LMI programme > Publications

Assessing the usability of the Western Cape Graduate Destination Survey for the analysis of labour market outcomes


Date posted:

2022/11/01

Publication year:

2017

Corporate author/s:

University of Cape Town (UCT), Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit (SALDRU); Labour Market Intelligence Partnership (LMIP), Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) and the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET)

Person/s author/s:

Branson, Nicola Leibbrandt, Murray

Output-type:

research report

Format:

pdf

Graduate destination studies have the potential to provide detailed information about graduate transitions to work that cannot easily be collected in household surveys. However, response rates are typically very low and raise the concern that the non-response is not random and that inferences using data on those who respond will be inaccurate. This study examines response rates in the Western Cape Graduate Destination Survey where 22% of all 2010 university graduates from the four Western Cape universities were successfully interviewed in 2012. We examine differences in observable baseline characteristics, assess the extent of nonresponse bias for a labour market participation analysis, compare rates of continued study with those in the Higher Education Management Information System (HEMIS) database, and implement a selection-correction methodology that uses type of email address as an exclusion restriction. We find that those who successfully responded to the survey were more likely to be studying in 2012 and have some systematically different baseline information that signals that response is not random. Our selection-correction methodology, however, finds limited impact for an equation of employment. This study provides important input into plans for a National Destination Survey. We recommend that the focus be directed at preparing and standardising the sampling frame, and that detailed records of the survey process be kept. In addition, we illustrate the potential benefits of linking graduate destination study data with administrative resources to assess bias and supplement the survey information obtained.

There are no related research posts.

There is no related news.

There are no related events.

Establishing a foundation for labour market information systems in South Africa >

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the key issues and problems in establishing a labour market information system in an emerging economy. The paper is structured as follows: section one considers some of the key high-level foundat...

Developing a framework for understanding SETA performance: Monitoring and Evaluating their role in skills planning, steering and enabling supply within their sector >

The paper begins by exploring the central issue highlighted in a number of research reports on the SETAs: the absence of a shared understanding of their role. The paper argues that multiple objectives have an adverse effect on the performance of the...

A catchment study around the location of TVET colleges (South West Gauteng TVET College) >

The University of Western Cape requested a study on the Geographic Profiling of TVET colleges across South Africa. The purpose of this study was to profile each college to identify business and commercial activities within a nearby vicinity. As part...

Made to measure? Some international reflections on developing VET Indicators >

The DHET Labour Market Intelligence project is one of the largest scale attempts globally in recent years to develop systems and capacity to measure the performance of post-compulsory education and training systems. As such, it offers the prospect of...

Chasing credentials and mobility: Private higher education in South Africa >

This books brings a different set of lenses to bear on what has become the subject of intense contestation, of 'media hype', in South Africa: the private provision of higher education. This books seeks to provide a way to move beyond any polarisation...

Planning with purpose: The use of labour market intelligence for skills planning in South Africa >

This report is the final product of a 17 month-long Skills Planning Dialogue, funded by the EU-South Africa Dialogue Facility, with the aim of supporting the establishment by the Department of Higher Education and Training of a 'credible institutiona...

Enhancing employability: What can be done to improve TVET students' chances of finding work? >

Unemployment of young people in South Africa is regarded as a crisis that needs urgent intervention. Disaffected and disillusioned youth are a potential threat to the long-term stability of the society as a whole. When graduates from institutions suc...

Measuring individual transitions and trajectories: A methodology to inform targeted policy implementation >

This presentation focuses on the following key points: that aggregate performance is a blunt measure; the notion of 'limited insight, less reliable'; trajectories technique leads to significant insights for policy intervention; and the need for a mor...