Job Satisfaction of Recent University Graduates in Economics Sciences: The Role of the Match Between Formal Education and Job Requirements

This paper aims to analyse the job satisfaction of recent graduates that finished their studies at the Facultad de Ciencias Económicas of the Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Using a database specially designed for this project, we first look at the relationship between overall job satisfaction and its subdomains. Second, we inquiry on the relationships of overall job satisfaction and some of its subdomain with the degree of matching between the graduate’s education and skills with those required by his/her job, controlling by a set of variables related with individual characteristics, relationship statuses, personality traits, household context, human capital background, occupational context, institutional background, and job status. Finally, we look at the recent graduates’ job satisfaction by differentiating specific subgroups: by gender and matched/mismatched job statuses. The evidence shows that eight subdomains are positively associated with overall job satisfaction; they are satisfaction with pay, fringe benefits, general work environment, relationship with supervisors, intellectual challenge, job responsibilities, the possibility of professional development, and working hours. Additionally, the econometric analysis shows that overall job satisfaction and its subdomains are affected differently by individual characteristics, social and economic context, personality traits, occupational context, job status, among others. Importantly, a better match between formal education and job requirements impact positively on job satisfaction and its subdomains. These results give support to the approach of splitting overall job satisfaction into different dimensions to identify the sources of the values of job satisfaction differences.