YMSO alumni play in virtually every professional orchestra in the UK, many as section principals.
| Name | Instrument | Orchestra | Decade of entering the profession |
| Patrick Harrild | Principal Tuba | London Symphony Orchestra | 1970 |
| Jenny Godson | Principal 2nd Violin | London Mozart Players | 1970 |
| Anne Baker | Cello | Philharmonia Orchestra | 1970 |
| Jennifer Brown | Cello | London Symphony Orchestra | 1970 |
| Francois Rive (Tutor) | Co-Principal Cello | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 1970 |
| Margaret Campbell | Flute | Royal Opera House Covent Garden | 1970 |
| Christine Pendrill | Cor Anglais Principal | London Symphony Orchestra | 1970 |
| Gerry Ruddock (Tutor) | 2nd Trumpet | London Symphony Orchestra | 1970 |
| Andrew Berriman (Tutor) | Principal Trombone | Hallé Orchestra | 1970 |
| Peter Fry | Percussion | Philharmonia Orchestra | 1970 |
| David Thomas | Principal Oboe | Oboe Principal | 1970 |
| David Alberman | Principal 2nd Violin | London Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Lucy Hartley | Violin | BBC Concert Orchestra | 1980 |
| Janice Graham (Tutor) | Co-Leader Violin | London Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Peter Jones | Violin | BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| David Beaman | Violin | BBC Concert Orchestra | 1980 |
| Katherine Haggo | Violin | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 1980 |
| Malcolm Stuart | Violin Leader | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 1980 |
| Helen Wakeman | Co-Principal 2nd violin | Ulster Orchestra | 1980 |
| Rebecca Carrington | Viola | Philharmonia Orchestra | 1980 |
| Jamie Pullman | Viola | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Timothy Pooley | Principal Viola | Hallé Orchestra | 1980 |
| Michael Atkinson (Tutor) | Cello | BBC Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Jonathan Kitchen (Tutor) | Co-Principal Cello | English Touring Opera | 1980 |
| Kennedy Leitch | Cello | Royal Scottish National Orchestra | 1980 |
| Duncan Goode | Double Bass | English National Opera Orchestra | 1980 |
| Natasha Hughes | Double Bass | Philharmonia Orchestra | 1980 |
| Hugh Sparrow | Double Bass | English National Opera Orchestra | 1980 |
| Kevin Gowland | Principal Flute | Opera North | 1980 |
| Karen Jones | Principal Flute | City of London Sinfonia | 1980 |
| Christopher Cowie | Principal Oboe | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 1980 |
| Stella McCracken | Principal Oboe | BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Timothy Lines | Principal Clarinet | London Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Jonathan Vaughan | Double Bass | London Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Gordon Laing | Bassoon | Philharmonia Orchestra | 1980 |
| Jonathan Durrant | French Horn | Royal Opera House Orchestra | 1980 |
| Gareth Mollison | French Horn | London Philharmonic Orchestra | 1980 |
| Paul Archibald | Principal Trumpet | BBC National Orchestra of Wales | 1980 |
| Jonathan Holland | Trumpet | City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Byron Fulcher | Principal Trombone | Philharmonia Orchestra | 1980 |
| Lee Tsarmaklis | Principal Tuba | London Philharmonic Orchestra | 1980 |
| Dominic Hackett (Tutor) | Timpani | English National Opera Orchestra | 1980 |
| Andrew Barclay (Tutor) | Principal Percussion | London Philharmonic Orchestra | 1980 |
| David Jackson | Percussion | London Symphony Orchestra | 1980 |
| Philip Boyden | Violin | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 1990 |
| Dominic Jewell | 1st Violin | BBC National Orchestra of Wales | 1990 |
| Michelle Marsh | 1st Violin | Hallé Orchestra | 1990 |
| Kate Read | Viola | BBC Symphony Orchestra | 1990 |
| Jonathan Ayling | Cello | London Philharmonic Orchestra | 1990 |
| Matthew Gibson | Double Bass | London Symphony Orchestra | 1990 |
| Gareth Davies (Tutor) | Principal Flute | London Symphony Orchestra | 1990 |
| Dean Wright | Principal Trumpet | Welsh National Opera | 1990 |
| Alan Thomas | Principal Trumpet | City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra | 1990 |
