Title: Higher education and employment: bleak prospects in COVID-19

Authors: Sudarshan Maity; Nabanita Sen; Tarak Nath Sahu

Addresses: Directorate of Examination, The Institute of Cost Accountants of India, 12, Sudder Street, Kolkata-700016, West Bengal, India ' Department of Law, Bankura University, Bankura-722155, West Bengal, India ' Department of Commerce, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore-721 102, West Bengal, India

Abstract: With immense uncertainty, the COVID-19 crisis has posed unprecedented challenge to the potential aspirants of higher learning and prospective job seekers. The consequences of COVID-19 on higher education and employment sector have been prodigious. With 800 respondents from West Bengal, the study attempts to reflect an overview of opportunities coupled with threats involved in higher studies that reckons employment trends now and beyond pandemic period. The study employs ordered logistic regression, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Wilcoxon Sign test, effect size test and many more. The study infers that COVID induced lockdown has significantly affected scope of higher education and employment opportunities for prospective potential job seekers. The future career of these potential students and prospective job seekers seems to be at stake due to COVID-19 induced delay in the prevailing system. The outcomes yielded by this study may precipitate in formulation of development policies for sustainable growth and betterment of future generation.

Keywords: COVID-19; higher studies; employability; virtual teaching; virtual learning.

DOI: 10.1504/IJKL.2025.147292

International Journal of Knowledge and Learning, 2025 Vol.18 No.4, pp.400 - 420

Received: 23 Sep 2023
Accepted: 20 Jan 2024
Published online: 14 Jul 2025 *

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