Abstract
The purpose of this article is to show that the stratification of the Quebec high school market contributes to the reproduction of social inequalities in higher education. The results obtained from a sample (N = 2,677) of a cohort of students born in 1984 and observed up to the age of 22 show that the influence of social origin operates in large part via mediation of the type of institution attended. Students enrolled in private or public institutions offering enriched programs (in mathematics, science or languages) are significantly more likely to access college and university education than their peers who attended a public institution offering only regular programs. Additional analyses reveal that the probability of attending a private or public institution offering enriched programs is strongly correlated with the social origin of the student. The influence of the education market itself operates through differences in performance and educational aspirations that characterize students in three types of establishments.
Highlights
In Quebec, as in other developed societies, mass higher education has intensified since the 1980s
The rate of access to one or the other level varies significantly according to the social origin of the student, and according to the type of institution attended in high school
The purpose of this article was to examine the extent to which the stratification of the Quebec secondary school market contributes to the reproduction of inequalities in access to higher education
Summary
In Quebec, as in other developed societies, mass higher education has intensified since the 1980s. Nearly two out of three students pursue higher education and one goes on to university Despite this popularization, studies have shown that social inequalities in terms of access to this level of education persist (Chenard & Doray, 2013; Dandurand, 1986, 1991; Sylvain, Laforce, & Trottier, 1985). Studies have shown that social inequalities in terms of access to this level of education persist (Chenard & Doray, 2013; Dandurand, 1986, 1991; Sylvain, Laforce, & Trottier, 1985) These inequalities have been attributed to differences in educational aspirations, which are themselves associated with the social and ethnic origin of students. Chenard and Doray (2013) have pointed out that even though the popularization of higher education in Quebec is steadily increasing, it remains an area of social reproduction, especially in university, where the effects of culture and family income are combined with the effects of academic pathways and experience
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