Mobility in the middle: Bachelor’s degree selectivity and the intergenerational association in status in the United States

Abstract

This study deploys data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 to estimate the intergenerational association in socioeconomic status (SES) among graduates from non-selective, less-selective, and selective four-year colleges. The intergenerational association in status varies by measure of SES, level of education, and tier of bachelor’s degree selectivity. Although the intergenerational association in SES is statistically significant among non-degree holders, the parent-child link in occupational status is null among those who attain a bachelor’s degree. Likewise, the parent-child association in monetary SES is either small in magnitude or statistically insignificant among graduates of colleges in the middle tier of admissions selectivity. However, the intergenerational association in monetary status among graduates of the least and most-selective colleges is statistically indistinguishable from the association among non-degree holders. Results suggest that while occupational destinations are independent of occupational origins among all bachelor’s degree holders, social origins continue to influence wages and family income among graduates of the least and most-selective institutions. These findings motivate continued work to address concerns regarding causality and to examine the potential institutional structures playing a role in social mobility.