[greenyoda]

Lots of people advise job hunters to be skeptical of counter-offers. For example:

http://corcodilos.com/blog/7874/should-i-take-a-big-counter-...

The job offers you got suggest that your current employer has been happily underpaying you by 50% of your market value.

Also, you're comparing a "hard offer of £28k" with "informally agreed to better the £28k offer". Don't turn down the hard offer until you've gotten a real commitment. And you'd need to get that commitment before the £28k offer expires.

[Catalyst4NaN]

It's true that it seems like I'm being underpaid - I wouldn't say they're happily doing so. We're a young start-up struggling for cash and to make ends meet. Hopefully the funding round will alleviate that to a degree.

Also thanks for the link. I hadn't thought of it like that.

From my perspective, £18k (and indeed £28k) is a lot of money. I'm 19 and I'm getting paid to code, I know it's naive but I think it's awesome. I love the people I work for/with and I love my job. I come across adults who haven't had that their entire career.

Edit: Just to follow up on the counter offer. The process of raising this round of funding has been such a whirlwind. I don't think there is anything untoward going on. I think a case of Hanlon's Razor: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_razor

[deanclatworthy]

It's brilliant you are getting this experience at such a young age. It'll be absolutely invaluable when job hunting in the future. Many CS graduates come out of university in the UK ill-prepared to enter the job market and end up taking underpaid junior roles.

But 18k doesn't sound far off the salary I'd expect an inexperienced junior dev to make. Things that might get you a higher salary for this kind of role are a degree or prior experience. If you have prior working experience (even freelance) then you probably are getting a little too low.

[walshemj]

18k sounds low for a grad starting that's only 5k less than the minimum wage.

Around 26k would be nearer the mark for a starting grad with no experience.

[deanclatworthy]

He isn't a graduate though. He is a junior developer who dropped out of university after a year.

[walshemj]

Its the rate for the Job what does a graduate certificate matter the UK isn't as fixated as some country's on credentials.

[Catalyst4NaN]

Yeah to clarify, I mean that after a year of work I'm now on the same level as a grad?