How to measure field-of-study mismatch? A comparative analysis of the different methods

Sana Sellami, Dieter Verhaest and Walter van Trier

Working Papers from University of Antwerp, Faculty of Business and Economics

Abstract: We make a comparative analysis of the different methods used for the measurement of field-of-study mismatch. A first part of the paper reviews the literature, detailing and discussing the different approaches (worker assessments, job analysis, realized matches). In the second part, based on a data-set allowing us to use various measures, we investigate whether these different approaches result in differences with respect to the incidence and the determinants of field-of-study mismatch. Since substantial differences do indeed exist, even among variants of similar approaches, we conclude that empirical results with respect to field-of-study mismatch should be interpreted with great caution. While making several recommendations concerning the measurement of field-of-study mismatch, we also make a plea for more focused research on the validity and reliability of field-of-study mismatch measures in order to develop a more generally-accepted and uniform measure.

Keywords: Mismatch; Horizontal mismatch; Measurement; Field of study (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 38 pages
Date: 2016-06
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docman/irua/0f7908/133872.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: How to Measure Field‐of‐Study Mismatch? A Comparative Analysis of the Different Methods (2018)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ant:wpaper:2016009

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