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The value of formal host-country education for the labour market position of refugees: evidence from Austria

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  • Ludolph, Lars

Abstract

Refugees hosted in countries with advanced economies often work in low quality jobs, regardless of the education they obtained in their home countries. In this paper, I analyse the long-term impact of formal host-country education for refugees on labour market outcomes, using 22 years of microcensus data on Bosnians arriving in Austria during the 1992–1995 Bosnian war. I estimate local average treatment effects using age at the time of forced migration as an instrument for the probability of receiving education in Austria instead of Bosnia. I find that receiving a formal degree in Austria significantly reduced the probability of work below educational attainment and low-skill employment for two decades after arrival. There are visible income differences between holders of Austrian and Bosnian degrees beyond this period. Female refugees benefited significantly more from obtaining host-country education than males.

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  • Ludolph, Lars, 2023. "The value of formal host-country education for the labour market position of refugees: evidence from Austria," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 117392, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:117392
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    1. Freitas-Monteiro, Teresa & Ludolph, Lars, 2025. "Barriers to humanitarian migration, victimization and integration outcomes: evidence from Germany," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 126235, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Employment quality; Human capital; Labour market integration; Refugees;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination

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