Why It's Worth Getting Good Grades In School

Students who do well in exams at 18 go onto earn as much as 40% more post-university than peers who flunk their exams but still go onto higher education.And they show a clear correlation between grades at 18 and post-graduation salaries at all levels of achievement.But the data also shows earnings gaps continue to exist along lines of gender, ethnicity and social and economic background, confounding efforts to reduce inequality through education.Figures released by the Department for Education today track the earnings of thousands of U.K. students post-graduation.Among the data is a breakdown according to prior attainment, namely performance in A-level examinations, taken at 18 and a precursor to university entry.And it shows that top performers - those achieving four A grades - earn £40,300 ($53,200) five years after graduation, according to the data. But students who pass only one or two A-levels are earning just £23,200 ($30,600) post-graduation.While previous figures had shown a link between A-level results and salary at the top grades, today’s data shows that the correlation holds further down the scale, so that students who get three C grades earn more than those who get three D grades, for example, although.