Who skims the cream of the Italian graduate crop? Wage-employment versus self-employment

Castagnetti, Carolina and Rosti, Luisa (2008): Who skims the cream of the Italian graduate crop? Wage-employment versus self-employment. Forthcoming in: Small Business Economics

Abstract

This paper tests whether the academic achievement is a significant determinant of the employment status in the Italian labor market: are the new entrepreneurs selected from the top or bottom end of the graduates ability distribution? Is the cream of the graduate crop pulled into self-employment by the higher expected earnings or are the individuals with lower degree score pushed into entrepreneurship by poor alternatives? Our data show a strong negative relation between academic achievement and self-employment status, i.e. we assess the skimming of the best graduates into wage and salary work.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Self-employment; Italy; Selection
• Subjects: J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J3 - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs > J31 - Wage Level and Structure ; Wage Differentials; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Demand and Supply of Labor > J24 - Human Capital ; Skills ; Occupational Choice ; Labor Productivity

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