Selecting a field of study is an important decision made by thousands of incoming postsecondary students each year. Numerous studies have shown that graduates from engineering, business and mathematics programs earn considerably more than their counterparts from arts and humanities. These earnings disparities may reflect differences in skills that…

Each year, Statistics Canada releases data on the labour market outcomes of college and university graduates using data from the Education and Labour Market Longitudinal Platform (ELMLP). Statistics Canada has developed the ELMLP in collaboration with the provincial and territorial ministries of education, Employment and Social Development Canada…

This study uses the 2021 Census to describe the educational attainment and earnings of the Canadian-born Black population, focusing on three groups: (1) those with at least one African-born parent (African-origin); (2) those with at least one Caribbean-born parent (Caribbean-origin) and (3) those whose parents were both born in Canada…

Wages below the living wage are poverty wages for many households. For decades, teachers have been clear about the damaging impact poverty has on childhood development in particular, as well as on individuals and communities as a whole. Teachers experience first-hand the impact that poverty has on children, how it leaves children more vulnerable…

Largely introduced in the early 2000s, college postgraduate credentials are a relatively new type of Canadian college credential, which typically require a postsecondary credential (e.g., a college diploma or bachelor's degree) as a prerequisite for entry. They are generally directed at providing career-specific skills, and frequently incorporate…

Using Canadian data from 1976 to 2014, I study the size distribution of strikes with three alternative measures of strike size: the number of workers on strike, strike duration in calendar days, and the number of person calendar days lost to a strike. I use a maximum likelihood framework that provides a way to estimate distributions, evaluate…

This study uses longitudinal data combining information from the Postsecondary Student Information System (PSIS) with data from personal income tax (T1 Family File) to analyze the impact of short-duration credentials (certificates and diplomas from colleges and universities), completed after an undergraduate degree, on the outcomes on the labour…

The number of temporary residents that hold a postsecondary study permit in Canada has increased rapidly in recent years, going from 201,186 in 2009 to 294,020 in 2015--a 46.1% increase. The purpose of this study is to describe the postsecondary experience and early labour market outcomes of study permit holders (international students). The study…

Over a half century ago, researchers found that so-called classic professions attract socially advantaged recruits with better labour market outcomes; however, as semi professions become increasingly institutionalized, and classic professional programs expand, differences between these two groups may be less pronounced. Using Statistics Canada's…

In Canada, immigrants represented more than half of the population in the prime working ages with at least a bachelor's degree in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields of study in 2016. They accounted for three-quarters of engineering and computer science graduates with a master's or doctorate degree. This paper…

A significant percentage of the former students who are surveyed by BC Student Outcomes every year have participated in STEM programs; that is, science, technology, engineering, or mathematics and computer programs, which include computer science and information technology-related programs. This fact sheet presents the outcomes of post-secondary…

This article looks at the labour market outcomes of 2015 postsecondary graduates three years after graduation. Specifically, it examines their employment status, job permanency, relatedness of their job or business to their 2015 educational program, the degree to which graduates feel qualified for their job, their employment income and their job…

Work and negotiation experiences were examined among early adolescents (12-15 years) through a survey (N = 157) and follow-up interview (N = 89) conducted in two Canadian cities. Key findings, based on a mixed-method research approach, were (a) gifts were the primary income source; (b) females completed more chores than males, and younger…

Every year, the BC Student Outcomes Program collects feedback from former students who took post-secondary programs. Student feedback is essential to maintain quality and relevance in the education system. In 2022, over 28,500 former students were surveyed; key results from those surveys are presented in this report. 90% of the former…

Using integrated data from the 2006 and 2016 censuses, this study examines the educational and labour market outcomes of a cohort of immigrant children aged 9 to 17 years in 2006. In this study, the results of the children of immigrants from various regions of origin are compared with those of children of Canadian-born parents. [For the summary…