Using data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, this paper compares the earnings premium and employment share of jobs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) across 11 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The results reveal that the STEM wage premium…

Using data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, this paper compares the earnings premium and employment share of jobs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) across 11 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The results reveal that the STEM wage premium…

This "Spotlight" presents data and analysis on vocational education and training (VET) from Education at a Glance 2023. VET is a key component of most education systems in OECD countries. About one in three 25-34 year-olds have a vocational qualification as their highest level achieved, whether at upper secondary, post-secondary…

Adult migrants in all OECD countries are a diverse group, with different profiles and levels of education. Even if they hold tertiary degrees, they are more likely to have poorer labour market outcomes, including lower earnings. Participation in the labour market is more difficult for foreign-born adults who arrived at a later age and acquired…

In this article, we draw from a recent empirical study to consider how a person's classed trajectory impacts students from different class backgrounds in higher education (HE). Students face rapidly evolving social and academic circumstances and must build reasonable strategies to navigate their trajectory from education to work. In these…

People with higher levels of education report less prevalence of depression in all OECD countries with data. A greater share of women than men report suffering from depression, but the share decreases more steeply for women than for men as educational attainment increases. Employment is associated with a lower share of self-reported depression,…

This paper utilises the national "Survey of Disability Ageing and Carers" to summarise the educational disadvantages and vocational inequalities for those with disabilities in Australia. Amongst persons with a disability, there is a decidedly lower rate of school completion. Distinctly fewer persons with a disability obtain degrees.…

Traineeships have been shown to be successful in generating improved labour market outcomes and are often recommended as a policy option for disadvantaged youth. Regretfully data indicate that one such target group, Indigenous Australians, continues to have lower traineeship completion rates than the non-Indigenous. To address this issue, a…

In spite of being relatively wealthy and resource-rich, a persistent narrative of the island state of Tasmania is the deficit framing of its regional and rural education where, under the placeless and mobile orientation of hypermodernity, the only serious option for success for its young is to leave their communities. This paper presents a…

It is well established that a successful transition to the labour market has long-term social and economic implications for both individuals and society. However, the journey from school to the world of work is not straightforward and needs to be better understood. Based on data from the 2006 cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth…

Across OECD countries, more and more individuals have attained tertiary education and the share of those with less education has declined. Although there are more tertiary-educated individuals than ever before, they still achieve good labour market outcomes. This confirms that labour market demand is generally keeping pace with rising educational…

This study explores the effects on earnings of overeducation, required education, and undereducation (ORU) in the Australian graduate labour market, using data from the 1999-2009 Graduate Destination Surveys. The Vahey [2000. "The Great Canadian Training Robbery: Evidence on the Returns to Educational Mismatch." "Economics of…

Ample evidence indicates that a person's human capital is important for success on the labor market in terms of both wages and employment prospects. However, unlike the efforts to identify the impact of school attainment on labor-market outcomes, the literature on returns to cognitive skills has not yet provided convincing evidence that the…

This study investigates the incidence of over-education amongst recent Australian bachelor degree graduates and its effect on their earnings. We find that between 24% and 37% of graduates were over-educated shortly after course completion, with over-education most common amongst young females and least common amongst older females. Over-education…

This study, commissioned by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), is designed to review current evidence on the most effective ways in which employers can support schools to improve pupil educational and economic outcomes. It is a study in three parts. It aims, first, to conceptualise employer engagement in education as a strategic tool,…