Factors related to employment outcomes of graduates in Educational Sciences in times of economic crisis: A study on Catalonia

© 2016, SECRETARÍA GENERAL TÉCNICA. The global economic crisis is having devastating impact on employment, especially on the young, who are entering the labour market in conditions of great uncertainty. In Spain, the burden of youth unemployment is an issue of utmost urgency. Spain’s youth is currently the most educated generation in the country’s history, so does an education still guarantee a good job? This article uses AQU data (2014a) to describe the impact of the crisis on the employment outcomes of professionals in education. It also highlights the factors that have enabled some graduates to secure a good job; by «good job» we refer to professions that demand a specific level of education in order to undertake the duties at hand; that satisfy graduates; and that provide them with sufficient income for economic independence. Our results show the negative impact of the crisis on graduate employment and its conditions. The employment rate of graduates who completed their studies in educational sciences in 2007 and 2010 has dropped by almost 10%. Graduates find themselves in occupations with less security and poor working conditions where their qualifications are higher than that which is required of the job, thereby giving rise to the problem of overqualification. The key variables for young people who successfully enter the labour market (11%) are practical skills, mastery of computer skills, social skills, management skills and teamwork. These results partially support the literature on the phenomenon of overqualification (García-Montalvo, 2005) and employability skills (Knight & Yorke, 2004; Lantarón, 2014; Sermsuk, Triwichitkhun & Wongwanich, 2014); and may contribute to the improvement of university education, in order to make job-seekers better trained to meet the demands of the labour market.