Credential inflation is the depreciation of educational or academic credentials over time, resulting in a reduction in the projected advantage a degree holder has in the job market. Credential inflation, like price inflation, refers to the diminishing worth of earned certifications and degrees. Increased educational requirements and testing, as well as credential inflation, can lead to artificial labor shortages.
Credential inflation has been acknowledged as a long-term trend in Western higher education throughout the last century, and it is also known to have occurred in ancient China and Japan, as well as at 17th-century Spanish colleges.
In the late 1980s, for example, a bachelor’s degree was the minimum requirement to enter the field of physical therapy. A master’s degree was required by the 1990s. A doctorate is becoming the standard nowadays.
A nursing shortage has also been exacerbated by state mandates that registered nurses obtain a bachelor’s degree.
Why is degree inflation such a problem?
The government’s policies haven’t improved matters. The District of Columbia, for example, may soon require child care providers to have a college diploma, despite the fact that this occupation does not necessitate college-level abilities. Child care employees are among the occupations with the highest risk of degree inflation, according to Fuller and Raman.
Both employers and employees are affected by degree inflation. Employers take longer to fill job postings requiring a bachelor’s degree, according to Fuller and Raman, than similar openings requiring no minimum degree. Furthermore, persons with a college degree expect higher salaries than those without one, implying that companies must pay more to attract and keep degree holders than job candidates with identical talents but no degree. Employers also report higher turnover among college graduates than among non-college graduates in surveys.
The most evident effect of degree inflation is that people without a college diploma have fewer prospects. These individuals may possess the essential skills to perform various professions that need a bachelor’s degree, but they are unable to do so due to a lack of the appropriate credentials.
However, degree inflation has far-reaching effects in the long run. Employers’ premiums for college-educated workers may encourage more people to acquire bachelor’s degrees. That would be fine if all of those degrees provided students with new skills they could apply in the workplace to increase productivity and economic growth. However, degree inflation shows that many tasks that need a bachelor’s degree can be performed by those without one.
If degree inflation makes college more about meeting job posting requirements than about developing abilities, the hundreds of billions of dollars that America invests in higher education each year will not pay off. Employers will find it more difficult to retain the salary premiums they currently offer to college graduates as more people obtain degrees. Higher education’s rewards on investment will eventually dwindle. Holders of a bachelor’s degree may see their qualifications dwindle in value.
Should the government step in? Although there is no obvious policy approach to moderate inflation, governments should avoid exacerbating the problem. Government initiatives should not encourage bachelor’s degrees over other postsecondary credentials or alternative pathways such as apprenticeships; policy should be as neutral as feasible in terms of what educational and career paths people choose.
Employers, on the other hand, should take the initiative in combating degree inflation. It is in the greatest interests of enterprises to keep degree inflation under control. Employers who unnecessarily require bachelor’s degrees do themselves a disservice by overlooking a pool of qualified job applicants who do not have a bachelor’s degree.
Some companies have realized this. Many large organizations, according to the Fuller and Raman research, have built pathways for low-credentialed individuals to progress to mid- and high-level roles. As job positions become more difficult to fill, this tendency should hopefully continue. 6.6 unemployed people fought for every job opportunity at the height of the Great Recession. Employers must become less choosy as the number of job searchers per opening has dropped to only 1.1.
“On and off throughout the years, we contemplated mandating a college diploma for management roles, but ultimately determined it wasn’t in our best interests,” says Ernie Dupont, a senior executive at CVS Health. “To be honest, we believe it effectively eliminates a pool of qualified or, in some situations, promising applicants. We need all the talent we can find to bring into the company, and we understand that people come from various walks of life.”
What causes this degree inflation?
The economic disparity between college-educated workers and the nearly two-thirds of American citizens without a degree has been widening for decades.
Part of this reflects our economy’s shift from manufacturing to services, but it also represents “degree inflation,” or the reality that an increasing number of well-paying positions now require college degrees, even if they didn’t in previous decades.
A pair of new research papers demonstrate how many workers have been impacted by this trend and what businesses are doing to reverse it.
Are college diplomas overvalued?
Degree inflation, or the increased demand for a four-year college diploma for jobs that previously did not require one, is a significant and pervasive issue that is inefficiently affecting the US labor market. Many jobs in the United States that were once considered middle-skills jobs (those that required employees to have a high school diploma but not a college degree) now require a college degree as a minimum education requirement, despite the fact that only a third of the adult population has this credential.
Why are college diplomas becoming less valuable?
Credential inflation may have altered the signaling function of college degrees. Credential inflation is nothing more than a rise in the value of one’s own assets “… a rise in the level of education required for a job.”
Many jobs that formerly just required a high school diploma are now only admitting bachelor’s degree applicants. Because of this shift in company preferences, the 4-year degree has become the unofficial minimum benchmark for educational qualifications. The high incidence of underemployment among college graduates exemplifies this fact. Approximately 41% of recent graduates are employed in positions that do not require a college diploma. When you consider that just 17% of hotel clerks and 23.5 percent of amusement park employees have a four-year degree, it’s no surprise. Traditionally, none of these vocations required a college diploma. However, in a competitive job market where the majority of applicants have a college diploma, many recent grads have no way of distinguishing themselves from other candidates. As a result, many fresh grads have no choice but to take low-paying positions.
Because of the large growth in the number of workers with college degrees, the value of a college diploma has decreased. The effect of this type of debasement is similar to that of printing additional money. The higher the quantity of a commodity, the lower the value, according to the Law of Supply and Demand. The swarms of guidance counselors and parents pleading with adolescents to go to college have undoubtedly exacerbated the problem. However, governmental policy has exacerbated the problem.
More students are pursuing college degrees as a result of various loan schemes, government scholarships, and other programs. Proposals for policies that make education more accessible “For example, “free college” devalues degrees. As more people attend college, degrees become increasingly common and degrade even further.
Of course, this isn’t to argue that talented students who want to work in the STEM industries should skip college. A college degree, on the other hand, may prove to be a poor investment and a hindrance to a student’s future.
It is not a sensible option to take on big sums of debt in order to work for minimum wage. Students should know that a college diploma isn’t everything when confronted with regulations and social pressure that have made college the norm. Students who concentrated on developing marketable talents rather than academic credentials might be able to stand out in a job market swamped with degrees.
What is the highest educational degree?
The greatest level of formal education available is a PhD. Coursework, comprehensive exams, research requirements, and a dissertation are all part of a doctoral program. A master’s degree is required for doctoral programs, while some doctorates include a master’s degree as part of the curriculum. Many PhD programs have a deadline for completion, but due to the subjective nature of research and dissertation completion, some doctoral programs can take years to complete.
A Ph.D. fits the qualifications for teaching at colleges and universities in many fields. Individuals working in business can advance to leadership roles with a PhD. To practice law, lawyers must have a JD, physicians must have an MD or a doctor of osteopathy (DO), and chiropractors must have a DCM.
Is it possible to buy a degree?
Why go to the hassle of obtaining a college diploma when you can purchase one from an approved institution with transcripts? In just a few days, you can have a certificate with the same worth as the genuine thing. Not only that, but you won’t have to take on student loan debt that is nearly impossible to repay. You won’t have to study or spend numerous nights studying for an exam, which is the best part. Without reading a single page of a university textbook, you may get a college degree from a reputable college.
The idea of needing to pay for a degree from a regionally authorized university may seem strange and impossible. When you buy a college degree from us, you can rest assured that you are getting the real deal. You can earn a legitimate degree from a legitimate university. It’s a completely legal way to get your PhD, master’s degree, bachelor’s degree, or associate’s degree. All that’s left is to start receiving the appropriate on-the-job training and work experience once you’ve obtained your desired degree.
What is the relationship between education inflation and credentialism?
As a result, as student demand grows, schools and universities expand their offerings, and credentialism (a type of paper chase) emerges, which connects education and access to education to a larger system of socioeconomic inequality.
Academic Inflation
Only 26% of middle-class workers had completed their education beyond high school in 1970. However, nearly 60% of occupations in the United States now demand a higher education.
Bachelor’s degrees are currently becoming increasingly meaningless as the number of persons graduating from college continues to rise. As a result, most positions that previously required a bachelor’s degree now demand master’s degrees, making most entry-level degrees obsolete.
