| Hello, *|NOME|* The school-to-work transition usually begins at the end of high school and ends at the conclusion of graduation in higher education or in a technical vocational course, culminating in full insertion in paid productive activity. A range of social programs focused on increasing employability have a reasonable impact on labor force participation and on the earnings of beneficiaries. In the article "Youth employability policies and programs", produced by IMDS in the context of support to the Office of Special Projects of the Government of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, we outline a general overview of this class of programs, separating them into two categories. A first group is formed by the qualification programs, which bring together professional courses combined with some type of certification, combining content transmitted in the classroom with training periods for a certain period of time in registered companies. As examples that have presented impact evaluations with significant effects, we can cite the Colombian Jóvenes em Acción and the American Job Corps, whose summaries can be found here and here on the Impact Monitor A second set of programs (which we call "labor insertion programs") uses employment contracts (usually in companies benefiting from some degree of tax reduction) as the main mechanism for acquiring professional skills, which is often combined with classroom practices. Examples of this second type are the Brazilian Young Apprentice Program (discussed in another letter) and the series of American summer jobs programs, which can be seen here, here and here on the Impact Monitor. There is robust evidence that programs in both categories can have significant short- and even long-term impacts (although long-term evaluations are rarer) on the employment rate, formalization rate, and earned income. In IMDS support to states, one of the activities provided for in the agreements is the ideation, formulation, and development of legislative proposals. The effectiveness of the programs depends on certain aspects of the design. The fact that impact evaluations are not carried out contemplating different possible designs of the same program prevents us from categorically stating which attribute generates impact and which only generates administrative costs without effectiveness. However, we can look at the programs with the greatest impact on the dimensions of interest and observe details of the design. Does linking the remuneration of the training institution, according to the subsequent professional progression of the benefited student (as Jóvenes em Acción does), increase the long-term impact on employability? Is it reasonable to assume that aligning the service provider's private incentives with the intended social outcomes will improve the performance of the program? Could it be that the concern to concentrate the training of trainees in those skills where there is a shortage of supply at the local level is a factor that generates the high lasting effects of productive insertion programs? The alignment between supply and demand of specific skills is desirable, especially when one wants to engage the local productive sector in training activities and in the process of screening or selection of trainees. Finally, some productive insertion programs may not have an effect on labor productivity in any of the expected dimensions, but rather have an impact on the school-to-work transition, to the extent that they affect outcomes associated with school trajectory, such as high school graduation rates. The acquisition of soft skills and learning about work ethics, or even the mere contact with professional activity, even for a short period, can eventually influence the aspirations of the young person and re-signify the time invested in the acquisition of knowledge at school. The so-called "summer jobs", which, as the name implies, are carried out during the summer, have an effect on reducing involvement with the prison system and reducing absenteeism, which is probably mediated by some of these elements (soft skills, work ethic, aspirations, etc.), although they have no effect on employability.
The theme of youth employability will continue to be an important axis of IMDS technical support to governments and the focus of our research. We will continue to keep our readers abreast of our steps on this path. See you in the next “Letter from IMDS”! Paulo Tafner CEO | 
