Returns of Higher University Education in the Huánuco Region, Peru

Abstract

There is abundant theoretical and empirical literature that indicates that education plays a preponderant role in the economic and social development of a nation. Along these lines, many academics maintain that education helps to enhance the skills and abilities of individuals, resulting in more productive individuals in the workplace. The objective of the study was to estimate the returns of university higher education in the Huánuco region, Peru for the year 2014. The theoretical framework was Mincer's income model, which holds that a person's salary income depends on the years of study and work experience that he or she has, and based on this, the returns on education were estimated. Regarding the methodology, this study belongs to the quantitative approach, is applied, has an explanatory level and a non-experimental cross-sectional design. In particular, data from the 2014 National Survey of University Graduates and Universities implemented by the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics of Peru were used to estimate an econometric model called the Mincerian income equation. The results of the study show that there is a positive relationship between salary income, years of education and work experience of university professionals. From the estimation of the econometric model, it is found that an additional year of education tends to increase wage income by 13%, this value constitutes the return of university higher education in the Huánuco region.