Setting up Shop: Self-Employment Among Canadian College and University Graduates

This article reports the results of an empirical analysis of self-employment among recent college and university graduates using the National Graduates Survey databases. It finds that self-employment rates 2 years after graduation, calculated by year of graduation and level of education, ranged from 6.5% to 7.8% for men, and from 3.2% to 5.2% for women. Five years after graduation, the rates had increased, ranging from 9.9% to 11.1% of men, and from 5.3% to 6.7% for women. The evidence regarding employment rates, job satisfaction, the job-education skill match and earnings (the latter including the estimation of both cross-sectional and fixed effects models) suggests that self-employment is generally associated with enhanced labor market outcomes - that is, the results of "pull" factors. Policy implications are discussed.