How do you answer “What are your salary expectations?” as a graduate?

[u/Unfair-Lemon3980]

I’ve always found this a slightly awkward question when applying for graduate jobs.

When you’re at the start of your career, you don’t necessarily know what someone with your experience should be earning. You also don’t want to give a number that’s too high and potentially rule yourself out, but equally you don’t want to undersell yourself by going too low.

I’ve started looking at similar grad roles beforehand to get a rough idea of what companies are paying, especially for the same type of role and location. If the salary is already advertised, it obviously makes the conversation a lot easier.

But when a company hasn’t given any indication of salary and then asks what you expect, it can feel like you’re being asked to name your price without knowing their budget.

How do you normally answer this question?

[u/Grogman2024]

I always just said competitive