The “Sheepskin Effects” of Canadian Credentials

Hui, Taylor Shek-wai (2004): The “Sheepskin Effects” of Canadian Credentials.

Abstract

This paper re-examines the “sheepskin effects” of educational credentials in Canada using data from the 1996 Census and Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics. I found that the estimated credential effects are sensitive to specifications. Regressions analysis in the standard model may not be adequate to control for the workers’ productivity difference unrelated to the credentials. Particularly, the misspecification of the earnings equation and pooling sample might introduce biases into the estimates of credential effects. With carefully constructed comparison groups, the estimated sheepskin effects of a Bachelor’s degree are smaller than that reported in Ferrar and Riddell (2002).

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Post-secondary Education; Human Capital; Signaling Effects; Canada.
• Subjects: C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods > C5 - Econometric Modeling > C50 - General; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I2 - Education and Research Institutions > I20 - General; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J0 - General > J01 - Labor Economics: General; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Demand and Supply of Labor > J24 - Human Capital ; Skills ; Occupational Choice ; Labor Productivity

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