Abstract
During the 1970s and 1980s a great deal of effort was invested in empirical research into the relationship between educational and occupational attainment. The concepts of ‘overeducation’, ‘underemployment’, and ‘diploma disease’ have been with us for some twenty years. In recent years, attention has been paid to the matching of educational qualifications to the qualification demands of work and the labour market, and the effects of this match or mismatch. In this article, Osmo Kivinen and Risto Rinne analyse the relationships between rising levels of education and demands for job qualifications. They deal with the potential of ‘over- and under-qualification’ and then examine the potential for increased flexibility in the modern labour market, in particular from a Scandinavian perspective. Finally, they discuss the implications of the new ‘flexible society’ for the future of higher education and educational qualifications in general.
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