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The evolving nature of the college wage premium

Author

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  • Birulin, Oleksii
  • Smirnov, Vladimir
  • Wait, Andrew

Abstract

Focusing on the signaling aspect of education, we show that the college wage premium can be U-shaped in the share of the population with a college degree. This prediction is consistent with empirical evidence from a range of countries. Moreover, the equilibrium in our model is unique, which means that we are able to generate empirically-testable predictions linking income inequality and the premium enjoyed by the college educated. Consequently, our model provides a framework for future empirical studies.

Suggested Citation

  • Birulin, Oleksii & Smirnov, Vladimir & Wait, Andrew, 2020. "The evolving nature of the college wage premium," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 474-479.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecmode:v:93:y:2020:i:c:p:474-479
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econmod.2020.09.001
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    College wage premium; Signaling; Education benefit;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design
    • I22 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Educational Finance; Financial Aid
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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