Investing in education is generally seen as an important investment, both for the individual and for society.
A majority of the 35 higher education programs that Saco has gone through in its report have a positive impact on one's own economy compared to starting work directly after high school.
The answer to that question is yes. For the average academic, it is still the case that it pays off economically to get an academic education, says Göran Arrius.
Female-dominated professions
This applies, for example, to medical education, economic education, and civil engineering education. Even a law degree is seen as a clear plus.
But there are also large differences. Not all educations are profitable from an economic perspective.
One can conclude that for female-dominated education groups employed in the public sector, it looks worse. It is there that we find many of the educations that lead to a negative economic outcome compared to if one had started working directly after high school.
Hard to attract people
According to the report, this applies, for example, to preschool teachers and librarians.
What surprises me is that we know today that there is a shortage in many professions, primarily in the public sector. One could think that if it is difficult to recruit for these jobs, it would drive up wages, but it doesn't seem to have had an impact.
Besides it not being profitable enough for the individual, there is also a societal perspective to this, Arrius believes.
This is often important jobs, and if it year after year shows that there is no economic return on this, it can become difficult to recruit for these jobs, he says.
