| Summary: | There has been a debate regarding the extent of graduate unemployment in South
Africa and how it has affected the youth. The main focus of this study was therefore
to identify the determinants of employment status among graduates, particularly the
length of unemployment endured by young graduates in South Africa. The focus on
graduates was necessary, given the understanding that once one has a university
degree, the opportunities to get a job are assumed to be high. It was also on the
premise of the substantial resources that are invested in higher education with the
hope of a higher return. The objectives of the study were categorised into theoretical
and empirical. The theoretical objectives were: to define unemployment and
graduate unemployment, review literature on various types of unemployment,
conduct a review on the problem of youth unemployment from a global, regional and
South African perspective, review the trend of graduate unemployment in South
Africa, and evaluate the factors that affect graduate unemployment.
The empirical objectives were: to determine the average time it takes a graduate to
find employment measured in months, assess if the employed graduates are
employed in their fields of study, determine if degree choice plays a significant role in
the employment prospects of graduates and to establish the personal and social
economic factors that determine the employment status of graduates in South Africa.
In achieving these objectives, a quantitative research method was adopted. The
study used 233 questionnaires collected via an online survey that was circulated to
the alumni database of the university in question. The study employed descriptive,
cross tabulation and a regression analysis to achieve the set empirical objectives.
The study had a well-balanced gender distribution with females making up 58% of
the sample and males 42%. The average time it took graduates in the sample to find
employment after graduation was seven months. Further analysis revealed that out
of the graduates that were employed, more than 70% were employed in their fields
of study with about 27% in jobs that they did not study for. Additional analysis to
determine the state of the graduate’s current job showed that many of them were in
jobs below their desired field, suggesting a problem of under-employment.
The results from the regression analysis indicated that age, race, field of study,
major module and job searching skills were significant predictors of unemployment
length. Religion, gender, and marital status were not significant in this regard. The
study indicated that 11.2% of the surveyed graduates were unemployed and the
majority were between the age of 21 and 24, implying that young graduates are
more likely to be unemployed than their older counterparts. Many of those who were
unemployed had qualifications in Humanities with majors in the arts subjects. The
average job waiting period was also found to be the highest for graduates with these
arts majors. An analysis was also done on the perceptions about graduate unemployment. The results showed that surveyed graduates perceived the lack of job market information, lack of job experience and not having political connections as some of the factors that influence graduate unemployment. In contrast, age, race, self-confidence and higher education institution attended were perceived as factors not having any influence on unemployment among graduates.
The study therefore concluded that the most important factors affecting graduate
unemployment are qualifications and majors held by graduates, which seem not to
be aligned with labour market requirements. This provides an opportunity for higher
education institutions to collaborate with the government and private sector to bridge
the gap that exists in academia and the world of work. Further analysis can be done
on a broader scale by increasing the sample size and doing the same study at
several universities in Gauteng.
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