This study investigates the impact of attending a capital region university on the labor market performance of graduates from non-capital region high schools using data from the Korean Education and Employment Panel II (KEEP II). It addresses three re...
This study investigates the impact of attending a capital region university on the labor market performance of graduates from non-capital region high schools using data from the Korean Education and Employment Panel II (KEEP II). It addresses three research questions: (1) whether attending a capital region university significantly impacts employment status, (2) whether it affects multiple dimensions of first-job labor market performance, and (3) whether it influences the timing of first employment. Logistic regression, propensity score matching, and a discrete-time hazard model were used. The results show no significant effects on employment, wages, working hours, job and task satisfaction, or major-job match. However, the hazard model shows an initial advantage in early employment for entrants to capital region universities, which diminishes over time, with entrants to non-capital region universities eventually surpassing them in the cumulative probability of employment. These findings suggest limited short-term labor market impact of attending a capital region university, with implications for reducing disparities between capital and non-capital region universities.