A new study by think tank EDULOG, coordinated by Ricardo Biscaia, reveals that the final higher education grade has a positive impact on both employability and graduate salaries. Students with higher grades are less likely to become unemployed and earn higher salaries, with each additional grade point corresponding to a salary increase of 2.3% one year after graduation and 4% after five years. A student with five additional grade points may earn 20% more than a graduate with a lower grade, five years after graduation.
The study also concludes that international experience during the course does not show significant effects on employability, which Ricardo Biscaia classifies as a "surprising" result. Prior work experience only reduces the risk of unemployment in the first year, while the type of institution attended, public or private, university or polytechnic, also does not reveal statistically significant impacts on the labor market.
The field of study emerges as the factor that most differentiates the outcomes of Portuguese graduates. The areas of Engineering, Manufacturing Industries and Construction show the lowest unemployment rates, while Arts, Psychology, Natural Sciences, Mathematics, Statistics, Humanities and Languages register unemployment probabilities at least ten percentage points higher. ICT and Engineering also stand out for the best salaries and levels of professional satisfaction, while more than half of Humanities graduates suffer from overqualification.
The study also highlights the persistent disadvantage of women in the labor market, who show a higher probability of unemployment five years after graduation, lower contract stability, lower salaries and a higher risk of overqualification. Given these conclusions, EDULOG experts advocate for the need to provide more and better information about the professional outcomes of different fields of study, allowing students and families to make more informed decisions in their academic choices.