Furthermore, as if that weren’t enough, many master’s degree students have stayed in school to wait for a recession, and it’ll only be a matter of time before even the most basic occupations require a bachelor’s degree.
The Illusion of Security
In the past, having a degree could guarantee you a job and security, but that is no longer the case. There are a lot of graduates and a lot of positions out there, therefore individuals are trying to find work.
According to research publications, few college graduates under the age of 25 are employed in positions that need a college diploma. In addition, CNN data shows that college degree holders have an unemployment rate of 8.9%.
Drowning in Debt
It’s no secret that even a single year of college can consume more than 40% of a family’s income, and approximately half of middle-class college students graduate with about $22,000 in student loans. The amount paid by a higher-class student is less since their families can afford to pay their tuition in full.
Middle-class students have more student loans than upper-class students, while lower-class students do better since they are more likely to qualify for financial aid and grants. They could end up paying up to $20,000 in student loans throughout the course of their academic career.
The Source of Creativity
There is a widespread assumption that attending college would make you more creative and imaginative, but this is not the case. Creativity and invention come from your past experiences and interactions with your previous and current circumstances, not from what you study.
Professors Do not Focus on Your Education
College is full of unexpected twists and turns, and it’s not uncommon to meet someone who claims to have studied engineering but can’t manage a derivative. This is not a joke, as many professors are more concerned with their own tenure and compensation than with providing students with the greatest education possible.
They also use curves to grade their pupils, making it more difficult for them to fail, and the curriculum is locked in its old paradigm with no noticeable modifications.
According to a research, 45 percent of pupils do not possess the necessary complex reasoning and critical thinking skills when compared to their prior year of enrollment.
What degree is the easiest to find work with?
“Historians claim that history repeats itself,” as the old adage goes. By majoring in history, you will have a better understanding of the past by learning about events from the beginning of recorded history to the present. You’ll also delve into the reasons why events transpired the way they did. This provides insight into current events and can pave the way for careers as a lawyer, teacher, historian, or journalist, to mention a few.
Communications and PR
The communications major’s name may be deceiving because it isn’t all about talking. Reading, research, critical thinking, and writing are all important aspects of communications and public relations. The majority of people who study in marketing, business management, or public relations go on to work in these fields.
Women’s Studies
Women’s studies provide a unique viewpoint on history from a feminine perspective. The major GPA requirements at most institutions are lower than others, often as low as 2.0. You can work in counseling, human resources, teaching, or social studies with this degree.
Religious Studies
In the world, there are many different religions and beliefs. A religious studies major will suit you if you’re interested in learning more about the history of religions and their belief systems. The most difficult aspect of the degree is that there are no right or incorrect answers, but you will surely have a better understanding of cultures and religious ideologies.
Foreign Language
For some, majoring in a foreign language is simple, while for others, it is incredibly challenging. You will not only be able to speak, read, and write well in a language if you major in it, but you will also be able to assist others in understanding information. As a result, many language majors go on to work as translators for ad firms, publishing organizations, airlines, or foreign governments.
Education
Do you want to be a teacher? You can major in anything you desire, but an education degree will allow you to delve deeply into educational theories and gain hands-on experience while studying. You can further your education by earning a Master’s degree in education to work in administration or as a college lecturer.
English Literature
You will improve your writing, reading, and comprehension skills as an English literature major. Because the majority of the work requires reading, English literature majors achieve high GPAs. Finding a job with this major, on the other hand, may be more difficult than getting the degree. Gaining additional information through summer programs or enhancing marketable skills with a second major or minor might be advantageous.
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of human societies and cultures. Anthropology majors usually have a strong interest in the subject, which is why they chose it as a major. However, it’s not the simplest degree to get a job with, just like English literature majors. Those who want to work at museums or research labs are exempt.
Sports Management
Sports management and business administration have a lot of similarities and overlap in terms of education. Public relations, sports, and the human body will all be covered. Graduates can work in management, public relations, or as part of professional sports teams.
Art
Your inventiveness might earn you a college diploma! If you want to pursue a career as an artist, you can major in the discipline and take classes in painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, and other artistic forms.