The Australian government has conceded that its Job-ready Graduates scheme, introduced in 2021 to steer students into fields deemed national priorities by making some degrees cheaper and others dramatically more expensive, has failed. Education Minister Jason Clare described the policy as “unfinished business”, while the Australian Tertiary Education Commission confirmed it did not achieve its aims. The immediate consequence is that an estimated 300,000 domestic students will next year be enrolled in the most expensive tier, with debts for a double degree in arts or law reaching almost A$90,000. Economists at AMP and the McKell Institute now warn that these debt loads are measurably delaying home ownership, as banks factor repayments into loan serviceability assessments.

Viewed from Stockholm, a parallel mismatch between higher education and labour demand is driving reform proposals. Sweden has more registered jobseekers with post-secondary qualifications than with only basic schooling, and barely 69 per cent of new graduates find work within a year. The Centre Party is proposing a new “student employee” contract, modelled on Denmark’s system, allowing undergraduates to work up to 40 per cent of full-time hours in roles tied to their field of study. The party also wants to remove income-testing on the loan portion of student finance and cut payroll taxes on salaries up to SEK 30,000 per month. Separately, Swedish debate links education and labour supply to immigration: a Centre Party candidate argues that sustaining the welfare state requires “positive immigration” of working-age people, while the Sweden Democrats claim credit for tightening migration and restoring public safety after what they call years of naive policy.

In the United States, a parallel re-evaluation is visible in the push for community college and skilled trades as a debt-free alternative to four-year degrees. Annual tuition at a community college averages about US$3,890, roughly one-tenth the cost of an undergraduate degree, and certification programmes for electricians and plumbers can cost as little as US$3,000 while offering median incomes above US$60,000. Proponents note that such pathways avoid the six-figure debt that can delay family formation and home ownership, a calculus that resonates with elder Millennial and Gen X parents.

Italy’s experience adds a further dimension: the cost of raising children itself is becoming a barrier to building the future workforce. Data from the Fragilitalia observatory show that for 21 per cent of families, a child consumes between 40 and 70 per cent of household income, with the burden falling disproportionately on working-class households. Spending on schoolbooks, materials and medical care hits lower-income groups hardest, while middle-class families treat such costs more as an investment. The findings expose a structural pressure that compounds the later financial strains of higher education.

In Sweden, the human edge of rigid migration rules is also under review after a woman who left a violent marriage faces deportation because her stay was tied to her ex-husband. The Moderate Party wants to examine whether victims of abuse should receive work permits instead of temporary residence, though the government insists any change must include safeguards against misuse. The next concrete milestone in the education-policy debate will be the Australian Tertiary Education Commission’s advice on broader university pricing, due in the second half of 2027.