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Title: English Language Proficiency and Occupational Choice: Evidence from Childhood Immigrants into the United States

Citation Type: Miscellaneous

Publication Year: 2012

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Abstract: I examine the effect of English language proficiency on the occupational choices of childhood immigrants into the United States. Following Bleakley and Chin (2004; 2010), I use an instrumental variables approach that exploits young children's superior language acquisition abilities to estimate the causal effect of English language skills on immigrants' choice of occupation. I find that immigrants with higher proficiency are more likely to work in jobs that require a sophisticated use of the English language, such as sales and administrative occupations. By contrast, immigrants with a weaker grasp of English are more likely to end up in occupations that do not rely on language skills, e.g. food preparation, farming, or production. I show that this effect is not driven primarily by the education channel, but is rather mostly the result of individuals' choice of the most suitable job within their educational category.

Url: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2189169

User Submitted?: No

Authors: Hlavac, Marek

Publisher: Central European Labour Studies Institute (CELSI)

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Migration and Immigration

Countries: United States