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Title: The Assumed Benefits and Hidden Costs of Adult Learners' College Enrollment
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Kim, Kyung-Nyun
Baker, Rose M.
The Assumed Benefits and Hidden Costs of Adult Learners' College Enrollment
Research in Higher Education 56,5 (August 2015): 510-533.
Also: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11162-014-9351-x
Cohort(s): NLSY79
Publisher: Springer
Keyword(s): College Characteristics; College Enrollment; Occupational Status; Self-Esteem; Wage Penalty/Career Penalty; Wages

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

This study investigates the effects of adults' enrollment in and graduation from a two-year college on their hourly wages and occupational status in U.S. by employing a growth curve model and a piecewise model. College enrollment reduced hourly wages and occupational status by 13.8 % and 2.74 points, respectively. Less-educated workers whose wages were the main source of income were more likely to compromise their occupational status for a better work-study balance and thus to realize wage penalties during schooling. While a two-year college degree acquired in adulthood had significant positive effects on hourly wages and occupational status, the said positive economic returns from the degree were moderated by their self-esteem.
Bibliography Citation
Kim, Kyung-Nyun and Rose M. Baker. "The Assumed Benefits and Hidden Costs of Adult Learners' College Enrollment." Research in Higher Education 56,5 (August 2015): 510-533.