I propose a major program of research on skill, education, and the labor market. The program will build on four facts. First, ability and skill are multidimensional. Second, secondary and postsecondary education is heterogeneous in quality and in the types of skills and knowledge provided....

We examine changes in the characteristics of American youth between the late 1970s and the late 1990s, with a focus on characteristics that matter for labor market success. We reweight the NLSY79 to look like the NLSY97 along a number of dimensions that are related to labor market success,...