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Author: Bartlett-Chase, Meghanne
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Bartlett-Chase, Meghanne
Sex, School, and Work: How Sex and Educational Attainment Bring About Different Occupational Outcomes
Master's Thesis, Department of Educational Policy and Leadership Studies, University of Iowa, 2020
Cohort(s): NLSY97
Publisher: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT)
Keyword(s): College Degree; Educational Attainment; Gender Differences; Occupations; Vocational Education; Wages

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

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 observing the ways in which more education provides lower discrepancies in wages for male and female respondents in the study. My findings suggest that certifications from CTE do not lower the wage gap or occupational sex segregation to the same amount as that of bachelor's degrees. 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.

Bibliography Citation
Bartlett-Chase, Meghanne. Sex, School, and Work: How Sex and Educational Attainment Bring About Different Occupational Outcomes. Master's Thesis, Department of Educational Policy and Leadership Studies, University of Iowa, 2020.