Education Choices and Job Market Characteristics

• BSE Working Paper: 110850 | January 23
• Keywords: job market , skills , education choices
• JEL codes: I26, C78
• job market
• skills
• education choices

We propose a simple three-stage model where heterogeneous schools compete via tuition fees, individuals with the ex-ante unknown ability make their education choices to (eventually) get a diploma and reveal their ability, and finally the job market determines the assignment of workers to firms and the equilibrium wages. In equilibrium, wages in the labor market and schools’ fees and individuals’ school choices are strongly related. We also analyze the effects of the existence of a public school or a subsidy on social welfare.