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Title: Is the Payoff to Overeducation Smaller for Caribbean Immigrants? Evidence from Hierarchical Models in the United States Labour Market

Citation Type: Conference Paper

Publication Year: 2009

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Abstract: This paper examines the overeducation/undereducation and required (OUR) returns to educationhypothesis among Caribbean immigrants in the United Sates labour market using the IPUMS 5%sample1. The results show that they receive lower returns than the native born despite being inthe United States for some time. The methodology employed is somewhat different from thetraditional approach, as an hierarchical model is used to account for the nesting of individualswithin occupation or the presence of fixed effects due to occupation differences.The results suggest that overeducation though common to both the native born and to Caribbeanimmigrants is rewarded less among immigrants and represents an underutilization of resources.Caribbean immigrants on the other hand have higher levels of undereducation relative to thenative born. In light of the intense competition for labour to meet increasing demand in manyadvanced countries, the paper suggest ways in which immigration policies could be crafted toimprove the return to education of immigrants who bring considerable pre immigrationexperience to the labour market.

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Authors: Alleyne, Dillon

Conference Name: Central Bank of Barbados Annual Review Seminar

Publisher Location: Accra Beach Hotel, Barbados

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Education, Race and Ethnicity

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