Personality and field of study choice

Field of study choice has far-reaching implications for individuals enrolling in university. Field of study choice is strongly linked to the subject matter graduates will specialize in, the kind of work environment they will be working in, and the returns to their skills they can expect once they enter the workforce. This paper uses unique Dutch data which demonstrates that personality measured at age 14 can be linked to field of study choice at around age 19. It can be shown that the Big Five personality traits affect field of study choice. Moreover, while personality matters less than cognitive skills, such as math ability and verbal ability, for educational attainment, the influence of personality on field of study choice is comparable to that of cognitive skills. Sorting across fields of study on the basis of personality traits is in some respects similar for women and men, although substantial differences exist

Personality and field of study choice

Field of study choice has far-reaching implications for individuals enrolling in university. Field of study choice is strongly linked to the subject matter graduates will specialize in, the kind of work environment they will be working in, and the returns to their skills they can expect once they enter the workforce. This paper uses unique Dutch data which demonstrates that personality measured at age 14 can be linked to field of study choice at around age 19. It can be shown that the Big Five personality traits affect field of study choice. Moreover, while personality matters less than cognitive skills, such as math ability and verbal ability, for educational attainment, the influence of personality on field of study choice is comparable to that of cognitive skills. Sorting across fields of study on the basis of personality traits is in some respects similar for women and men, although substantial differences exist

What is expected of higher education graduates in the 21st century?

In this paper, we reflect on the skills higher education graduates are expected to have in today’s economy and the role of higher education in equiping graduates with these skills. First, we identify 6 trends which form the basis of the changing role of graduates in economic life. These trends are the knowledge society, increasing uncertainty, the ICT revolution, high performance workplaces, globalization, and the change of the economic structure. By changing the nature and range of tasks graduates are expected to fulfil in today’s economy, we argue that these trends generate new and intensify traditional skill demands, which we summarize as professional expertise, flexibility, innovation and knowledge management, mobilization of human resources, international orientation, and entrepreneurship. Second, we draw out some key issues concerning the role of higher education institutions in equiping graduates with these skills

What is expected of higher education graduates in the 21st century?

In this paper, we reflect on the skills higher education graduates are expected to have in today’s economy and the role of higher education in equipping graduates with these skills. First, we identify 6 trends which form the basis of the changing role of graduates in economic life. These trends are the knowledge society, increasing uncertainty, the ICT revolution, high performance workplaces, globalization, and the change of the economic structure. By changing the nature and range of tasks graduates are expected to fulfil in today’s economy, we argue that these trends generate new and intensify traditional skill demands, which we summarize as professional expertise, flexibility, innovation and knowledge management, mobilization of human resources, international orientation, and entrepreneurship. Second, we draw out some key issues concerning the role of higher education institutions in equipping graduates with these skills

Self-assessments or tests?:Comparing cross-national differences in patterns and outcomes of graduates' skills based on international large-scale surveys

In this paper an analysis is carried out whether objective tests and subjective self-assessments in international large-scale studies yield similar results when looking at cross-national differences in the effects of skills on earnings, and skills patterns across countries, fields of study and gender. The findings indicate that subjective skills measures do not correlate well with objective measures of similar constructs when looking at cross-national differences. Countrywise associations between subjective skills measures and earnings do not correlate well with those found using objective skills measures. Moreover, cross-national differences in the level of subjective skills measures do not correlate well with cross-national differences in skill levels based on objective tests. Nor do gender differences found using subjective skills measures correlate with those found using objective skills measures. This does not mean that self-assessments cannot be used, but they need to be restricted to analysing within-country differences. Within countries, self-assessments do a good job in predicting skills differences across fields of study and also in predicting the effect of skills on earnings. When comparing gender differences in skills levels within countries, however, one needs to be aware that females tend to overestimate their skills levels in typical ‘female’ domains like literacy

Systemic pro- and anti-inflammatory profiles in acute non-specific low back pain : an exploratory longitudinal study of the relationship to six-month outcome

Objectives: Pro-inflammatory molecules are thought to underpin the development of chronic low back pain (LBP). Although research has begun to explore the association between pro-inflammatory molecules in acute LBP and long-term outcome, no study has explored the role of anti-inflammatory molecules. We aimed to explore whether levels of systemic pro- and anti-inflammatory molecules 1) changed over a period of six months from the onset of acute LBP; 2) differed between people who were recovered (N = 11) and unrecovered (N = 24) from their episode of LBP at six months; 3) baseline psychological factors were related to inflammatory molecule serum concentrations at baseline, three and six months. Methods: We retrospectively included participants with acute LBP included from a larger prospective trial and examined blood samples for the measurement of pro- and anti-inflammatory molecules and measures of pain, disability, and psychological factors at baseline, three and six months. Results: The serum concentrations of pro- and anti-inflammatory molecules did not differ over time when compared between participants who recovered and those who did not recover at six month follow-up. At three months, the unrecovered group had higher interleukin (IL)-8 and IL-10 serum concentrations than the recovered group. Baseline psychological factors were not related to inflammatory molecules at any time point. Discussion: This exploratory study showed that levels of systemic inflammatory molecules did not change over the course of LBP, irrespective of whether people were recovered or unrecovered at six months. There was no relationship between acute-stage psychological factors and systemic inflammatory molecules. Further investigation is needed to elucidate the contribution of pro- and anti-inflammatory molecules to long-term LBP outcome