ABSTRACT
<br>This research thesis examines the impact of secondary vocational and higher education on employment rates and wage levels in Uzbekistan. The country was chosen due to its labor market challenges and the need to fully utilize its workforce potential to improve population income. According to “The Statistics Agency under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan,” Uzbekistan has a small working population, with unemployment and part-time employment on the rise and most of the population receiving low pay and experiencing payment delays. These labor market difficulties disproportionately affect vulnerable segments of the population and cause people to face relative poverty. Nevertheless, there is limited literature on employment and wages by educational level in Uzbekistan. To explore the relationships between education, employment, salaries, and relative poverty, the study adopts Amartya Sen's Capability Approach as a theoretical framework. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were employed, focusing on Fergana Pedagogical College and Fergana State University as case studies, with surveys and interviews conducted among their graduates. According to the study's findings, secondary vocational and higher education demonstrate a positive and negative relationship between employment and wages. The minority of participants agreed that secondary vocational and higher education are linked to higher income, which is one of the most important ways to reduce poverty, and they also agreed that graduates can easily find work in their fields and contribute as good members of society. However, the majority of participants were not satisfied with their salaries, and many of them had extra jobs to cover their monthly expenses fully. Some even did not work in their own field, but earned enough since they opened their businesses, worked abroad, or worked as influencers. The findings and recommendations can inform policymakers, educational institutions, and other stakeholders in devising strategies to improve the outcomes for graduates, reduce poverty rates, and foster economic development in the country.
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<br>Keywords: Secondary vocational education, higher education, labor market challenges, relative poverty, employment, wages.
