Underemployment Among College Graduates with Blindness and Low Vision

Underemployment of people with visual impairments has long been a concern among professionals in the blindness and low vision field, but limited research has been conducted on this topic. In this study, we assessed educational underemployment of employed college graduates with and without visual impairments to evaluate differences between them.

To determine underemployment in our American Community Survey sample, we utilized Bureau of Labor Statistics data to identify the typical entry-level education requirement for the job each person held and compared their actual education level to this criterion. We used logistic regression to predict underemployment based on visual impairment and 11 independent variables including individual and job-related characteristics.

Underemployment was more common among people with visual impairments (62.4%) compared to people without visual impairments (55.7%). Visual impairment predicted underemployment in the multivariate model, but it interacted with master's degree. People with visual impairments who held associate, bachelor's, Ph.D., or professional degrees were slightly more likely to be underemployed, while those who held a master's degree were not more likely to be underemployed than people without visual impairments.

Overeducation is a substantial issue for the entire U.S. population of college graduates, and more so for people with visual impairments except for those with master's degrees. Although all people with master's degrees have high odds of being underemployed compared to people with bachelor's degrees, odds were slightly larger for people without visual impairments.

Our findings, combined with current trends in the labor market, highlight the importance of having a specific career goal and awareness of the skills necessary to qualify for that career. Rehabilitation professionals should be prepared to assist individuals with identifying skills needed for their selected careers, assessing their current skills, and creating a plan to obtain the necessary skills.