RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Who Receives the College Wage Premium?
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 746
OP 773
DO 10.3368/jhr.XXXIX.3.746
VO XXXIX
IS 3
A1 Audrey Light
A1 Wayne Strayer
YR 2004
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/XXXIX/3/746.abstract
AB Using data from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, we estimate wage models in which college-educated workers are classified according to their degree attainment, college type, and college transfer status. The detailed taxonomy produces modest improvements in explanatory power relative to standard specifications, and reveals considerable heterogeneity in the predicted wages of college-educated workers. We find that transfer students receive an “indirect” wage benefit insofar as changing colleges allows them to earn a degree. Some transfer students receive an additional “direct” wage benefit, presumably because switching schools increases their skill investment opportunities.