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The Benefits of Alternatives to Conventional College: Labor-Market Returns to Proprietary Schooling

Author

Listed:
  • Christopher Jepsen

    (University College Dublin)

  • Peter Mueser

    (University of Missouri-Columbia)

  • Kyung-Seong Jeon

    (University of Missouri-Columbia)

Abstract

This paper provides novel evidence on the labor-market returns to proprietary (also called for-profit) postsecondary school attendance. Specifically, we link administrative records on proprietary school attendance with quarterly earnings data for nearly 70,000 students. Because average age at school entry is 30 years of age, and because we have earnings data for five or more years prior to attendance, we estimate a person fixed-effects model to control for time-invariant differences across individuals. By five years after entry, quarterly earnings returns are around 26 percent for men and 21-22 percent for women. Average returns are quite similar for associate’s degree programs and certificate programs, but vary substantially by field of study. Differences in return by gender are completely explained by differences in field of study.

Suggested Citation

  • Christopher Jepsen & Peter Mueser & Kyung-Seong Jeon, 2016. "The Benefits of Alternatives to Conventional College: Labor-Market Returns to Proprietary Schooling," Working Papers 1607, Department of Economics, University of Missouri.
    • Handle: RePEc:umc:wpaper:1607
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rajeev Darolia & Cory Koedel & Paco Martorell & Katie Wilson & Francisco Perez‐Arce, 2015. "Do Employers Prefer Workers Who Attend For‐Profit Colleges? Evidence from a Field Experiment," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(4), pages 881-903, September.
    2. Jacobson, Louis & LaLonde, Robert & G. Sullivan, Daniel, 2005. "Estimating the returns to community college schooling for displaced workers," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 125(1-2), pages 271-304.
    3. Lang, Kevin & Weinstein, Russell, 2013. "The wage effects of not-for-profit and for-profit certifications: Better data, somewhat different results," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 230-243.
    4. David J. Deming & Claudia Goldin & Lawrence F. Katz, 2012. "The For-Profit Postsecondary School Sector: Nimble Critters or Agile Predators?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 26(1), pages 139-164, Winter.
    5. David J. Deming & Noam Yuchtman & Amira Abulafi & Claudia Goldin & Lawrence F. Katz, 2016. "The Value of Postsecondary Credentials in the Labor Market: An Experimental Study," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 106(3), pages 778-806, March.
    6. Christopher Jepsen & Kenneth Troske & Paul Coomes, 2014. "The Labor-Market Returns to Community College Degrees, Diplomas, and Certificates," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 32(1), pages 95-121.
    7. Cellini, Stephanie Riegg & Chaudhary, Latika, 2014. "The labor market returns to a for-profit college education," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 125-140.
    8. Stephanie Riegg Cellini & Nicholas Turner, 2019. "Gainfully Employed?: Assessing the Employment and Earnings of For-Profit College Students Using Administrative Data," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 54(2), pages 342-370.
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    Cited by:

    1. Böckerman, Petri & Haapanen, Mika & Jepsen, Christopher, 2019. "Back to school: Labor-market returns to higher vocational schooling," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    2. Luis Armona & Rajashri Chakrabarti & Michael F. Lovenheim, 2018. "How Does For-profit College Attendance Affect Student Loans, Defaults and Labor Market Outcomes?," NBER Working Papers 25042, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Petri Böckerman & Mika Haapanen & Christopher Jepsen, 2018. "Labor-Market Returns to Higher Vocational Schooling," CESifo Working Paper Series 7197, CESifo.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    postsecondary education; labor-market returns; proprietary schooling;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education

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