¿Tiene valor económico la educación superior?

En el blog The Avenue, Jonathan Rothwell, investigador de la Brookings Institution, discute los argumentos de Arthur M. Cohen, Carrie B. Kisker y Florence B. Brawer, quienes, en un comentario en la Chronicle of Higher Education, habían cuestionado algunas ideas establecidas acerca de la relación positiva entre educación superior, crecimiento económico y empleo.

«The data -señala Rothwell- are very clear that the sacrifices made by millions of taxpayers, parents, and individuals to invest in the education of others or themselves are economically worthwhile, as my Brookings colleagues have pointed out».

In a commentary in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Arthur M. Cohen, Carrie B. Kisker, and Florence B. Brawer argue that the vibrancy and productivity of the economy is unrelated to higher education. At the personal level, they imply that the likelihood of finding a job is largely unrelated to education. At the aggregate level, they deny that education benefits the economy, relegating its advantages to social and culture benefits. Therefore, they conclude, efforts to increase educational attainment should be dismissed as selfish gestures by parties that stand to gain financially—like universities and philanthropic charities dedicated to education.

“For the past three decades, technological change has led to increased growth in the demand for skilled workers, and because the supply of college educated workers has not increased at the same rate, employers have bid up the wages of college graduates causing the rise in the college earnings premium.”

«In the face of ever-rising rising tuition and scarce or confusing quality metrics, many people are understandably frustrated with universities and community colleges. Meanwhile, the Great Recession has delayed or diverted the ambitions of many young college graduates».
Philip Orepoulos

Unfortunately, some scholars have piled on to these concerns with unwarranted suggestions that there is little to no private or public economic benefit from obtaining a college degree…»

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