Would you class £32,000 as a good salary?

Sorry but no, not in any circumstances unless entry level/ grad scheme

although I do think people overestimated the value of a masters degree on your salary especially outside of stem

If there was a job I could do part time and close enough for me to be able to commute to it, definitely, but I’m constantly looking and there is only full time locally.
We have tried to move house so I’d be closer to towns I could get work, but there isn’t any wheelchair accessible housing available and the stamp duty needed would mean we couldn’t afford anything like the house we have at the moment so I’m stuck. Not a great position to be in, but there are people much worse off.

That’s why I find people saying salaries that are so much more than I’ve ever earned in my life aren’t enough difficult to read - I know I’m relatively lucky and though it’s a struggle it could be so much worse. If was earning £30k I’d feel rich, I’d be able to move house for a start.

Minimum wage is £25k so for someone with a degree and a masters, £32k does seem low for a full time salary. For your age and qualifications I’d be thinking £48-50k.

Would it make sense to move to doing IT in the private sector?

IT in the charity sector, they only pay minimum wage regardless of skill or qualifications.

Was just curious that's all. Because no one should work FT and get under £16k.

Also curious what industry you're in.

If you don't feel your skills and experience are valued then the salary is too low and you need to start planning your next move.

Ignore your colleagues, and a lot of the responses here- it doesn't matter whether other people are happy with their lot or whether they have to work 18 hour days. You make your own happiness.

Ten years of frozen wages has scarred the Civil Service and pay isn't great. Depending on department and location, advancement can be difficult. Look at departments that offer more money and see what you would need to meet 60-70% of the job spec. Think outside of the box- use non-work examples of you have to.

Also, recruitment in the Civil Service goes in cycles- at the moment, no-one has money and there are plans to cut numbers, so no recruitment. In a few years they'll panic that everyone is retiring or leaving and gorge on new recruits. It really is feast or famine.

Yes, due to my disability and lack of full time jobs in the sector, but even if I were able to get full time hours my salary would be considerably less than the OP.

Indeed, the thing is that there aren’t many formal qualifications that will land you a high paying career on their own, it takes a lot of additional effort whether that be additional training, mentoring, stepping up at work, exposing yourself to new skills, being willing to move around different jobs. People who do that are the most successful people that can guarantee higher wages I think, gone are the days for most that you can just go to uni, walk into a graduate job and work your way up naturally in the same organisation without a lot of extra effort and strategy. Especially in the civil service, it just doesn’t work like that anymore.

I think if I'd studied to that level ( I didn't), I would expect to earn more than that at 35.
However, i think we have to stop expecting formal qualifications to earn us loads of money. There are other qualities that that are more important imo. Ive known lots of people who didn't have the 'qualifications ' but have done well because of personal skills.

Not these days… someone can work minimum wage and earn £26k… if you took a pie chart of that salary take off paye tax/NI, possibly student loan deducted… then take off rent, council tax, utilities, phone/internet, TV licence, clothing, toiletries, food shopping… travel costs (if car also fuel duty, road tax), road insurance, house insurance, prescription costs etc guarantee there would not be much left…
These days salary matters less than if you win the housing lottery. Those condemned to rent ever more or those who have to buy at peak prices are screwed really as those costs take such huge portion of income.

No it’s very low. Have you got much work experience? It’s a low grade with your quals

Sorry OP, I don't think that is a great salary for someone of your age and qualifications. But aren't the less good public sector salaries supposed to be offset by better pension and holidays?
Personally I wish both pay and pensions were aligned across private and public sector to make moving between them easier.

Are you part time?

I was on roughly this at your age, but in university professional services, maybe about £3k more. Ten years down the line, I had a few external promotions and I’m now earning just over double that. I live in the south east, so it helps enormously, but I have lived elsewhere in the country comfortably on far less.

It depends on where you live and if you have a family to support. As a single mother that lives in London (who doesn't get benefits and gets a very small amount of money from child's father) it would not be enough. But kids are insanely expensive. If you don't live in London, then your rent is going to be much much cheaper and so less goes further. Good luck though!!!

But if youve only been doing your current role since January maybe you need to gain some experience amd can then apply for HEO?

If youre looking for HEO roles and youve gaps in essential criteria maybe you need to speak to your manager about gain the experience to meet it and accept that it might be unlikely you'd be able to become a HEO 2 months after achieving EO

What is your job specifically? Or what department?

An EO in the MOD received a 5% increase last year. Pay advice indicates up to 3.25% increase this year. And the last couple of years has been over 3% if I recall correctly. A far cry from 1%. I do agree MOD pay has slipped but this is why you get experience and exit to industry at G7/G6.

It's not bad! I know some people working 2 part time jobs just making £24k a year. I wouldn't be upset about it put it that way. And it will increase since its a junior salary

I have a degree and over 40 years’ experience in a very skilled field. I earn less than half of that (I’m in the third sector), so I consider it a very good wage.

Not these days no.

Agree - where I work, HEO posts are like rocking horse poo or are "dead man's shoes"

Civil Service pay does vary across the agencies - I am MOD and about half way up the EO scale and earn £32,500. CS pay was good but then came austerity (2007) so for at least 5 years we had barely any pay rises (1% or so) and we slipped behind other sectors.

I applied for fast stream but wasn’t successful.

I’ve moved from AO to SEO within 5 years and am on track for a G7 role within the next 5 years, and don’t have a masters.

Progression in the Civil Service isn’t a given, you have to apply for things and work on your skills. Sometimes a sideways move gets you more than an upwards move, don’t chase the grade, you need to actually want to do the job.

Ds is a SEO (first job out of university) not a HEO as I thought.