Calculating median annual earnings revealed a gender wage gap. Women working full-time had lower incomes than men, regardless of the type of degree, diploma, or certificate obtained. Although this finding is not without precedent, it is significant that it occurs so early in the careers of men and women. However, a more in-depth analysis is required to explain the causes of the wage gap. One important factor is the field of study. However, the pattern remains intact; with the same type of qualification and in the same field of study, men continue to report higher earnings than women.

A comparison of the earnings of male and female graduates with previous full-time work experience duplicated the above pattern: with the same amount of prior work experience, men's median earnings were greater than women's. For example, with 5 or more years of full-time work experience, men earned $24,000 (median) and women earned $18,000 -- a difference of $6,000.

Graduates with disabilities

The proportion of graduates reporting a disability varied by type of program: university (2%), college (3%), and trade or vocational school (5%). Regardless of program, these graduates were much less likely to be working full-time, more likely to be unemployed or not in the labour force, but about equally likely to be working part-time by the end of the transition period as non-disabled graduates. Differences between the two groups were most pronounced at the trade or vocational level. Among graduates of these schools who were not in the labour force, over 60% cited disability or illness as the reason. Only 37% of university graduates not in the labour force listed this as a reason for nonparticipation.

The relation between income and disability was confounded by type of qualification. At the trade or vocational level, graduates with disabilities who had full-time jobs reported median annual incomes equal to those of non-disabled graduates. College-level graduates with disabilities earned $2,000 less, bachelors $3,000 less, and masters $2,000 less. However, doctoral graduates with disabilities reported earnings of $6,000 more than their non-disabled counterparts. The really large earning gap occurred between men and women in both the disabled and non-disabled groups: with the exception of those with a master's degree, women with disabilities earned less than men with disabilities.