The Market Worth of Immigrants' Educational Credentials

Despite academic and policy interests on immigrants' credentials, their precise market worth is unclear. This study uses the 1996 Canadian Census microdata to compare the earnings for four groups: native-born Canadian degree-holders; immigrant Canadian degree-holders; immigrant mixed education degree-holders; and immigrant foreign degree-holders. The findings indicate that immigrants' credentials carry a penalty compared to those of native-born Canadians, and that a foreign degree affects visible-minority immigrants, women and men, more adversely than white Canadians; as well, credential holders' gender and race are also being evaluated. Policies to recognize foreign credentials will bridge some income disparities, but inequality premised upon gender and race will likely remain.