Gender pay gap report 2020 Findings

The Gender Pay Gap data presented here was correct as of 31 March 2020. Calculations in this report include all permanent, fixed term and flexible contract staff.

Total workforce breakdown

Bar graph showing the split in staff between men and women.
Bar graph showing the split in staff between men and women.

In 2020, there were 1,799 men employed at St Andrews who made up 48% of the staff population. There were 1,983 women employed at St Andrews who made up 52% of the population.


Mean gender pay gap


Illustration showing the mean gender pay gap values.

On average, men earnt £20.02 per hour and women earnt £15.87 per hour, therefore the mean gender pay gap at the University was 20.7% in favour of men, a 1.2 percentage point improvement since 2019.


Median gender pay gap


Illustration showing the median gender pay gap values.

On average, men earnt £17.19 per hour and women earnt £14.59 per hour, therefore the median gender pay gap at the University was 15.1% in favour of men, a 1.5 percentage point improvement since 2019.


Mean and median gender pay gap


A bar graph which provides a comparative analysis of the mean and median gender pay gap at St Andrews between 2018 and 2020.
  • The mean gender pay gap was 22.6% in 2018, 21.9% in 2019 and 20.7% in 2020. This is a consistent annual improvement.
  • The median gender pay gap was 21% in 2018, 16.6% in 2019 and 15.1% in 2020.
  • According to the 2020 Office for National Statistics Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, the median gender pay gap for the UK Economy stood at 15.5%, this is down from 17.3% in 2019.
    • In 2019 the University’s median gender pay gap of 16.6% was 0.7% lower than the UK median.
    • In 2020 the University’s median gender pay gap of 15.1% was 0.4% lower than the UK median.

Mean and median hourly rates by gender


A bar graph which provides a comparative analysis of the mean and median gender pay gap by hourly rate between 2018 and 2020.
  • Men earnt a mean average of £20.64 per hour in 2018, £19.72 in 2019 and £20.02 in 2020, whereas women earnt an hourly mean average of £15.99 in 2018, £15.40 in 2019 and £15.87 in 2020.
  • The median average hourly wage at St Andrews was lower. Men earnt a median average of £17.78 in 2018, £16.86 in 2019 and £17.19 in 2020. Whereas women earnt an hourly median average of £14.05 in 2018, £14.06 in 2019 and £14.59 in 2020.

Proportion of women in each pay quartile

Quartile pay bands are calculated by dividing the overall staff population into four equal segments from lowest to highest hourly pay. 

Pay quartiles 2020


A scale graph, which details the proportion of men and women in each of the four pay quartiles.
  • The lower quartile was made up of 36% men and 64% women.
  • The lower middle quartile was made up of 42% men and 58% women.
  • The upper middle quartile had an even gender split.
  • The upper quartile had 61% men and 39% women.

Bonus payments

The University has no contractual bonus arrangements.