To think people are overeducated in the UK?

[Watdidusay]

I am raging about this too be honest and I'm not sure why.

One of the mums at the school apparently lost her corporate job 8 months ago. Found this out today when I ran into her in Lidl in the next town - she was working as a manager there.
We ended up talking later in the day and turns out four of the staff there have masters degrees or above (one has a PhD). Apparently this is a common thing people are doing now as they cant get jobs in their fields
AIBU to think we are completely over educating people in this country now?

Feeling angry I think as DS (18) tried so hard over the summer to get a job like this but am finding out now they are all being taken up by people with lots of degrees!

That's a massive part of the problem. Figures published a few days ago showed very high levels of young unemployment and other figures showed the lowest number of graduate vacancies on record.

Who'd have thought that increasing employers NIC and reducing the starting threshold AND increasing minimum wage for youngsters AND increasing employment rights for new employees would have put off employers from hiring untrained/untested/inexperienced youngsters who'd have to be paid the same as older/experienced ones with work history???

She's probably trying to pay her bills until she secures another suitable job in her field.

Yes this is correct - she's been applying since months before joining Lidl but no luck despite 15 years experience

I have done two very difficult degrees.

my first degree is in economics from cambridge

i also have another degree in maths from the open university.

if they didn’t charge so much these days I’d do another one in music.

when my kids were young I worked part time asa teaching assistant in my local primary school because one of my kids has autism and adhd and appropriate childcare was a fucking nightmare to find.

as she settled and we worked out ways of getting stuff done I went into teaching and taught maths in a state school for 15 years.

was I educated beyond the needs of a TA job? Obviously.

but many mums of children need or want to step back while their kids are young. many like me then step back once they are older.

The more we use AI the less stable the job market becomes.

turns out four of the staff there have masters degrees or above (one has a PhD). Apparently this is a common thing people are doing now as they cant get jobs in their fields

But what are those fields? Corporations created entire departments dedicated essentially to fashions in then-burgeoning schools of sociology. Those fashions are now no longer mainstream and so those departments are being axed.

Hell yes to Chinese discipline and determination - East Asians in general and also India. Over-education is a very English concept.

Anyone with a PhD in pure maths or statistics ought to be able segue into a six figure salary in data science / deep learning in the current climate!

There's either enough jobs or there isn't. The jobs there are will go to the best (not necessary the most) qualified applicants for the role and the fewer the jobs the higher the competition.

Applicants fresh out of school with no skills or experience have always had it hard.

Lidl has always been competitive because they pay well.

It's a numbers game- if he applies for enough roles eventually one will come up.

This has nothing to do with over educating and everything to do with job shortages, only going to get worse as AI automates a lot of roles previously occupied by humans. The answer to this isn't to stop people being educated to a high level, that would not change the number of people competing for jobs!

Well I can tell you why I personally do a low skilled (and low paid) job despite being highly educated.
I went to university, graduated with a first class LLB in Law. Decided not to go into law, got a place on a prestigious graduate training scheme instead. Worked my way up, earned a very high salary. Had 2 children, kept working after mat leave. Had a third, he’s disabled. Absolutely no wrap around or school holiday care exists for him. Nada. So I left my career and now work in a low stress, low skilled job where I can arrange my shifts around my family circumstances. I’m sorry if there’s an 18 year old who would like my job.

You are conflating education and training - others on the thread (and in life) have confused what they are for too. Degrees aren't worthless because they don’t prepare you for a specific job. They aren’t wasted if you end up working in an unrelated field. It’s perfectly valid to study something you have a passion for to a high level even if it doesn’t equip you for a specific job. What it does is increase your ability to learn, to focus, to engage with people you wouldn’t have otherwise met. It shows the level to which you can be educated - and therefore your aptitude for workplace training if that’s required.
My DD did a degree in English and Education (not a teaching qualification) she works in a role as safeguarding lead for a national sports charity. The degree didn’t teach her any of the actual work - it gave her the skills to learn and the empathy to get 9n with her colleagues.

