It can't be more straightforward: the more educated you are, the more likely you are to have a job. In every OECD country, without a single exception, a higher proportion of 25 to 64–year-olds with a tertiary level of education are employed than those with only an upper secondary degree. And likewise, those with an upper secondary qualification are generally far more likely to have a job than those with a level of education below that.
Across the OECD, some 85% of 25 to 64-year-olds with a tertiary education have a job, compared to an average of 59% of those with a secondary education or less. And the gap grows considerably wider for some countries (see our chart). With notable exceptions of Iceland and Korea, very few countries have managed to shrink this gap down.It works for gender as well. Higher levels of education also bring the employment rates of women up to that of men. Men are generally more likely to be employed than women, but the discrepancy is much bigger among people with low levels of education.
While there is no such thing as a guarantee, this is a strong statistical relationship that exists over different countries.
2 comments:
The only flaw I see in these statistics is they aren't very granular. It makes sense that somebody with more of an education will have a better shot at getting a job. Many companies will not hire you without a degree and many jobs require specific academic backgrounds.
But a more salient question these days is what kind of an education do you need to have the best prospects for long term prosperity. Does a BS in computer science put you in better stead than a BA in english, for example? But even more importantly, is it worth going into hundreds of thousands worth of debt for any of these degrees? Is it worth going to a prestigious and expensive private institution or could you get equal benefit from going to a public state college?
These stats tell us something I think everybody knows the answer to: you will do better if you have more skills and knowledge. What it does not tell us is how much money it is worth to get that education and what kind of education you should get to have the best chance of success.
> But even more importantly, is it worth going into hundreds of thousands worth of debt for any of these degrees?
No. Maybe there are some exceptions, but the rule is no, do not go into debt hundreds of thousands for an education.
The state universities are your friend. The first two years, community colleges are your friend. Much better ROI in my estimation.
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