RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 General Education, Vocational Education, and Labor-Market Outcomes over the Life-Cycle
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
DO 10.3368/jhr.52.1.0415-7074R
A1 Eric A. Hanushek
A1 Guido Schwerdt
A1 Ludger Woessmann
A1 Lei Zhang
YR 2016
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2016/03/04/jhr.52.1.0415-7074R.abstract
AB Policy proposals promoting vocational education focus on the school-to-work transition. But with technological change, gains in youth employment may be offset by less adaptability and diminished employment later in life. To test for this trade-off, we employ a difference-indifferences approach that compares employment rates across different ages for people with general and vocational education. Using micro data for 11 countries from IALS, we find strong and robust support for such a trade-off, especially in countries emphasizing apprenticeship programs. German Microcensus data and Austrian administrative data confirm the results for within-occupational-group analysis and for exogenous variation from plant closures, respectively.