Participants will acquire knowledge of economics of education, and economic theories of labour and skill formation, and learn to apply it to real-life problems. Students will acquire knowledge about the measurement of skills, how such measures can be used for educational policy making and their limitations.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHOD(S) USED IN THIS COURSE IS WITH RESERVATION. A RE-EMERGENCE OF THE CORONAVIRUS AND NEW COUNTERMEASURES BY THE DUTCH GOVERNMENT MIGHT FORCE COORDINATORS TO CHANGE THE TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHODS USED. THE MOST UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TEACHING/ASSESSMENT METHOD(S) WILL BE AVAILABLE IN THE COURSE SYLLABUS.

In education and at work people acquire the skills that they need to proceed at school and are valuable for them throughout their career. New technologies change people’s work environment, their learning process and the relevance of acquired skills. Based on economics of education and economic theories of labour and skill formation, this course discusses these developments and how they affect individual development, careers and productivity. We will study how education and work adjust to ongoing technological changes and how it generates inequalities and opportunities for specific groups in society. Theories discussed include human capital theory, school choice, supply and demand in the labour market and theories of technological change. A particular focus of the course is to apply these theories by analysing real-life issues arising in labour markets or education systems due to digitalisation. We also discuss how the relevant skills can be measured and how such measures can inform policy.