More likely that she is being passed over for equally qualified, but less experienced applicants that companies can pay lower salaries to, I think.

I hate to bring up the subject but a fair amount of those good middling jobs went with Brexit too - some really good scientific ones, NGCOs , and some manufacturing ones . basically companies who decided it made more sense due to logistics , staffing and copyrights etc to be based elsewhere. When uni education was being heavily touted it was a different world to some extent, in the EU, AI not around, earlier uptake of the internet , ecommerce, websites, apps etc . Unfortunately I think it’s put us at a very disadvantageous position - we go to the Netherlands a fair bit and as part of investigating an EU operation for ourselves the amount of help, information, ( all in English) investor links , start up financing for certain things , excellent scientific and tech hubs and a general ‘can do’ attitude, it has to be seen. Yes it’s a packed area and all well connected and wouldn’t be for everyone as it’s high tax, decent services, but as someone in business albeit small one, you can totally see why for a lot of business it makes more sense. Hence I think the UK without significant change ( and that’s not Farage)will be very much a place of some high earners that do well out of a business , a lot of public servants and a lot of low earners and a fair amount of tradespeople - and not so much ‘in the middle’ for those well educated people who aren’t CEOs but don’t want to be a plumber etc. I certainly don’t think people are over educated, hence they genuinely believe Farage and Trump type stuff- but given the situation here I do think students would be wise to think ‘do I really need a degree to get into xyz ‘ could I get in as an admin apprentice or work my way up from the shop floor etc! I’m all for education for educations sake but not ending up with £60k of debt in an uncertain work world.

But which ones are they? No one wants to say because they probably aren’t

I think this is a small minority of people. Generally, on a day to day basis I am astounded at how bloody thick most people are.

You'd still need training and I've just recently done an Msc in AI and Data Science. You come out the other side still being undereducated for what employers want and underprepared for the insane requirements at interviews. I am really struggling to find anything related which I could actually do. Everything is so intimidating. Fortunately, I was paid to do it but I still took on more student loans. My student loans are now at 86k.

Labour has fucked the jobs market? Labour that has been in power for like a year and a half?

Highly educated people can still be very thick.

DD’s first job after graduation was a Starbucks.
she quickly worked through the ranks and when she left she was managing a team of Baristas who were all uni educated.
without exception they were all there until they found a job relating to their degree.
Over educated or a lack of entry level jobs?
I also know of two of DDs graduate friends who lasted two years of teaching before doing a 360 into supermarket management.
why wouldn’t you when you can get paid the same but get to go off shift and forget about the work until your next shift ?

How is it Labour’s fault when they haven’t even been in power a full two years and not Conservatives who were in power for 14 before them?

Er see my previous post - the Tory’s fucked it - and Labour have been left to deal with it based on shirt buttons and declining revenue - be it Covid, Brexit, allowing zillions in legally to disguise the fact Brexit was an absolute farce economically , allowing people to take private pensions at 55 and opting out of work and not contributing NI in lots of cases as had full cards. ( going up to 57 in 2028) but I would have made it 60 unless documented ill health. Allowing companies to get away with having massive operations here but not paying corporation tax -( I do think Labour need to change this -5% ringfenced tax on any company turning over£5 million plus here on all transactions if not a UK entity - and work out all the loopholes ‘ in advance’ -

Because I think under education and a lack of ability to be rational and too much believing the Sun/Daily Mail is more of an issue than over education -

YABVU.

Higher Education and Paid Work are two entirely separate things.

Do you understand that some people choose to study for an advanced qualification in a subject because they love learning?

Otherwise, Universities would only teach apprentice type degrees, and what a cultural calamity that would be.

Also, due to the effort in bringing up children, it’s usually the woman’s career that stalls. This is where the government should focus their efforts to ensure that women get genuine equal opportunities to men in pursuing their career ambitions.

Are you unaware of current policies and job figures? Especially for youth unemployment.