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The importance of education-occupation matching in migration decisions

Demography volume 42, pages 153–167 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

In this article, we present and test a model that incorporates education-occupation matching into the migration decision. The literature on education-occupation matching shows that earnings are affected by how individuals’ education matches that required by their occupation. Accordingly, individuals with more schooling than required by their occupation have an additional incentive to migrate: the increase in earnings that occurs with a more beneficial education-occupation match. Using data from Mexico, we found statistical support for the importance of education-occupation matching in migration decisions. Education-occupation matching provides a plausible explanation for the mixed findings in the literature on the relationship between educational attainment and migration.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economics, Bentley College, 175 Forest Street, 02452-4705, Waltham, MA

    Michael A. Quinn

  2. Department of Economics, Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT

    Stephen Rubb

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  1. Michael A. Quinn
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  2. Stephen Rubb
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Quinn, M.A., Rubb, S. The importance of education-occupation matching in migration decisions. Demography 42, 153–167 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1353/dem.2005.0008

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