Graduate Overeducation in Australia

Abstract

Australia, and indeed the world, has witnessed a massive increase in tertiary educated labour force participation, particularly in the last 30 years. An unintended consequence of this has been a rise in the number of highy qualified graduates failing to obtain employment commensurating with their paper qualifications, leading to potential human capital athropy and loss of productivity. This precipitated my study into the issue of graduate overeducation in Australia. It investigates the depth of this phenomenon among various graduate sub-groups in the labour market, including females and immigrants. The study hopes to broaden the current knowledge base by offering a comprehensive account of graduate overeducation in Australia from various perspectives.