Employability of higher education graduates in Spain: crisis and new challenges

Abstract

This article analyses the employability of university graduates in Spain, in terms of both the quantity and quality of employment. Regarding quantity, graduate employment rates are higher than those for people with other education levels. Furthermore, both in times of crisis and of bonanza, graduates are more protected against unemployment. This is fundamentally due to the fact that they work in sectors and occupations that are less exposed to cycles. Regarding the quality of their jobs, graduates are less likely to have ixed-term contracts, although not much less than those who have vocational training or upper secondary education. On the other hand, depending on how it is measured, the proportion of underemployed university graduates is between 26% and 38%. The article also conirms that the salaries of university graduates are higher than of those who have other levels of education; but they have decreased considerably over the last two decades, especially in the last bonanza period. Keywords: employment, ixed-term contracts, overeducation, earnings ResumoEste artigo analisa a inserção proissional de diplomados universitários em Espanha, considerando tanto a quantidade como a qualidade de emprego. No que respeita à quantidade, as taxas de emprego dos graduados de ensino superior são mais altas do que para pessoas com outros níveis educacionais. Além disso, tanto em tempos de crise como de bonança, os diplomados universitários estão mais protegidos contra o desemprego. Tal explica-se, fundamentalmente, pelo facto de estes diplomados trabalharem em setores e ocupações que estão menos dependentes dos ciclos económicos. Relativamente à qualidade dos empregos, os graduados são menos propensos a ter contratos a prazo, ainda que não muito menos do que aqueles que completaram formação proissional ou ensino secundário. Por outro lado, dependendo de como é medida, a proporção de graduados universitários subempregados situa-se entre 26% e 38%. A análise também conirma que os salários dos graduados universitários estão acima dos que auferem os diplomados que têm outros níveis de estudo, mas reduziram-se consideravelmente nas últimas duas décadas, sobretudo no último período de bonança.Palavras-chave: emprego, contratos a prazo, sobreeducação, níveis salariais

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