Authors
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Sam Ean Lay
Build Bright University
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Vuddneath Som
National Bank of Cambodia, Branch Management Department
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Sothearak Lum
National Bank of Cambodia, Branch Management Department
Keywords:
collaborative learning, stem education, integrative learning
Abstract
This article examines the relationship between skill mismatch and the economic returns to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) versus non-STEM degrees in Cambodia. Using an integrative literature review grounded in human capital theory, signaling theory, and the assignment model, it synthesizes evidence from national labor surveys, international development reports, and emerging Cambodian scholarship. The review finds that STEM graduates earn a modest wage premium in formal employment, but that a large informal sector, a narrow industrial base, and weak quality assurance compress this premium well below theoretical predictions. Non-STEM graduates, especially in education, law, and the social sciences, face severe overeducation and horizontal mismatch yet continue to enroll. The article concludes that reform must simultaneously address graduate supply and the economy’s absorptive capacity, and offers recommendations for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, universities, and private-sector stakeholders.
Author Biographies
Vuddneath Som, National Bank of Cambodia, Branch Management Department
SOM VUDDNEATH is a Master of Computer Science from the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP), is the national university of the Royal government of Cambodia. He also holds a Bachelor's Degree in English from RUPP and a Bachelor's Degree in Banking and Finance from the Royal University of Law and Economics (RULE) in Cambodia. He has almost 25 years of experience in ICT, including almost 25 years in Networking and Administration, and he currently serves as Deputy Director of the Branch Management Department at the National Bank of Cambodia.
Sothearak Lum, National Bank of Cambodia, Branch Management Department
I am currently in charge of the Deputy Division of the Administration Office within the Branch Management Department at the National Bank of Cambodia. My extensive background includes 19 years at the Institute of Banking Studies, where I also lectured for 8 years. Professionally qualified, I hold a Master’s degree in Finance from the National University of Management (2015), a postgraduate teaching certification from the National Institute of Education (2007), a Bachelor’s degree in Khmer Literature (2005), and Bachelor's and Associate’s degree in Banking and Finance (2009, 2006)."
