Working Paper: NBER ID: w8555
Authors: John Bound; Jeffrey Groen; Gbor Kzdi; Sarah Turner
Abstract: The main question addressed in this analysis is how the production of undergraduate and graduate education at the state level affects the local stock of university-educated workers. The potential mobility of highly skilled workers implies that the number of college students graduating in an area need not affect the number of college graduates living in the area. However, the production of relatively large numbers of college and university graduates in an area may lead to increases in the employment of university-trained manpower if local industries expand production of goods that use college-educated workers intensively. Using data from the U.S., we find a modest link between the production and use of BA degree recipients; states awarding relatively large numbers of BA degrees in each cohort also have somewhat higher concentrations of college-educated workers.
Keywords: higher education; college-educated labor; state-level production
JEL Codes: J0; I2
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| exogenous increase in the share of individuals graduating from college in a state (D29) | shift in the relative supply of college-educated labor (J24) |
| shift in the relative supply of college-educated labor (J24) | equilibrium stocks of college-educated workers (J69) |
| relative flow of degrees conferred within a state (I23) | relative stock of university-educated workers (J24) |
| presence of college graduates in a state (I23) | attract industries intensive in college-educated labor (J24) |
| production of MD degrees (Y40) | limited ability of states to attract related industries (L69) |