This study addresses the limited research on horizontal education‑job mismatch among university graduates, which occurs when individuals work in a field different from their university training while holding a corresponding formal qualification. The analysis utilizes data from Spain’s first nationally representative survey on the labor market integration of recent university graduates. Using multinomial logistic regression, we examine graduates’ self‑assessed match status four years after graduation. Our results indicate that graduates in Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics, Pharmacy, and Languages and Literature face a higher risk of horizontal mismatch, whereas those in Medicine are more likely to secure jobs aligned with their qualifications. This suggests that horizontal mismatch is more common in degree programs emphasizing general skills and less common in those offering highly occupation‑specific skills. Degrees in Business Studies, Management, and Economics, on the other hand, are associated with a higher likelihood of vertical mismatch (over‑education), which still allows graduates to retain some of the specific human capital acquired through their studies. Conversely, graduates in Labor Relations and Social Work often occupy non‑graduate roles unrelated to their fields of study. Additionally, the findings reveal that graduates in health sciences and engineering/architecture are more likely to achieve a better education‑job fit after experiencing external job mobility.
