Alaskans' Pathways From High School to Postsecondary Education and Employment

• In Event: Roundtable Session 7
  In Roundtable Session: Education, Wages, and the Labor Market

Abstract

This study follows 40,000 Alaskan students in their first six years after high school. It describes relationships among academic performance in high school, college attendance and vocational training, employment, wages, and incarceration. The study highlights differences across key groups of students in the state, including men and women, Alaska Native and White students, and rural and urban students. The study finds that academic and personal background characteristics explained differences in choices students made directly after high school. Additionally, postsecondary educational attainment and work experience were strong predictors of early-career wages. The findings provide evidence to inform policy and practice related to academic readiness and closing the gap in postsecondary enrollment rates and wages, particularly between Alaska Native and White students.

Authors

• Havala Hanson, Education Northwest

• Ashley Pierson, Education Northwest