Gender

Male and female graduates differed in a variety of ways. In terms of prior full-time work experience, excluding summer jobs, women at all levels in university were more likely than men to have worked for more than 5 years. In contrast, a higher proportion of male trade or vocational school graduates had worked more than 5 years. Little difference was observed between men and women college graduates.

The selection of field of study also revealed important gender differences. Women tended to dominate in disciplines such as the social sciences, health fields (such as nursing), education, arts, and humanities except at the doctorate level. At this level a reversal occurred, i.e., all formerly female dominated fields were male dominated. Despite the increasing presence of women in the more applied fields such as commerce, engineering and applied sciences, and mathematics and physical sciences, they continue to be underrepresented.

Labour market outcomes were different for male and female graduates: a higher proportion of men worked full-time while proportionally twice as many women worked part-time (Table 4) This situation was particularly pronounced among trade or vocational school graduates.

Personal and family reasons were important factors for women, but not for men, in their choice of part-time work, indicating a continuation of the asymmetrical division of responsibility for family and child care within the household. Given that part-time work is not only less lucrative than full-time employment, but also less highly valued, employers may interpret acceptance of part-time work as indicative of a lesser commitment to a career and regard the experience as less legitimate. Hence, women may be paying a long-term price for this decision made so early in their careers.

Table 4. Gender differences in employment situation at various levels of education