The seminar titled 'Third level attainment & labour market outcomes of graduates by social class of origin in high-income EU member states; Evidence from EU SILC' was presented by NERI economist, Ciarán Nugent.
It took place on Wednesday 28 February 2024 at 15:30 in SIPTU, Liberty Hall, Dublin 1.
Please find Ciarán's presentation
Details of seminar:
Ciarán Nugent, NERI economist presented on his 3 Reports on overqualification. Subsequently, a discussion was open to the floor where the chairperson, Dr. Delma Byrne, Maynooth University presented questions to Ciarán.
Abstract:
Over a generation, Ireland has expanded third level education by more than almost any other EU country by vastly increasing the numbers of third level graduates from households with parents with lower levels of formal education. However, labour market opportunities in high end employment have not kept pace and graduates, especially the sons and daughters of parents who did not go to third level, are increasingly working in jobs that have lower skills requirements and are lower paid.
Following on from a report on overqualification of third level graduates in Ireland last year, the NERI (with the support of the Irish Research Council and the Department of Sociology in Maynooth University) publish a series of 3 themed reports this week on third level education and employment outcomes in 13 high-income EU countries. The focus of the reports is on intergenerational transmission of third level education as well as the labour market outcomes of third level graduates by their social class background (father’s level of formal education). Education is the most important equaliser of opportunities and vehicle of social mobility and third level education allows access to occupations with the highest levels of social status and the highest earnings, specifically Managerial, Professional, Associate Professional and Technician jobs. At a macro level, these jobs drive high value added activities, development and underpin growth.
The findings suggest that the record growth in the numbers of third level graduates over the past generation has outpaced the creation of high-end employment in the Irish labour market commensurate with those qualifications. This has resulted in increasing numbers of graduates working in jobs in which they are overqualified, now at over 30% of all Irish working third level graduates. This group now make up approximately 14% of all employment, the second highest share in the sample behind Spain and well above the country average of 8.6%.