John H. Tyler|Richard J. Murnane|John B. Willett
Do the Cognitive Skills of School Dropouts Matter in the Labor Market?
us labor market reward cognitive skill differences among high school dropouts members labor force least educational attainments paper reports results exploration question using new data set provides information universe dropouts last attempted ged exams florida new york 1984 1990 design sample reduces variation unmeasured variables motivation correlated cognitive skills examine labor market returns basic cognitive skills measured ged test scores explore whether returns differ gender race results indicate quite large earnings returns cognitive skills male female dropouts white nonwhite dropouts earnings payoff skills increases age