Better safe than sorry? The role of stratification and quality of higher education in the labour market outcomes of graduates across Europe:

This article assesses the impact of higher education and academic field of study on young people’s labour market outcomes across Europe. A sequential logit approach is adopted to analyse transitions into (a) labour market participation, (b) employment and (c) permanent contracts. Three waves (2003–2005) of the European Union Labour Force Survey are pooled capturing data on over a million individuals across Europe. The results show that higher education has indeed a positive impact on securing employment, but a more limited effect on assuring permanent contracts. Furthermore, strong differences across countries and academic fields are found, which are explained in the light of the stratification level and quality of the higher education systems across European countries.