Study concludes that having a college degree ensures more opportunities and better salaries.

Does a higher education degree grant access to more opportunities and higher salaries? Read the conclusions of this study.

A study concluded that having a Higher Education degree seems to ensure, more and more, opportunities for work and better salaries.

The data is from the report "State of the Nation: Education, Employment and Skills in Portugal" by the José Neves Foundation and shared by Notícias ao Minuto. The 2024 edition of this report aimed to paint a portrait of the country in the areas of education, employment, and skills.

With the consequent crisis of covid-19, youth unemployment has returned to levels seen before the pandemic. However, the recovery of the numbers has also impacted young people: but those with higher education.

"Last year, the unemployment rate among 25-34 year-olds stood at 7.4%, but in the case of young people who did not complete higher education, it reached 9%, compared to 5.3% among the rest and the lowest rate in the period analyzed (between 2011 and 2023)," specifies the news.  

According to the conclusions of the report, it is possible to find out that candidates with higher education are the ones who have more job opportunities, as well as the number of job offers requiring a master's or doctorate degree is increasing.

In addition to more opportunities, having a college degree on a resume also allows young people to access higher salaries: "The report also mentions the additional gains associated with higher education, which, in comparison to secondary education, are around 49% for the population between 18 and 64 years old and 34% for young people between 25 and 34 years old."  

In terms of increases, between 2022 and 2023, the real salary of young people increased on average by 3.9%, but for young people with Higher Education, the increase was around 7%.

It was also possible to conclude that there was a slight increase in the proportion of adults participating in education and training programs, with adults with a higher education degree being the most involved.

"Given the high percentage of adults in Portugal with this level of education (more than twice the European average), this low participation rate in education and training assumes special importance, constituting an obstacle to the rapid qualification of adults, facilitating their better adaptation to the labor market," reads the news article quoting the authors of the study.

However, the percentage of young adults with higher education has decreased - from 42.5% in 2022 to 40.9% in 2023 - possibly reflecting the impact of the pandemic on the increase in dropout rates and the time needed to complete courses.

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