This study focuses on the increasing disparities in STEM education achievement and long-term wage earnings of under-represented minority groups. As part of national efforts to improve the diversity of the STEM workforce, this study uses longitudinal data from the University of Houston's Education Research Center (UH-ERC) to examine the effect of…

The economic effects of educational mismatch include its negative impact on economic growth, which is due to the inefficient allocation of resources it generates. The main causes of this phenomenon need to be determined to correctly implement policies to avoid such mismatches. This paper investigated the determinants of educational mismatch from a…

We test for the signaling hypothesis versus the human capital theory using the Wiles test in a country which has experienced a dramatic increase in the supply of skills in a relatively short period of time. For this purpose, we construct a job match index based on the usefulness of school-provided skills and the relevance of the job performed to…

We study how human capital diversification, in the form of double majoring, affects the response of earnings to labor market shocks. Double majors experience substantial protection against earnings shocks, of 56%. This finding holds across different model specifications and data sets. Furthermore, the protection double majors experience is more…

We provide first evidence of the impact of over-education, among natives and immigrants, on firm-level productivity and wages. Our results show that the over-education wage premium is higher for natives than for immigrants. However, since the differential in productivity gains associated with over-education outweighs the corresponding wage premium…

This study investigates the role of college major choices in labor market outcomes, with a focus on racial minorities and immigrants. Drawing upon research on school-to-work linkages, we examine two measures, linkage, the connection between college majors and specific occupations in the labor market, and match, the alignment of workers'…

According to a prominent hypothesis, the occurrence of educational mismatches is consistent with human capital theory since over- and undereducation are substitutes for heterogeneity in the abilities and skills among educational peers. Using German data[superscript 1] of literacy and numeracy test scores, I find evidence that compared to their…

This article highlights research in "The STEM Dilemma: Skills That Matter to Regions", which was recently published by the Upjohn Institute. The book looks at the regional workforce through the lens of the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) associated with regional occupations. This fine-grained approach uses data in the…

Following human capital theory, the investment in education should result in wage gains over time and increased productivity. Thuswise, some governments became more active in stimulating citizens into pursuing advanced degrees by introducing loans and other support schemes. British policy makers went further by first launching graduate loans for…

The evidence on why students from lower social origin are persistently underrepresented in higher education (HE) suggests social, educational and economic factors all play a role. We concentrate on the influence of monetary costs/benefits and how these are influenced by social origin. In particular, we consider the effect of a class-based wage…

Exploiting information on foreign qualifications for the first time, we estimate the returns to obtaining UK higher degrees for foreign graduates who migrated to the UK in their 20s. Accounting for direct measures of foreign and UK qualifications and country-of-origin fixed effects, we find substantial returns to obtaining UK (higher) degrees on…

The aim of this study was to investigate the existence of sectorial undereducation and overeducation problems in the Turkish labor market. In order to cope with this issue, the 2009 Household Labor Force Survey (TurkStat), which covers 145,934 individuals within 27 sectors, was utilized. An objective measure of education-occupation mismatch based…

Human capital production is central to economic wellbeing from a national perspective: it improves productivity, spurs technological innovation, and promotes sustainable economic growth over time. Equally important, investments in human capital are central to economic wellbeing at the individual level. College graduates tend to earn more money,…

There is a longstanding debate about whether helping welfare recipients quickly find work or helping them to first obtain some basic education and training better improves their economic well-being. This brief contributes to the debate by presenting long-term findings from three sites in the seven-site National Evaluation of Welfare-to-Work…

It is well established that workers with more years of education earn higher wages. By establishing a reference or "required" level of education for a worker's occupation, it is possible to decompose an individual's actual level of education into years of required education and years of over-education or under-education relative to that…