Overeducation: incidence, persistence and institutional differences across countries. The unevenly distributed effect of social origin through fields of study
Author: Capsada-Munsech, Queralt , queralt.capsada@upf.edu
Department: Political and Social Sciences
University: Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain
Supervisor: Dr. Luis Ortiz Gervasi
Year of completion: In progress
Language of dissertation: English
Keywords:
overeducation
, fields of study
, social origin
, stratification
Areas of Research:
Education
, Stratification
, Work
Abstract
This dissertation focuses on the unevenly distributed effect social origin may play on overeducation risk through fields of study. Although credentials are direct signals of productivity they can also be used by employers as indirect signals of non-cognitive skills. This kind of skills are mainly acquired through family socialization and become of crucial importance to explain differences in overeducation among graduates of different fields of study. With expansion in higher education upper classes seek for both, qualitative and quantitative advantages to differentiate themselves from the rest. This research aims at showing how social origin might be a more advantageous resource in some fields of study than in others. Differences across countries are expected because of variation on the characteristics of education systems. The research proposed is structured in three articles: the first focuses on overeducation incidence, exploring the unevenly distributed effect of social origin by field of study. The second one explores cross-national variation, considering some features of education systems that vary across countries to explain cross-national differences in overeducation prevalence by field of study and social origin. Last but not least, the third article focuses on the different risks of overeducation exit across fields of study for individuals from different social background.
