Investing in the future

Posted By Andreas Schleicher

18 September 2012

No group or country, no matter how well-educated, has been totally immune from the effects of a worldwide economic downturn. But new data from Education at a Glance also reveals the remarkable benefits that having a good education has for individuals, the economy, and society as a whole. More education helped people to keep or change their jobs during the recession. For instance, between the start of the downturn in 2008 and 2010, overall unemployment rates jumped from an already high 8.8% to 12.5% for people without an upper secondary education, and from 4.9% to 7.6% for people with an upper secondary education, on average across OECD countries. By contrast, unemployment rates for people with higher education remained much lower, rising from 3.3% to 4.7% during this same period. While the rate of change between the two groups may be similar, its impact on labour markets has been hugely different. For all OECD countries together, the unemployment rate in 2010 was roughly one-third le

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Skills: The global currency of the 21st century

Posted By Andreas Schleicher

23 May 2012

Skills transform lives and drive economies. Without the right skills, people are kept on the margins of society, technological progress does not translate into economic growth, and countries can’t compete in today’s economies. But the toxic co-existence of unemployed graduates and employers who say that they cannot find the people with the skills they need, shows that skills don't automatically translate into better economic and social outcomes. With this in mind, the OECD has put together a strategy that aims to help countries transform skills into better jobs and better lives.

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