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IR14-026_DiPaolo.pdf (916.86 KB)

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Working paper

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2014

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cc-by-nc-nd, (c) Di Paolo et al., 2014
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/58946

Are we wasting our talent? Overqualification and overskilling among PhD graduates

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Abstract

Drawing on a very rich data set from a recent cohort of PhD graduates, we examine the correlates and consequences of qualification and skills mismatch. We show that job characteristics such as the economic sector and the main activity at work play a fundamental direct role in explaining the probability of being well matched. However, the effect of academic attributes seems to be mainly indirect, since it disappears once we control for the full set of work characteristics. We detected a significant earnings penalty for those who are both overqualified and overskilled and also showed that being mismatched reduces job satisfaction, especially for those whose skills are underutilized. Overall, the problem of mismatch among PhD graduates is closely related to demand-side constraints of the labor market. Increasing the supply of adequate jobs and broadening the skills PhD students acquire during training should be explored as possible responses.

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Rendiment acadèmic, Eficàcia de l'ensenyament, Igualtat d'oportunitats educatives, Recursos humans

Subject (English)

Academic achievement, Effective teaching, Educational equalization, Human capital

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Documents de treball (Institut de Recerca en Economia Aplicada Regional i Pública (IREA))
AQR (Grup d’Anàlisi Quantitativa Regional) – Working Papers
Documents de treball / Informes (Econometria, Estadística i Economia Aplicada)

Citation

DI PAOLO, Antonio and MAÑÉ VERNET, Ferran. Are we wasting our talent? Overqualification and overskilling among PhD graduates. IREA – Working Papers. 2014. Vol.  IR14/26. ISSN 2014-1254. [consulted: 16 of August of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/58946

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