The article analyses the wage expectations for academic and vocational qualifications in Switzerland. The results show that reference points play an important role in the formation of these wage expectations, as their distributions vary greatly according to gender, age, socio-economic status, region of residence and migration background. There are also asymmetries with regard to wage expectations for people with an academic or professional background. These heterogeneities are of great importance for education policy, as the analyses show that wage expectations are linked to preferences for certain educational paths for one's own (hypothetical) child. If educational decisions are ill-informed, this may lead to educational mismatches and associated detrimental effects in later life.
Maria A. Cattaneo (2024). What wages do people expect for vocational and academic education backgrounds in Switzerland?Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics 160(1).