The end of the credential society? An analysis of the relationship between education and the labour market using big data

A major focus of sociological research is on the role of the credential as a 'currency of opportunity', mediating the relationship between education and occupational destinations. However, the labour market has largely remained a 'black box' in sociological and education policy s...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of education policy Vol. 35; no. 1; pp. 95 - 118
Main Authors: Brown, Phillip, Souto-Otero, Manuel
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: London Routledge 02.01.2020
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects:
Academic disciplines
Advertisements
Advertising
Big Data
Career Readiness
credential society
Credentials
Data Analysis
Destinations
Education policy
Education Work Relationship
Educational Attainment
Educational inequality
Employers
Employment Practices
Employment Qualifications
Equal Opportunities (Jobs)
Foreign Countries
Higher education
Hiring
Inequality
job adverts analysis
job readiness
Labor Market
Occupations
Personnel Selection
Policy analysis
Qualifications
queue theory
social closure theory
social inequality
Social Theories
Sociological research
Sociology
technical-function theories
United Kingdom
United Kingdom > UK
ISSN:0268-0939, 1464-5106
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:A major focus of sociological research is on the role of the credential as a 'currency of opportunity', mediating the relationship between education and occupational destinations. However, the labour market has largely remained a 'black box' in sociological and education policy studies. This article draws on 'big data' from over 21,000,000 job adverts to explore how employers in the UK describe job requirements, with particular reference to the role of credentials. It challenges existing theories premised upon the notion that higher levels of formal education determine individual (dis)advantage in the competition for jobs. Although they have different views of the relationship between credentials, opportunity and efficiency, these theories assume that credentials largely determine occupational hiring. Our analysis suggests that formal academic credentials play a relatively minor differentiating role in the UK labour market, as the majority of employer's place greater emphasis on 'job readiness'. This raises a number of issues for sociological and policy analysis, including the future role of credentials in the (re)production of educational and labour market inequalities. Methodologically, the article highlights how the use of big data can contribute to the analysis of education, skills and the labour market.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 14
ISSN:0268-0939
1464-5106
DOI:10.1080/02680939.2018.1549752