However, today’s news aims to shake dispirited graduates from their despair – and frustration that firms are not hiring despite the huge number of jobless graduates out there – by revealing that employers’ demands for well-educated workers has actually exceeded supply.
This illustrates that the value of a degree has experienced a rise, which is consistent with a statement made by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Secretary-General:
“Countries need an increasingly educated and skilled workforce to succeed in today’s economy. High quality education and skills have to be among the number one priorities for governments, for economies and for societies,” Angel Gurría confirmed.
The research by OECD also found that the rise in demand complements the dramatic rise in those going to university over the past 15 years. From 1995 to 2010, the number of students from OECD-member countries opting to study at university almost doubled, from 20% to 39% – which means that the
graduate jobs market has remained fairly stable.
According to the report, by 2010 the average graduate in a developed nation could expect to earn a whopping 59% more than a worker with school-level qualifications, compared to 44% in 2001. This demonstrates that employers are more likely to pluck someone from the
graduate talent pool than someone who closed the curtain on their education once they’d made it through high school.
Gavan Conlon, an economist at London Economics who has conducted research into the value of higher education qualifications, said: “Employers are paying more to get the skills. The vast majority of the high return on a degree represents the improved productivity of graduates compared to school leavers.”
He added: “However many graduates are supplied, employers have been willing to continue to pay a premium to employ them.”
Hooray! We love a bit of good news, especially in the current jobs market. Just one example of employers looking to hire graduates is Morrisons – see the previous article for details.