £35,000-£40,000 debt.

“Of course to some extent it’s academic, as repayment is based on what you earn and a lot of people don’t ever get round to paying the lot off. It’s a bubble waiting to burst.”

Research from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) suggests that over half of UK parents now believe that an apprenticeship provides a better chance of getting a good job than going to university.

A recent survey of over 1,000 parents of 11 to 18-year-olds, carried out by the CMI, found that 57 per cent of respondents thought that apprenticeships offered a better chance of getting a good job and nearly half of parents (49 per cent) would encourage their child to start an apprenticeship rather than apply for university.

And employers favour work experience and apprenticeships over degrees, another poll claims.

A survey of 1,000 decision makers found 49 per cent prefer to see experience from a relevant apprenticeship or previous position on a candidate’s CV.

Just 24 per cent said they would be more likely to take on someone who had a relevant degree.

The research was carried out by AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians) ahead of A-level results day on August 16.

Suzie Webb, AAT’s director of education and development said: “Many people still think that having a university degree will be most valued by employers, but our research suggests this is not always the case.”