Community College Scientists and Salary Gap: Navigating Socioeconomic and Academic Stratification in the U.S. Higher Education System

More than 4 decades of research on community colleges has indicated that students who begin in these institutions realize lower levels of educational attainment than initial 4-year entrants. In terms of labor market outcomes, studies have overwhelmingly focused on comparing 2-year entrants to high school graduates who did not attend college. In contrast, this study concentrated on 2-year entrants who became scientists in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields and compared their individual and professional characteristics and monetary compensation during a 10-year period to those of scientists who entered college in the 4-year sector. The data analyzed came from 2 National Science Foundation longitudinal and nationally representative samples of doctorate recipients. The analytic techniques relied on the instrumental variables approach for dynamic panel data and propensity score weighting. Findings consistently revealed that 2-year entrants came from lower-income backgrounds and had lower mean salary and lower salary growth than their 4-year sector counterparts. Despite these negative salary-based effects, data showed that the 2-year sector has had an active function in the early formation of scientists. As the competition for science and technology development tightens worldwide, initiatives should identify understudied venues to increase the production of STEM graduates. Considering its scope, the 2-year sector could be one of them.