Children of immigrants in Canada – More likely to complete postsecondary studies

Based on integrated data from the 2006 and 2016 censuses, this study examines the education and labour market outcomes of a cohort of children with an immigrant background who were aged 13 to 17 in 2006. In this study, the outcomes of children of immigrant parents from different regions are compared with those of children of Canadian-born parents.

• The children of immigrants were generally more likely than their counterparts from the third generation or higher to complete postsecondary studies. For example, among children of immigrants aged 13 to 17 in 2006, 43% had earned a university degree in 2016, compared with 29% of their counterparts from the third generation or higher.
• The children of Asian immigrants were much more likely to have a high level of education. For example, in 2016, the children of immigrants from East Asia were two and a half times more likely than their counterparts from the third generation or higher to hold a university degree.
• In general, the children of parents with lower levels of education also had a lower level of education. However, parents’ education level had less of an impact on the education levels of children with an immigrant background than it did on those of children with Canadian-born parents.
• Among male university graduates aged 30 to 34 working full-time full-year, those born to immigrant parents earned less than their counterparts from the third generation or higher, even after accounting for other factors.
• Among female university graduates aged 30 to 34 working full-time full-year, there was no significant wage gap between those with an immigrant background and those from the third generation or higher, once other factors were accounted for.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at Educational and labour market outcomes of children with an immigrant background by region of origin