Attracting Global Talent and Then What? Overeducated Immigrants in the United States

Abstract

This research assesses the prevalence and determinants of job–education mismatches among male immigrants in the United States between 1980 and 2009. The results suggest that educational attainment levels do not match occupational education requirements for almost half of all immigrants. Overeducation among high‐skilled immigrants vastly exceeds that of comparable natives. Probit models of overeducation suggest that: (i) personal characteristics operate in similar fashion for immigrants and natives; (ii) immigrant brain waste is above average in gateway states, metropolitan areas and in prosperous high‐wage areas; and (iii) proficiency in English and length of residence reduce the overeducation risk among high‐skilled immigrants.

Imbalanced Job Polarization and Skills Mismatch in Europe

“…Finding a good match in a larger labour market should be easier, and in Europe, the risk of overeducation in big cities is indeed substantially smaller than elsewhere (Ramos and Sanromá 2013;Tarvid 2012), although the reverse is observed in the US (Beckhusen et al 2013). Working without a contract substantially increases the risk of overeducation, and this result is stable across European country groups (Tarvid 2012).…”

“…First-and second-generation immigrants face higher risk of mismatch (Aleksynska and Tritah 2013;Tarvid 2012) and residence duration seems to have no effect on it (Aleksynska and Tritah 2013;Fernández and Ortega 2008). Where overeducation decreases with the length of stay, it was interpreted as immigrants preferring unemployment (Støren and Wiers-Jenssen 2010), may be affected by the country's skillbased immigration policy (Tani 2012), or happens only for specific types of education (Beckhusen et al 2013). Immigrating to a close country or having more knowledge about it dampens the risk of overeducation (Aleksynska and Tritah 2013;Tani 2012).…”

Labor migration and overeducation among young college graduates

“…However, unless controlling for education levels, overeducation rates can be misleading given that persons with little education are not at risk of overeducation. Beckhusen et al (2013) provide such a breakdown by educational attainment for the male US labor force since 1980. They find that overeducation prevalence among bachelor degree holders amounts to over 40 % among the foreign-born and between 25 and 35 % among natives.…”

“…Each occupation can be assigned an education level that is required for optimal job performance (Beckhusen et al 2013;Hartog 2000;Mendes de Oliveira et al 2000;McGuinness 2006). Overeducation-the focus of this paper-refers to job-education mismatches in which the worker's education level exceeds the required education level (Fig.…”

Immigrant Employment and Earnings Growth in Canada and the U.S.: Evidence from Longitudinal Data

“…Extant research shows that immigrants in Canada are less likely than the native-born to work in occupations for which they have trained, especially in regulated occupations, like engineering and medicine (Boyd, 2013;Boyd & Thomas, 2002;Boyd & Schellenberg, 2007;Girard & Smith, 2012;McDonald, Warman, & Worswick, 2012;Wald & Fang, 2008). In the U.S., research similarly shows that immigrants tend to be over-educated for the occupations in which they work (Beckhusen, Florax, Poot, & Waldorf, 2013;Chiswick & Miller, 2009;Mattoo, Neagu, & Ozden, 2008). The issue is likely to be of greater relevance in Canada, though, as many immigrants are selected on the basis of points determined largely by human capital rather than employer sponsorship.…”