Overeducation: Concept, theories, and empirical evidence

The educational expansion experienced in most advanced economies in the past few decades has triggered a thriving debate on overeducation. Research on overeducation has traditionally been addressed from an economic perspective, mainly focusing on wage returns to extra years of education. More recently, the sociological literature has contributed to overeducation research by identifying individual characteristics that help us to differentiate overeducated from non-overeducated workers. Moreover, the sociological perspective has explored more in depth the role of educational and labour market institutions in assessing overeducation incidence and duration across countries. These contributions have eased the path to frame overeducation as a form of social stratification, rather than as an inefficient educational investment in economic terms. The present article reviews the economic literature on overeducation and incorporates the sociological perspective, understanding overeducation as a disadvantageous form of employment.