Education, Work, and Childbearing after Age 30

Throughout much of the developed world, increasing numbers of women are delaying their entry into motherhood. In this study we examine the determinants of first-births among women who were childless at aged 30 and older, and test a number of hypotheses based upon three perspectives that may explain this phenomenon. While we are concerned primarily with the effects of education and employment, we also include a number of other explanatory variables that may have impact upon delayed childbearing. Our results suggest that both school enrolment and employment tend to reduce the odds of a woman becoming a mother, while level of education increases the likelihood. We also find a significant interaction effect between education and employment, and speculate that how a woman utilizes her education determines how employment affects her chances of becoming a mother.