Determinants and wage effects of overeducation in Italy. A comparison of five indicators of educational mismatch

Abstract

This paper aims to study dimentions of educational mismatch and quantify its effects on wages. Using the Inapp-PLUS survey, we measure both overeducation/skilling and undereducation/skilling in Italy, supplying five different measures of the educational mismatch: three of subjective type and two of objective type. They are also synthesized in a single indicator, able to give a measure of the degree of severity of overeducation. These measures are provided both for university graduates and for upper secondary school graduates. Results highlight that the condition of overeducation is typical of males, younger workers, people coming from lower-income families, informal channels of recruitment and with a humanistic educational background.