Spain is the eighth country in the European Union that has the highest proportion of employed people with higher education, but 36% of graduates are in low-skilled positions, which shows the “disconnection” between higher education and the current labor market, according to the Knowledge and Development Foundation (CYD) 2024 report.
The analysis, in which national and international experts participate, points out seven strategic priorities that the Spanish university (public and private) must have to contribute to the economic and social development of the country and in this twentieth edition it emphasizes the need to improve investment, attract and retain talent and give more autonomy to universities.
Experts warn that the key factor to strengthen the Spanish university is the “modernization of university governance.”
“This implies adopt structural reforms that allow a sustainable financing model focused on the strategic use of resources and accountability based on results,” emphasizes the study in the midst of controversy due to criticism from the rectors of Madrid regarding the underfinancing of the autonomous government of Isabel Díaz Ayuso.
The report’s experts propose linking financing to the capacity of institutions and its educational offer based on market needs.
A review that should be based on specific studies by degrees, university levels and regions.
The most recent data (2021) reveals that Spain allocates 1.43% of GDP to higher educationcompared to 1.48% in the OECD and 1.29% on average in the EU.
In this sense, experts emphasize that in addition to investment, other aspects such as internationalization or the system investigation and knowledge transfer.
In the 2022-2023 academic year, only 6% of international students were undergraduates with ordinary enrollment and only 16% of the degree offerings were in languages foreigners. Another worrying fact is that only 3.2% of researchers come to Spain.
Many university students in low-skilled positions
The study proposes to adjust the differences between the university offer and the labor market since sometimes the productive structure does not offer enough highly qualified jobs for the high level of graduates who graduate, which can lead to overqualification or talent drain.
In the last course the offer of official master’s degrees grew by 4% and the number of these graduates is increasing at a rate of 8%.
“The goal should be provide students with the skills and competencies necessary to thrive professionally in an increasingly complex, unpredictable and globalized context,” says the report that accounts for the growth of students in private universities.
Win in governance
Gain governance and autonomy to hire teaching staff and to attract foreign research talent o to guarantee a generational change is essential, the report emphasizes, since the average age of research teaching staff (PDI) is 49.5 years and 18% will retire in the next decade.
The study points out the difficulty in retaining Spain’s own research talent, especially at the public universitywhere it indicates that there is no stability.
Only half of the PDI in public universities has permanent place compared to 82.4% who have it in private universities.
Competition with the private sector
The CYD Foundation also emphasizes the need for that the public university is more agile and competitive and not only vis-à-vis the outside world, but also vis-à-vis the private system that is growing.
The relative weight of private universities It is growing in degrees, master’s degrees and doctorates. And while in master’s degrees it already surpasses public ones, in bachelor’s degrees they represent 20% of graduates and in doctorates 6%.
Face-to-face public universities have not managed appropriately adjust your offer also due to excessive bureaucratic processes.
An example of this imbalance – the report points out – is the increase in cut-off grades, which generates higher costs for students who must attend private universities, which aggravates inequalities in access to higher education.
To promote inclusion and increase the participation of lower-middle class students, experts propose increase scholarships and review admissions policies.
Establish preferential entry fees for disadvantaged students and providing free or low-cost study resources as well as implementing equipment loan plans are alternatives, they point out.
More digitalization and more women in STEM
The Spanish university continues to face the challenge of digital transformation, according to the CYD Foundation, which it points out as another of its pending tasks. promote the presence of women in engineering, computer science, mathematics and statistics degrees (STEM).
In information and communication technologies (ICT) the presence of girls has decreased and they barely represent 16% of those enrolled.