This paper presents new evidence that increases in college enrollment lead to a decline in the average quality of college graduates between 1960 and 2000, resulting in a decrease of 6 percentage points in the college premium. A standard demand and supply framework can qualitatively account for the trend in the college and age premia over this period, but substantial quantitative adjustments are needed to account for changes in quality.
Authors
![Sokbae "Simon" Lee](/sites/default/files/styles/square_desktop/public/2022-07/Simon%20Lee.jpg?itok=J8PnQSbc)
Research Fellow Columbia University
Sokbae is an IFS Research Fellow and a Professor at Columbia University, with an interest in Econometrics, Applied Microeconomics and Statistics.
![Pedro Carneiro](/sites/default/files/styles/square_desktop/public/2022-07/Pedro_Carneiro.jpg?itok=jj8qq067)
Research Fellow University College London
Pedro is a Professor of Economics at University College London and an economist in the IFS' Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice (cemmap).
Journal article details
- DOI
- 10.1257/aer.101.6.2309
- Publisher
- American Economic Association
- Issue
- Volume 101, Issue 6, October 2011
Suggested citation
Carneiro, P and Lee, S. (2011). 'Trends in quality-adjusted skill premia in the United States, 1960-2000' 101(6/2011)
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