Overeducation and hourly wages in the UK labour market; 2006 to 2017

In 2017, around 16% of all those in employment aged 16 to 64 years were overeducated (had more education than required for their job); the corresponding figure for graduates (with first degree or equivalent) was around 31%. In 2017, 21.7% of those who graduated before 1992 were overeducated, whereas the corresponding figure for those who graduated in 2007 or later was 34.2%. There is a wage penalty associated with overeducation, although overeducated employees earn positive return on wages, this is significantly lower compared with those who are matched to their jobs. In 2017, the overeducation rate was similar for women and for men, however the wage penalty for overeducation was somewhat higher for men than for women; this suggests that overeducation does not contribute to gender pay gap. Recent graduates experience lower pay penalty on overeducation compared with non-recent graduates