The Overqualification Paradox: Why Highly Educated Graduates Experience Lower Early Career Satisfaction

The rapid expansion of higher education has led to a growing number of highly qualified graduates entering increasingly competitive labor markets. Although higher educational attainment is traditionally associated with improved employment prospects and career success, emerging research suggests a paradoxical outcome in which highly educated individuals report lower levels of satisfaction during the early stages of their careers. This phenomenon, referred to as the Overqualification Paradox, raises important questions about the relationship between educational attainment, career expectations, and early career experiences. Drawing on human capital theory (Becker, 1964), person–job fit theory (Edwards, 1991), and expectation–disconfirmation theory (Porter & Lawler, 1968), this conceptual paper examines how higher education may create expectation gaps that negatively influence early career satisfaction. Highly educated graduates often enter the workforce with elevated expectations regarding meaningful work, career advancement, compensation, and skill utilization. However, early career positions frequently involve routine responsibilities, limited autonomy, and gradual career progression, creating a mismatch between graduates’ expectations and their actual work experiences. This study develops a conceptual framework explaining how perceived overqualification, expectation–reality gaps, and skill underutilization contribute to lower job satisfaction among highly educated graduates during the early stages of their careers. The framework also identifies potential moderating factors, including organizational support, job design, and career development opportunities, that may mitigate the negative effects of perceived overqualification. By integrating insights from organizational behavior, human capital theory, and career development literature, this study contributes to the growing research on overqualification by highlighting the paradoxical consequences of educational attainment for early career satisfaction. The findings offer theoretical insights and practical implications for organizations, educational institutions, and policymakers seeking to better align graduate expectations with labor market realities in an era of expanding higher education.