| By using 1997 National Graduate Survey (NGS), the thesis aims to analyze the school to work transitions of the PhD graduates in the mid 1990s. An individual's choice of a field of study (FOS) is treated as a personal agency variable, and gender, visible minority status are considered as the paramount social structure variables when the graduate is trying to initially establish himself or herself in the labor market two years after graduation. Criteria of successful transitions include the graduate's income, job continuity and job satisfaction.;Findings in this study reveal that PhD graduates were facing a tough labor market during the mid 1990s, when their unemployment rate was not far away from bachelor graduates, and even higher than master's graduates. However, those PhD graduates who can find jobs make a relatively higher income, and are more satisfied with their jobs than those graduates at lower levels.;Contrary to the conventional wisdom, this research finds that overall PhD graduates who have worked in academic jobs have relatively higher income than those who have worked in non-academic jobs.;Women were still under represented at the doctoral level. However, this study shows that they are increasingly present in the academic world where men have dominated for many years. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
