Higher Education and Employment: An International Comparative Analysis

Originally published in 1987, this book focusses on the relationship between higher education and employment and is based on 21 national case studies. The countries discussed are Bangladesh, Benin, Botswana, Egypt, Germany, Malaysia, Pakistan, People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, Philippines, Poland, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, Zambia, the State of West Bengal (India), Mali, Nepal, France, Indonesia and Peru. It is a unique collection of information, analyses and results which provide the basis for methodological lessons. The synthesis of the case studies has particular relevance as the unemployment or underemployment of higher-education graduates has become a universal issue, challenging all countries whether ‘developing’ or ‘developed’ and irrespective of their political ideology. Now, just as at the time of original publication, the effects of economic stagnation on the one hand, and an unchecked expansion of higher education on the other, are at the centre of the problem. The materials collected in the course of these studies provide a comprehensive data base which allows for some broad conclusions that are generally applicable to the higher-education planning process. The book identifies the determinants of demand for higher education and analyses the transition from higher education to work, as well as the actual mechanisms of the employment system during the latter part of the 20th Century.