Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/295941 
Year of Publication: 
2024
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 16918
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
While gender differences in the decision of what to study at undergraduate level are much studied, there is relatively little attention paid to subsequent study decisions of graduates. Given the increased importance of graduate education in recent decades, these decisions can have major labour market implications. In this paper, we use administrative data from Ireland to study these choices. We find systematic and substantial differences by gender in choice of graduate field, even when taking account of the exact undergraduate programme attended and a large set of controls measuring academic interests and aptitudes. Female graduates are less likely to do further study in STEM fields and more likely to enter teaching and health programmes. When we explore the effect of these choices on early career gender gaps in earnings, we find that they tend to exacerbate earnings gaps. Even after accounting for the exact undergraduate programme and detailed school subject choices and grades, there is an 8% gender gap in earnings at age 33 for persons who pursued a graduate degree; the choice of graduate programme can explain about 15% of that gap.
Subjects: 
gender gaps
graduate study
field of study
gender earnings gap
higher education
JEL: 
J16
J24
I21
I23
I24
I26
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size
964.03 kB





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.