Author: Herbert Emery, Ted McDonald, Samuel Robert Cookson, Sophia Afolabi, Tashi Yangzom Dorji
Year: 2026
Category:
Economy and Labour
Many people in New Brunswick complete post-secondary programs with the expectation that their education will help them find stable work and higher earnings. For the province, these graduates are an important part of the labour force and understanding how their educational pathways relate to their labour market participation can provide valuable insights to inform workforce planning.
This study uses data from the Postsecondary Student Information System (PSIS) and the 2016 Canadian Census to examine the distribution of college and university graduates across fields and levels of study and labour market outcomes. It considers what they studied, the kinds of occupations they entered, and how their earnings compare with those of high school graduates.
The results show that graduates’ outcomes largely depend on what they studied and the level of education they completed. Earnings also differed widely across fields, with bachelor’s graduates generally earning more than high school or college graduates.
