Women graduates in Scotland are still earning less than men, according to research.

The Equal Opportunities Commission report said there was a pay gap between average male and female graduate salaries across all occupations.

It was widest in law, mathematics and computing and at its narrowest in education.

Teaching application figures are on the rise

The effect is more pronounced in the private sector than the public sector.

According to the report, women graduates earn less than men, even when they have studied the same subjects, with the same class of degree and enter the same industry.

The Equal Opportunities Commission said employers must show that they took equal pay seriously if they wanted to recruit the best.

The National Union of Students said it was "vitally important" that graduates were aware of the pay gap when looking for work.

It said they should ask prospective employers about their equal pay policies.

Training institutions

Meanwhile, there has been a massive increase in teaching training applications from graduates north of the border.

The 133% rise reported by the Graduate Teacher Training Registry was attributed to factors such as the introduction of a 35-hour week for teachers in Scotland.

However, the organisation acknowledged that it had expected to see an increase because more training institutions had joined its system.

It said the number of applications had risen from 1,763 in 2001 to 4,115 this year.

Across the UK as a whole there was an 18% increase in applications.