[rwallace]

You say "maths/eng graduate" - are you sure you didn't mean to say "programmer"?

It's an important distinction. Computer programming is just about the only white-collar job left on Earth that still has a healthy demand relative to the supply so you can get a decently paid job where you aren't abused all that much, so if you have an aptitude for it, by all means go that route (whether via college or not, is a separate question).

But what's the job market like these days for mathematicians, physicists, mechanical engineers? I get the impression it's bad enough that if you put the same ingenuity and effort into a blue-collar trade you'd get better returns.