By Colette Hume BBC Wales education correspondent

Options from a careers agony aunt

The average amount offered to graduate recruits in Britain is �22,000 - but in Wales it is �18,800, according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters.

So is it becoming a choice of a plumbing job paying �70,000 or years of paying back student debt?

A quick scan of the newspapers seems to indicate that's the choice facing thousands of teenagers.

Record numbers are now going to university but is it worth it? Should more young people go into jobs at 18 instead of a university education?

A survey from the Association of Graduate Recruiters found that the average starting salary for new graduates is around �22,000. And jobs are out there.

Starting rates

The number of graduate posts has risen by 11.3% and the number of graduate jobs has grown by over 20% since 2003.

But a closer inspection of the report highlights some real differences - while new graduates in London can command salaries of more than �30,000 a year, graduates who choose to remain in Wales get one of the lowest starting rates in the country at �18,800. The only part of the UK offering less to new graduates is Northern Ireland at �18,500.

And finding a good graduate post close to home isn't easy - 45% of graduate jobs are located in London, but less than seven per cent of all positions are found in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

Around 60% of parents want their child to take up a trade

And the kind of degrees young people are coming out with aren't necessarily the kind of degrees employers want. Working in the media is one of the most popular career paths for new graduates and places on media-related courses are keenly fought over - but the number of jobs in the industry are low.

Carl Gilleard, chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR) said: "A closer look at the statistics suggests that there may be some mismatch between graduate aspirations and market conditions.

"For example, accountancy and professional services firms report one of the largest increases in vacancies but the smallest number of applications."

And, of course, before you get to the graduate salary, there's the cost of going to university to consider - and paying it back. From 2006 universities in England will be able to charge up to �3,000 a year for courses.

Here in Wales, students who live here and go to Welsh universities will get a slightly better deal - they'll continue to pay the current fees of �1,200 per year but the assembly will pick up the bill for the rest.

Plumbers' �70,000

Even with that deal though, add up the tuition fees and living expenses and new graduates will leave with a bill estimated at around �16,000.

Helping to cushion the blow is the fact that they won't have to repay their debts until they're earning more than �15,000 and the interest rates are low.

So what about going into work at 18 instead? And is a trade such a plumbing a better bet when it comes to making money - and avoiding student debt?

Certainly that seems to be the view of almost 60% of Welsh parents surveyed by the Federation of Master Builders.

According to the Federation, parents are encouraging teenagers to train for a job after school, rather than go to university. The report says people are worried about student debts and see a trade as a better option.

Is the work out there? Well, according to the Construction Industry Training Board in Wales the answer is most definitely yes.

We're short of around 1,500 plumbers - and if the newspapers are to be believed, the earning power of the man or indeed woman with a wrench, is considerable. Some can earn �70,000 - topping the salaries of doctors and dentists.