From Education to Work
Cross National Perspectives

This book contains empirical studies of school-to-work transitions from several Western countries.

Walter R. Heinz (Edited by)

9780521081658, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 18 September 2008

368 pages, 41 b/w illus. 33 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.1 cm, 0.54 kg

"...a very important contribution to the literature on transitional experiences in the life course as well as to the sociology of education, the sociology of work, and research that seeks to link social structure with the lived experience of individuals at critical periods in their lives." Kenneth H. Tucker Jr, American Journal of Sociology

Structural transformations in the international economy and the restructuring of work have made the transition from education to employment increasingly problematic. School-to-work pathways have become more socially segmented and the risk of under-employment and joblessness has increased for both vocationally and academically educated youth. Continuous passages have become less common and have given way to multiple entries and exits between schooling and working, under-employment, unemployment and domestic work. This edited volume of empirical studies is based on a series of comparable longitudinal research projects which draw on survey and biographical data from important players in the international economy, the USA, Great Britain, Canada and Germany. The studies document that social and gender inequality is a persistent structural feature that restricts the possibilities to take advantage of educational opportunities and career options. Furthermore, different institutional arrangements are shown to play a crucial role in distributing transition opportunities in a more equal way.

Introduction: transitions to employment in a cross-national perspective Walter R. Heinz
Part I. Social Origin, Gender, and Transition Patterns: 1. Social and geographical mobility twenty years after High-School Paul Anisef and Anton H. Turrittin
2. Diverse directions: young adults' multiple transitions Zeng Lin, Victor Thiessen and E. Dianne Looker
3. New routes to employment: integration and exclusion John Bynner
4. From education to employment: occupations and careers in the social transformation of East Germany Ansgar Weymann
Part II. Education and Labour Markets: Work Experiences, Skills and Credentials: 5. Adolescent part-time work and post-secondary transitions in the United States Jeylan T. Mortimer and Monica Kirkpatrick Johnson
6. Multiple life-sphere participation by young adults Lesley Andres
7. The Sub-Baccalaureate labour market in the United States: challenges for the school-to-work transition W. Norton Grubb
8. Creating new pathways to adulthood by adapting German apprenticeship in the United States Stephen F. Hamilton and Mary Agnes Hamilton
9. Job entry patterns in a life-course perspective Walter R. Heinz
Part III. Changes in the Social Context of Transformations: 10. Institutional networks and informal strategies for improving work entry for youth James E. Rosenbaum
11. School-work transitions and post-modern values: what's changing in Canada? Harvey Krahn and Graham S. Lowe
12. Education and employment in Great Britain: the polarizing impact of the Market Frank Coffield
13. From systems to networks: the reconstruction of youth transitions in Europe Lynne Chisholm.

Subject Areas: Education [JN]