Wage Expectations: A Comparison of Swiss and US Students.

Wage expectations can play a significant role in a variety of economic areas. This study analyses the wage expectations of students who are on the verge of making a decision concerning their educational path or who have already reached such a decision. Since each student in our study has been asked to discuss expectations in relation to various educational scenarios, this data can be used to check certain human capital theory assumptions. It is possible, for example, to ascertain the wage effects which students expect from certain educational decisions. Moreover it is possible to assess the expected rates of return on education without asking the students directly. The results of this study make it clear that both in the USA and in Switzerland the wage expectations of students do not differ significantly from the current cross-sectional labor market data, despite considerable heterogeneity in some cases. Copyright 2000 by WWZ and Helbing & Lichtenhahn Verlag AG