Nearly 200,000 master's and bachelor's degree holders are unemployed.

In the second quarter, nearly 200,000 graduates and master's degree holders were unemployed nationwide. The higher unemployment rate among skilled technical workers highlights the need for reforming training to meet the actual recruitment demands of the labor market.

This information was released at a press conference announcing the second quarter labor market update bulletin, organized by the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs on August 17th in Hanoi.

According to the second-quarter labor market report, the quality of the workforce, as reflected in the overall training rate, improved slowly, accounting for 20.62% of the workforce, an increase of only 0.56% compared to the same period last year. The group with a university degree or higher and the group with vocational college degrees saw a significant increase. However, this group also had the highest unemployment rate.

In the second quarter, over 1 million people of working age nationwide were unemployed, including more than 418,000 with technical skills. Notably, the highest unemployment rate was among those with a university degree or higher, with over 191,000 people, followed by those with a vocational college degree (94,800) and a vocational secondary school degree (59,100). The unemployment rates were highest among those with a vocational college degree (6.6%) and a university degree or higher (4%).

In the second quarter, the group of workers with vocational diplomas had the highest demand for jobs, accounting for 30.9%, followed by those with college degrees (19.2%) and university degrees or higher (16.8%).

Job interview. (Photo: An Hieu/VNA)

Occupations requiring specialized skills, such as accounting and auditing, business administration, and human resources, have the highest number of job seekers. Meanwhile, the recruitment needs of large enterprises are primarily focused on unskilled labor, animal husbandry, mechanical engineering, sales, business development, textiles, and electronics.

Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Doan Mau Diep acknowledged that the high demand for direct production workers and the scarcity of workers with college and university degrees is a reality of the labor market.

"Currently, there is an oversupply of skilled workers in business administration and economics, resulting in high unemployment rates, while the labor market is experiencing a shortage of engineers, highly skilled technicians, and skilled workers in factories," Deputy Minister Doan Mau Diep said.

According to Mr. Diep, regarding unemployment among graduates and master's degree holders, it requires the cooperation of various ministries and departments, and a change in the mindset of young people before they enter professional education, universities, and colleges.

"In particular, there must be forecasting to innovate educational planning and training to match the needs of the labor market. However, currently, schools still lack autonomy in this area, enrolling students based on the number of lecturers, school area, and sufficient funds to cover operating costs. The graduates we train may be unemployed, but lecturers and teachers will not," Deputy Minister Doan Mau Diep emphasized.

According to Vietnamplus