Journey from Higher Education to Employment among Returnee Graduates in Laos

Abstract

This research explores how Lao returnee graduates cope with transitions into the home labor market to attain employment opportunities and outcomes. Thirty-eight graduates who completed their studies abroad in Asia and returned to Laos were invited to participate in the current research. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to capture their employment status, education-to-work transition experiences, and career-related challenges. Findings showed that international education had positive impacts on returnees’ transitions and employment outcomes which was facilitated by social relationships and institutional prestige. However, returnees tended to experience job mismatches due to limited prior work experience, deliberate mismatch, and socio-cultural influence. These results provide implications for graduates to make study abroad sojourn more meaningful and for relevant stakeholders to facilitate returnees to apply their expertise in home contexts effectively.