Review article

MANAGING GRADUATE UNEMPLOYMENT IN EMERGING ECONOMIES: CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE SKILLS MISMATCH AND OVERSUPPLY THESES

Seth Oppong orcid.org/0000-0003-1977-5538 ; University of Ghana, Legon, Sam Jonah School of Business, African University College of Communication, Accra
Paul R. Sachs ; Executive Director, NHS Human Services – Philadelphia

Abstract

Graduate unemployment and its management are challenges that leaders of the economy, managers and policy analysts grapple with on a daily basis. As a result, economic leaders and managers of economies have sought theoretical explanations to guide their management strategies of graduate unemployment. There are two competing theses to explain the problem: skills mismatch and skills oversupply. However, due to the seeming simplicity of basic tenets and policy implications of the skills mismatch thesis, many governments and laypersons have blamed graduate unemployment on it. This paper argues that policy solutions based entirely on skills mismatch may trigger another form of unemployment, oversupply of skilled graduates. Furthermore, oversupply of graduates is more likely to be the signifi cant cause of graduate unemployment than skills mismatch. An effective policy, therefore, is one that takes into account interventions to stimulate demand for labor while at the same time manages the supply of skilled labor. Such an approach will provide more sustainable solutions to graduate unemployment. In addition, the potential contributions of psychologists in the efforts towards the management of graduate
unemployment are also outlined.

Keywords

Graduate unemployment; skills mismatch thesis; skills oversupply thesis; emerging economies; applied psychology

Hrčak ID:

139871

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/139871

Publication date:

15.6.2015.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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