ROA publishes Position Paper on assessment framework for the social value of professions

What are socially valuable professions?

The Netherlands faces a number of major societal challenges, such as climate change, shifts in geopolitical relations, technological innovations, declining economic growth and productivity, and an ageing population, which will profoundly change society in the long term. In order to manage these changes effectively, choices must be made because financial resources, human capital and space are limited in the Netherlands. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science wants to use education to contribute more effectively to the labour market needed for the various societal challenges facing the Netherlands. In order to identify which programmes of study are important for this, an assessment framework is needed to determine which sectors and professions are socially and strategically valuable. This position paper has been written to provide a framework for thinking about the social value of professions. The paper looks at various studies that developed indicators for which professions are socially and societally valuable (or not). It appears that there is reasonable consensus on some of the most socially valuable professions. However, these studies measure which professions are currently considered socially and societal valuable and are less able to indicate which professions are considered valuable for the societal challenges of the future. This requires a different approach that focuses more on thinking in terms of societal value and goals. For example, if policy objectives to limit global warming lead to structural investments in the energy transition, research shows that investments in technologies (such as solar and wind energy) lead to an increasing demand for certain technical professions and therefore for graduates of specific technical programmes. These programmes then have societal value. Reflecting on the social value of professions is the outcome of the process of defining a social goal and the associated policy, rather than a starting point.

Download Position Paper 

Bakens, J., & van der Velden, R. (2025). Naar een afwegingskaderkader voor maatschappelijke waarde van beroepen. Maastricht University, Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market. ROA Position Paper No. 001