Based on different research carried out by the author in Mexico since the 1980's, four analytical dimensions have been identified in order to rethink the relationship between education and work; one that advances in relation to the classic theories on this subject. These dimensions include the heterogeneous and unequal labor structure of the country; the priority given by the national policies to education for the labor force and the different actors that participate in it; the real conditions of vocational education and training in the schools; and the individuals' trajectories and transitions between school and work. The analysis lead to the conclusion that these relationships are complex, multidimensional, inconsistent, contradictory, interactive, historical and loosely coupled, with all sorts of imperfections and mismatches among them.
Education; Work; Labor structures; Educational policies; Transitions