| Purpose of the study. The purpose of the study was to investigate the relationships between earnings and performance status, and between earnings and selected variables such as credential levels, previous credentials held, fields of study, and industry by gender and by performance status using the Unemployment Insurance wage data for graduates of postsecondary career and technical education institutions in Missouri.; Research methods. Two cohorts and corresponding datasets were used, one for each performance indicator. For the skill attainment indicator, the participants were 3,444 graduates who reported during the 1999–2000 school year and were employed during 2000–2001. For the placement indicator, the 3,347 graduates who reported during the 1998–1999 school year and were employed during 1999–2000 were used for this study. Two sets of administrative data, Unemployment Insurance wage record data and CBHE data from the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education, were used. Descriptive data were presented, and regression analyses were conducted to investigate the relationship between performance status and earnings.; Findings and conclusions. The findings of this study resulted in the following conclusions: (a) vocational credential effects on earnings do exist; (b) earning premiums will exist for completers with previous credentials as they exit postsecondary career and technical education programs in Missouri, and attending met-standard institutions will have earning benefits for graduates who previously held vocational or academic associate degrees; (c) the fields of study effects on earnings will not be significant in the initial stages of entering the Missouri labor market regardless of performance status of the institutions; (d) the effects on earnings will vary across employment in various industry areas, and workers in manufacturing, transportation, and finance and insurance industries will receive higher earnings than those in services; (e) whether or not institutions meet the state's standard level of performance will not be significantly associated with graduates' earnings in the initial stage of entering the Missouri labor market. |
