The Real Education Crisis: Are 35% of All College Degrees in New England Unnecessary?

Autor/inn/en	Carnevale, Anthony P.; Smith, Nicole; Strohl, Jeff
Titel	The Real Education Crisis: Are 35% of All College Degrees in New England Unnecessary?
Quelle	In: New England Journal of Higher Education, (2010) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1938-5978
Schlagwörter	Stellungnahme; College Graduates; Labor Market; Employment Opportunities; Educational Attainment; Employment Statistics; Data Interpretation; Career Development; Unskilled Workers; Employment Qualifications + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Hochschulabsolvent; Hochschulabsolventin; Labour market; Arbeitsmarkt; Berufschance; Beschäftigungschance; Bildungsabschluss; Bildungsgut; Employment; Statistics; Arbeitsmarktstatistik; Beschäftigtenstatistik; Data evaluation; Datenauswertung; Berufsentwicklung; Unskilled worker; Hilfsarbeiter; Employment qualification; Vocational qualification; Vocational qualifications; Berufliche Qualifikation
Abstract	Northeastern University economists Paul E. Harrington and Andrew M. Sum argue that a recent report, "Help Wanted", "radically overstates the size of the college labor market." This overcount, they claim, has nothing to do with the recession. "Even in times of near full employment," Harrington and Sum argue that "substantial shares" of college-educated workers are "overeducated," or "malemployed." Harrington and Sum argue that the report ignores the most pressing problem facing college graduates today: malemployment, arguing the reality is that more and more college graduates are stuck in low-wage, low-skill jobs. This assertion contradicts the best available data on the hiring and pay practices of American employers. Harrington and Sum rely on official national and state Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data, which implies that New England is producing about 35% more college degrees than are actually required for current and future jobs. The authors contend that Harrington and Sum have a point on "malemployment" and they assert that there is some mismatch between college curricula and career opportunities. However, Harrington and Sum take the argument about over-qualification too far. They rest their empirical case on an appeal to a higher authority above reproach: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Although the BLS occupational and employment data are unimpeachable, the authors argue that its educational data is an offhand by-product of its employment and occupational data and is of substantially lower quality. The bottom line is that the BLS predictions didn't even come close to what actually happened in the economy. The only way to reconcile the BLS projections with what actually happened is to assert, as BLS, Harrington and Sum argue, that BLS is predicting the number of college degrees that employers "require," not the actual numbers of college educated workers that employers hire. (Contains 6 footnotes.) (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	New England Board of Higher Education. 45 Temple Place, Boston, MA 02111. Tel: 617-357-9620; Fax: 617-338-1577; e-mail: info@nebhe.org; Web site: http://www.nebhe.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10