Bryan Caplan on College, Signaling and Human Capital

EconTalk

• Episode: Bryan Caplan on College, Signaling and Human Capital
• Website: EconTalk
• Feed URL: http://files.libertyfund.org/econtalk/EconTalk.xml
• Duration: 01:02:59
• Published: 2014-04-07 08:30

Bryan Caplan of George Mason University and blogger at EconLog talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the value of a college education. Caplan argues that the extra amount that college graduates earn relative to high school graduates is misleading as a guide for attending college--it ignores the fact that a sizable number of students don't graduate and never earn that extra money. Caplan argues that the monetary benefits of a college education have a large signaling component rather than representing the value of the knowledge that's learned. Caplan closes by arguing that the subsidies to education should be reduced rather than increased.