Higher Education in India from 1983 to 2014: Participation, Access and Labour Market Outcomes across Socio-religious Groups

This article uses National Sample Survey (NSS) data to analyse the trends in India’s higher education in terms of participation, access and institutional preferences during the last three decades between 1983 and 2014. It documents a remarkable participation growth in higher education across socio-religious groups since the early 1980s; the number of higher educated persons has doubled in each decade especially among the younger age cohort. The increase in participation of the socially disadvantaged groups (SDGs) in higher education, however, was not on a par with the participation levels of advantageous groups; rural females among the disadvantaged groups are particularly lagging. The share of enrolment in government institutions (GIs) has declined while in private institutions it has considerably increased from across social groups, albeit in varying degrees and from top quintile groups. The labour market outcomes show declining workforce participation rates among the higher educated, especially the female graduates who end up in domestic work. The greater wage premium for higher education has, however, not bridged the gap between social groups. Instead, the outcomes within the same education group vary, witnessed in the low real wage for the disadvantaged and declining wage ratio between the disadvantaged and the advantageous groups.