A bimonthly publication of AQU Catalunya

49

July 2010

Recent studies carried out by AQU Catalunya on graduate labour market outcomes have shown that the job situation of graduates in the Humanities, three years after being awarded their degrees, is clearly unfavourable in relation to other disciplines. The aim of this study was to establish whether graduates of programmes in the Humanities manage to achieve the same level as graduates from other disciplines six years after graduation or, in other words, whether Humanities graduates need more time to achieve satisfactory career outcomes.

 A study on the labour market outcomes of Humanities graduates from the public universities in Catalonia. A follow-up six years after graduation

The results obtained from the study were as follows:

• The analysis shows that the quality of graduate labour market outcomes continued to improve: one third of all Humanities graduates improved their job situation.
• Out of the group with job duties that were below the level of their university studies three years after obtaining a degree in the Humanities, almost half had improved their employment situation after six years, whereas the rest continued to be mismatched (in a situation of education-job mismatch).
• Graduates with qualifications in the Humanities require more time to find a suitable job (with a good education-job match): the situation of Humanities graduates six years after obtaining their degrees was equivalent to the situation of graduates in other disciplines after three years. This result supports the thesis that suggests that university education is a long-term career commitment, and that this is even more so in the Humanities.

For the purposes of the study, a survey was carried out in 2008 of Humanities graduates who had completed their studies in 2001 and whose job duties in 2005 were below the level of their university studies, together with those who, because of the sampling process, were excluded from the 2005 survey.

Changes in the quality of the labour market outcomes of Humanities graduates after three years: was their situation in 2008 any better, the same or worse compared to 2005?

In terms of job situation

• Out of those who were in employment, the overwhelming majority continued to be employed (93.4%).
• There was progress among those who had either been unemployed or inactive (not working): 94.3% (33 individuals) of the unemployed and 71.4% (20) of those who were inactive in 2005 had found a job and improved their job situation within three years. Out of the total number of those who were inactive, 28% continued to be in the same situation in 2008.

This is defined as: Progress: if their job situation changed from unemployment or inactive/not working to currently being in employment; Stability: if their current job situation was the same as in the past. Those who were unemployed and not working and who did NOT gain employment are also included; Deterioration: if their previous job situation was one of being in employment and subsequently of being unemployed or inactive/not working. 

In terms of the education-job match

The situation in 2008 was clearly more positive than in 2005: almost half (46.5%) made progress. The opposite could also be said however, as over half of those who were mismatched in 2005 (53.5%) continued to be in the same situation.

The fact that a university qualification had been a job requirement appears to have contributed to an improvement in the education-job match three years later. The rate of progress by those who were required to have a university degree for their job was 63.6%, 20 points higher that the rate for progress for those who were not required to have a university qualification.

This is defined as: Progress: if in the previous situation their job duties were below the level of their university studies, and where they currently had job duties that were on the same level as their university studies.
Stability: if they were in the same situation as in the past; Deterioration: if, for the job in 2005, they were required to have a university degree, but where their job duties were below the level of their university studies and, for their current job, a university degree was not a requirement and their job duties were below the level of their university studies. 

The fact that a university qualification was a job requirement appears to increase the probability of a graduate ultimately having job duties on the same level as their university studies. For example, the percentage of people with the highest match¹ was higher for the group where a university qualification was a job requirement than for those who were not required to have a university qualification (24% compared to 14%) and, vice versa, the mismatch was higher for those who were not required to have a university qualification (51% compared to 31%).

Humanities graduates as compared with graduates from other disciplines: six years after obtaining their degree

A comparison of the results with those of graduates from other disciplines, six years after obtaining their degree, shows the following:

• Job situation: While graduates in the Social Sciences, Health Sciences and Engineering and Architecture, three years after obtaining their degrees, had an employment rate that was higher than 91% in 2005 and higher than 94% in 2008, in the Humanities (96%) a similar result was only obtained after six years.
• Type of contract: Six years after obtaining their degree, there was an improvement in terms of an increase in the proportion of Humanities graduates with permanent contracts and a decrease in the proportion of grant holders and those without a contract, although in comparison to other disciplines there was a lower stability rate and a higher temporary employment rate.
• Education-job match: There was a slight improvement in the education-job match of Humanities graduates with job duties that were below the level of their university studies six years after obtaining their degrees. Nevertheless, the Humanities continued to be the discipline with the poorest education-job match six years after graduation.
• Monthly income: There was an improvement in the proportion of Humanities graduates with an income of over two thousand euros a month six years after obtaining their degrees, which was on the same level as graduates in the Social Sciences and Experimental Sciences.

¹ The highest level of match is where a specific qualification in the Humanities was a job requirement and where their job duties were on the same level as their university studies.