SOCIAL background is the biggest factor contributing to academic performance at school but it has little to do with success at university and in the workforce, Australian research has found.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The study from the Australian Council for Educational Research shows that post-school education plays a major role in enhancing social mobility.
A university degree could increase earning capacity by about 31 per cent, apprenticeships by 23 per cent and a TAFE diploma by 14 per cent. However, a TAFE certificate or traineeship only raised earning capacity by 5 to 8 per cent.
Women, particularly those with bachelor degrees, were found to be in higher-status jobs than men but were earning 20 per cent less, with many in part-time work.
The study followed the development of thousands of students from public and private schools around the country for 10 years from 1995, when they were 14.
Phillip McKenzie, research director at ACER's Transitions and Post-School Education and Training Program, said the workforce had been meritocratic when it came to sorting between people of different social backgrounds.
"The broad message is the further you go in the education and training system and into the labor market, the weaker the impact of your social origins," Dr McKenzie said.
The ACER study tracked 13,613 students from 300 government, Catholic and independent schools who were in year 9 in 1995. Most of the students were in year 12 in 1998 and less than half went to university.
The researchers interviewed about 10,000 of the students in late 1997 and 4233 in 2005, when they were 24 years of age and had been in the labour market for about four years.
Dr McKenzie said the study found that socioeconomic background and ethnicity played a small role in contributing to advantage in the workforce.
"The prime determinants of earnings and the type of job you hold is your educational capacity or performance," he said. "The labor market is meritocratic in that sense.
"Socioeconomic status was there as an influence, but it was smaller than the level of education you had obtained."
Going back 25 years, Dr McKenzie said most of the 35 per cent of students who completed their senior years of high school were from higher social groups.
Today, about 80 per cent of students complete high school and much of the growth has been made up of students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
"In addressing inequities, we need to ensure disadvantaged students do well in the school system, which means support for schools serving disadvantaged communities," Dr McKenzie said.
"We have an open tertiary education system where there are lots of pathways into courses as people age."
Apprenticeships and university degrees had stronger effects on earnings and occupations compared to some traineeships and vocational courses.
The study also suggested the need for continuing career guidance to help young people choose the programs most appropriate to their interests and needs.
