Grades and labour market earnings in Canada: new evidence from the 2018 National Graduates Survey

This study uses the 2018 National Graduates Survey (NGS) to examine how postsecondary education grades are related to the labour market earnings of workers, and the potential moderating effects of work experience during school, work placements related to the field of study, and training acquired since graduation. Using simple regression models, we find non-causal evidence that the overall grade point average is positively related to earnings. This suggests that higher grades may translate into higher labour market earnings independently of other employment and training effects, indicating that the strength of the grade point average signal to employers is not weakened.