Sex, school, and work: how sex and educational attainment bring about different occupational outcomes

As young people face the prospect of ever-rising tuition costs, the risk of drop-out, and the added pressure and trials of the coronavirus pandemic, many are considering alternatives to a four-year degree. Policymakers, educators, and advocates often endorse career and technical education (CTE) as a viable option for young people to prepare for their future occupations. Due to persistent sex-based workplace inequity such as occupational sex segregation (the unequal distribution of the sexes in certain jobs or industries) and the wage gap, research must address the ways in which different educational paths provide occupationally and financially different futures to young people.

The present study utilizes the Bureau of Labor Statistics National Longitudinal Study of Youth 1997 to examine and compare the occupational and financial outcomes of those who earned bachelor’s degrees and those who earned certifications. I make sense of these results by framing the equalizing effect of credentials as a mechanism of closing the wage gap and occupational sex-segregation. Ultimately, I argue that sex-based disparities in occupational and financial outcomes are less pronounced for those who attain a bachelor’s degree than those who gain certifications as an equalizing effect evens the outcomes for prospective employees with more advanced credentials.