In this paper we explore the labor market returns to the General Education Development exam, or GED, using data from the Current Population Survey. We examine how the return to the GED varies between natives in the U.S. and the foreign-born who received their formal education outside of the U.S. We find that the foreign-schooled with a GED earn statistically significantly higher wages than both...

Relatively little is known about how youth obtain marijuana and other drugs. The Drugs, Alcohol and Violence International (DAVI) study explored youthful drug markets among samples of school students, detained youth, and school dropouts (ages 14-17 years) in the greater metropolitan areas of Philadelphia, Toronto, Montreal, and Amsterdam. Students frequently reported sharing drugs, either getti...

In this study we hypothesize that variations in state welfare policies in the reform era may affect adolescents through two mechanisms. A competing labor market hypothesis posits that stringent state welfare policies may reduce adolescent employment. A signaling hypothesis posits that stringent welfare policies may promote enrollment. To test these hypotheses, we use a dynamic joint model of ad...

The academic performance of students in grades 9-12 who did or did not participate in high school sports in Kansas during the 2008-2009 school year was analyzed. In addition to overall comparisons between athletes and non-athletes on GPAs, graduation rates, number of dropouts, ACT test scores, and state assessments, some gender, ethnicity, and grade comparisons were made. High school athletes e...

An Analysis of the Impact of Socioeconomic Disadvantage and School Quality on the Probability of School Dropout PISA scores are an internationally established indicator of student and school performance. This paper builds on the evidence that better PISA scores are known to be associated with better later life outcomes. It uses the Australian PISA micro-level data in combination with its longit...

Our analysis of migration differs from previous research in three important aspects. First, we exploit the confidential geocoding in the NLSY79 to obtain a distance-based measure. Second, we let the effect of migration on wage growth differ by schooling level. Third, we use propensity score matching to address selection issues. An economic model helps us determine the variables included in the ...

OBJECTIVE To characterize dropouts from type-2 diabetes (T2D) care in communal primary health care. DESIGN An observational study. SETTING In a Finnish city, patients with T2D who had not contacted the public primary health care system during the past 12 months were identified with a computer based search and contacted by a trained diabetes nurse. SUBJECTS Dropouts from T2D treatment. M...