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College Majors, Occupations, and the Gender Wage Gap

Author

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  • Carolyn M. Sloane
  • Erik G. Hurst
  • Dan A. Black

Abstract

The paper assesses gender differences in pre-labor market specialization among the college-educated and highlights how those differences have evolved over time. Women choose majors with lower potential earnings (based on male wages associated with those majors) and subsequently sort into occupations with lower potential earnings given their major choice. These differences have narrowed over time, but recent cohorts of women still choose majors and occupations with lower potential earnings. Differences in undergraduate major choice explain a substantive portion of gender wage gaps for the college-educated above and beyond simply controlling for occupation. Collectively, our results highlight the importance of understanding gender differences in the mapping between college major and occupational sorting when studying the evolution of gender differences in labor market outcomes over time.

Suggested Citation

  • Carolyn M. Sloane & Erik G. Hurst & Dan A. Black, 2021. "College Majors, Occupations, and the Gender Wage Gap," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 35(4), pages 223-248, Fall.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:jecper:v:35:y:2021:i:4:p:223-48
    DOI: 10.1257/jep.35.4.223
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Kristin F. Butcher & Patrick McEwan & Akila Weerapana, 2023. "Women's Colleges and Economics Major Choice: Evidence from Wellesley College Applicants," Working Paper Series WP 2023-21, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
    2. Lenka Fiala & John Eric Humphries & Juanna Schrøter Joensen & Uditi Karna & John A. List & Gregory F. Veramendi, 2022. "How Early Adolescent Skills and Preferences Shape Economics Education Choices," AEA Papers and Proceedings, American Economic Association, vol. 112, pages 609-613, May.
    3. Federica Braccioli & Paolo Ghinetti & Simone Moriconi & Costanza Naguib & Michele Pellizzari, 2023. "Education Expansion, College Choice and Labour Market Success," CESifo Working Paper Series 10842, CESifo.
    4. Mancuso, Raffaele & Rossi-Lamastra, Cristina & Franzoni, Chiara, 2023. "Topic choice, gendered language, and the under-funding of female scholars in mission-oriented research," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(6).
    5. Meriküll, Jaanika & Tverdostup, Maryna, 2023. "The gap that survived the transition: The gender wage gap in Estonia over three decades," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 47(3).
    6. Olga Alonso-Villar & Coral Río, 2023. "Disentangling Occupational Sorting from Within-Occupation Disparities: Earnings Differences Among 12 Gender–Race/Ethnicity Groups in the U.S," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 42(3), pages 1-28, June.
    7. Federica Braccioli & Paolo Ghinetti & Simone Moriconi & Michele Pellizzari & Costanza Naguib, 2022. "Education expansion, college choice and labour market success," Diskussionsschriften dp2207, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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