| Graham Lee | Principal Trombone | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 1990 |
| Mark Templeton | Principal Trombone | London Philharmonic Orchestra | 1990 |
| James Maynard | 2nd Trombone | London Symphony Orchestra | 1990 |
| Paul Philbert | Timpani | RSNO | 1990 |
| Clare Robson | Piccolo | Northern Sinfonia | 2000 |
| Angela Barnes | 2nd French Horn | London Symphony Orchestra | 2000 |
| Jonathan Barrett | Principal French Horn | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 2000 |
| Andrew Budden | French Horn | BBC Philharmonic Orchestra | 2000 |
| Tom Rumsby | French Horn | BBC Concert Orchestra | 2000 |
| Andrew Sutton | French Horn | English National Opera Orchestra | 2000 |
| Andrew Littlemore | French Horn | Opera North | 2000 |
| Rebecca Hill | French Horn | Scottish Opera | 2000 |
| Helen Vollam | Principal Trombone | BBC Symphony Orchestra | 2000 |
| Simon Archer (Tutor) | Co-Principal Timpani | Royal Opera House | 2000 |
| Maria Oldak | Violin | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 2000 |
| Fiona Patterson | 2nd Flute | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 2010 |
| Andrew Littlemore | French Horn | Opera North | 2010 |
| Chris Cooper | Principal Bassoon | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Gillian Rycroft | Cello | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Alex Jakeman | 2nd Flute | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Jessica Lee | 2nd Clarinet | Northern Sinfonia | 2010 |
| Richard Watkin | Trombone | Scottish Opera | 2010 |
| Robb Tooley | Trombone | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Lena Zeliszewska | 1st Violin | City of Birmingham Symphony | 2010 |
| Nathaniel Anderson-Frank | 1st Violin | Philharmonia Orchestra | 2010 |
| Alan Uren | 1st Violin | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Adam Walker | Principal Flute | London Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Matthew Featherstone | Flute | BBC NOW | 2010 |
| James Burke | Clarinet | BBC Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Henry Baldwin | Percussion | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 2010 |
| Steven Hudson | Principal Oboe | Royal Northern Sinfonia | 2010 |
| Alex Edmundson | French Horn | London Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Tam Mott | 2nd Violin | Welsh National Opera | 2010 |
| Iain Gibbs | 1st Violin | Welsh National Opera | 2010 |
| Ed Griffiths | French Horn | Welsh National Opera | 2010 |
| Richard Waters | Viola | Philharmonia | 2010 |
| Adrian Uren | French Horn | Adelaide Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Ben Newton | Viola | John Wilson Orchestra | 2010 |
| Charlotte Ashton | Principal Flute | BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra | 2010 |
| Kenny Sturgeon | 2nd Oboe | BBC Philharmonic Orchestra | 2010 |
| Christopher Augustine | 2nd Trombone | Welsh National Opera | 2010 |
| Elizabeth McNulty | Harp | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 2010 |
| Ausias Garrigos-Morant | Bass Clarinet | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 2010 |
| Finlay Bain | 4th Horn | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 2010 |
| Stephen Nicholls | 3rd Horn | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 2010 |
| Ben Marshall | Principal Oboe | RTE Concert Orchestra | 2010 |
| Jack Greed | 1st Violin | City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra | 2020 |
| Wenhan Jiang | Principal Viola | Ulster Orchestra | 2020 |
| Alex Wide | Principal Horn | Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra | 2020 |
| Will Morley | Principal Trombone | Neue Philharmonie Westfalen | 2020 |
| Sam Taber | Bass Trombone | South Denmark Philharmonic Orchestra | 2020 |
| Jonathan Parkin | 2nd Clarinet | BBC Symphony Orchestra | 2020 |
| Matthew Brett | Principal Percussion | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | 2020 |
| Fergus McCready | Principal Oboe | Royal Opera House | 2020 |
| Wenhan Jiang | Principal Viola | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 2020 |
| Sophie Phillips | 2nd Violin | London Philharmonic Orchestra | 2020 |
| Angus Bain | 1st Violin | Royal Opera House | 2020 |