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Does it pay to go back to school?
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The notion that education is something one completes before entering the labour market has become outdated. Rapid technological change, a lack of new qualified workers and other factors mean more and more adults are returning to school to update their knowledge and skills or to acquire new ones.
In a study conducted from 1993 to 2001, 14% of men and 15% of women were adult students and more than half earned a postsecondary certificate. Young educated workers were more likely to take part in adult education than older, less educated workers.
Most adult workers who earned a postsecondary certificate saw their earnings jump. For example, all groups of men who obtained a postsecondary certificate posted higher growth in their hourly earnings than those who did not participate in adult education. The returns ranged from 6% for men whose initial level of education was college or higher to 10% for those who started with high school or less. All groups of men saw strong gains in their annual earnings, except those aged 35 to 59.
Only women aged 17 to 34 enjoyed high returns in both hourly and annual earnings—11% and 15%, respectively—on obtaining a postsecondary certificate. Less educated women who obtained a postsecondary certificate also netted significant returns in hourly, but not annual, earnings.
Younger and older adult workers took different paths to return to school. Older workers only saw gains if they stayed with the same employer. For younger workers, earning a postsecondary certificate was associated more with getting a new, better-paying job than with getting higher pay at their old job.
