Higher education massification and the changing graduate labour market in the Spanish retail banking industry: a case study

Abstract

ABSTRACT The expansion of higher education in Spain has not been accompanied by a similar shift in labour market demand for graduate skills. This mismatch between education supply and labour market demand has accentuated policy concerns that without a parallel shift in the occupational structure, higher education massification is leading to an increased share of graduates occupying positions that traditionally did not require university qualifications. It is unclear, however, whether in occupying traditionally non-graduate jobs, graduate skills are underutilised, particularly given changing skill requirements in the knowledge economy. This research uses the case study approach to investigate changes in educational and skill requirements for entry-level jobs in Spanish retail banks. The case study provides a potentially valuable framework for exploring the causes for changes in job content at the sectoral level that are more difficult to explore using quantitative methods alone. This paper draws on 33 in-depth interviews with senior managers and young bank employees, conducted in 5 leading banks in Spain between January 2015 and March 2016. The study argues that even though automation has reduced the demand for routine clerical tasks in retail banks, interviews with university graduates and employers suggest graduate skills are underutilised in entry-level jobs.