Education and the labour market: subjective aspects of human capital investment

This paper explores subjective aspects of human capital investment decisions in education. It gives an insight into ways in which students in Year 11 and Year 13 perceive the connection between their education and the labour market and the mechanisms by which qualifications translate into life chances. An instrument is described which was used to assess perceptions in terms of 'productivity', 'screening' and 'credentialism'. Our findings suggest that most students believe education to play a market signalling role and that its role in raising productivity is subordinate. The influences of age, gender, educational intentions and school type are examined.