Against the background of education expansion and economic transformations, little is known about how education shapes the transition to work in developing countries. Drawing on the cases of Vietnam, Cambodia and Nepal, this study examines the association between education and the timing and quality of transition to work. In Vietnam and Cambodia, school enrolment delays the transition to first paid employment, but upon leaving school, higher education attainment is associated with faster rate of transition. The education gradient is even stronger in probabilities and rates of transition to first stable, long-term employment. In Nepal, school enrolment does not preclude transition to paid employment, and the relation between education attainment and transition to work varies significantly by gender.