Vocational Secondary Schooling, Occupational Choice, and Earnings in Brazil

Secondary Vocational Education and Earnings in Latin America[1]

“…Recent studies of vocational schooling in Brazil and other developing countries challenge the established view of Foster, suggesting that there are significant earnings advantages for individuals with vocational schooling who are employed in their field compared to both those who are mismatched and also to those with academic schooling (Fredland & Little, 1980;Rumberger & Daymont, 1984;Bishop, 1989;Chung, 1990;Neuman & Ziderman, 1991;Arriagada & Ziderman, 1992). The secondary school curriculum by itself does not have a significant effect on earnings.…”

“…The countries studied where there was a favorable return to the cost of vocational schooling are Brazil, Hong Kong and Israel -all middle income, industrialized countries (Arriagada & Ziderman, 1992).…”

Developing human resources for the technical workforce: a comparative study of Korea and Thailand

“…In one study, they found that completing schooling and working in a related occupational area raises earnings by as much as eight percent monthly. Similarly, Arriagada and Ziderman (1992) analyzed data from Brazil, concluding that working in a matched occupation after completing vocational schooling led to a 37 percent earnings difference when compared with workers in non-matched occupations. A study on the United States by Hotchkiss (1993) offered a less favorable view of completing vocational schooling and working in a matched occupation.…”

“…Scholars do show that youth completing vocational-technical education in specific fields who remain employed in related occupations have higher earnings than those who enter the labor market in a field unrelated to their schooling (Arriagada & Ziderman, 1992;Neuman & Ziderman, 1991. However, in making this determination about the relative effectiveness of vocational-technical education, existing studies have failed to examine differences between men and women.…”

Education and Labour Market Outcomes: Evidence from Brazil

“…In an early study that uses census data, Arriagada and Ziderman (1992) investigate the extent to which vocational education raises earnings. They find that, where there is a good match between the nature of the vocational education and the characteristics of the occupation in which a worker is employed, the rate of return to education is high, with a Mincerian rate of return of around 22 per cent.…”