Social and Economic Inequality in the Educational Career: Do the Effects of Social Background Characteristics Decline?

Abstract

This paper studies the influence of social and economic background on educational decisions during the complete career in the Norwegian educational system. The data consists of a sample of Norwegians between the age of 30 and 34 in 1990 from the population censuses. Studies of the development of social inequality in educational attainment often use a sequential binary choice model. The model used here seeks to provide a more realistic representation of the structure of educational choice facing students, which involves multiple as well as binary choices. The results support those of previous studies in that social class was found to have the greatest impact in the first transition, from compulsory school to secondary education. However, the main impression is of continuing social inequality throughout the educational career. Those originating in the higher social classes are more likely than others to choose prestigious twrlrn of tertiary-level education. Parental income affects the choice of track and the level of the university degree for those who choose academic studies with graduate and undergraduate degrees.