The wage premium for university education in great britain during a decade of change

Abstract

Using data drawn from the Labour Force Survey between 1997 and 2006, we find that the premium enjoyed by the stock of university graduates has remained largely stable over this period. This is true for both men and women, across all subject areas and across the ability distribution. However, there is evidence that wage returns for the most recent cohort, that is those graduating after much of the recent expansion of higher education had been completed, have moderated. © 2011 The Authors. The Manchester School © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and The University of Manchester.