Family Origin and College Graduates’ First Job Earnings Evidence from China

• In Event: 435 - Section on Sociology of Education Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 11. Higher Education and the Labor Market

Abstract

In this paper, we aim to estimate family origin’s effects on college graduates’ first job earnings by taking into the consideration of selection in postgraduate education. Empirical analysis shows that there is no significant association between family origin and college graduates’ earnings if we only analyze the selected sample in the job market. However, the wage association related to parents’ resources becomes positively significant when controlling the selection into postgraduate study. This finding suggests that the seemingly meritocracy-based job market for undergraduates is caused by the fact that graduates from advantaged families delay their entry into the competition for jobs and make further investment in their educational credentials.

Author

• Zhonglu li, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology