Abstract
Education is key to development strategies in Africa. We use overeducation and undereducation to analyse the effectiveness of education in preparing individuals for employment in Kenya and Ghana, using the Skills Towards Employment and Productivity Survey. Systematic differences in wages between matched, overeducated and undereducated workers hold across attainment levels, even controlling for cognitive skills. Overeducated workers are rewarded above exactly matched workers, partially supporting human capital theory. Undereducated workers are compensated over their education level, following the job competition model. Obtaining a job through social networks is widespread, but associated with lower wages for the overeducated and exactly matched.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 359-378 |
Journal | Education Economics |
Volume | 29 |
Issue number | 4 |
Early online date | 18 Mar 2021 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 18 Mar 2021 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Keywords
- Education quality
- social networks
- overeducation
- undereducation
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Education
- Economics and Econometrics