• Table of Contents
    • Abstract
    • Keywords
    • Article
      • 1 Introduction
      • 2 Theoretical framework
        • 2.1 The internal rate of return and equalizing differences
        • 2.2 An extended model
        • 2.3 Dynamic models of schooling
      • 3 Evidence on the returns to schooling
        • 3.1 Mincerian studies
        • 3.2 Causal studies
      • 4 Summary
    • See Also
    • Bibliography
    • How to cite this article

returns to schooling

David Card
From The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics, Second Edition, 2008
Edited by Steven N. Durlauf and Lawrence E. Blume
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Abstract

The returns to schooling represent the incremental increase in earnings associated with an increase in schooling. Under assumptions first spelled out by Jacob Mincer in 1958, each additional year of schooling will lead to a percentage gain in earnings that is equal to the interest rate. More recent research has treated the return to schooling as a causal parameter that can vary across people, and by the level of education.
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Keywords

ability bias; control functions; degree effects; equalizing differences; human capital earnings function; instrumental variables; Mincer, J.; publication bias; returns to schooling; self-selection bias; treatment effect; wage differentials
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Article

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How to cite this article

Card, David. "returns to schooling." The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics. Second Edition. Eds. Steven N. Durlauf and Lawrence E. Blume. Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics Online. Palgrave Macmillan. 22 May 2013 <http://www.dictionaryofeconomics.com/article?id=pde2008_R000240> doi:10.1057/9780230226203.1434

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