How much does parental education explain educational attainment of males and females in Australia?

Parental education is one of the main determinants of educational attainment. In research it is often measured using the education level of one parent, usually the father’s. This research investigates how well father’s education explains the variation in educational attainment for males and females, and compares this to models using mother’s education and those using both parents’ education. The analysis uses data from 1997 Negotiating the Life Course Survey, looking at determinants of education at age 25. A multinomial logistic regression model was fitted to a dependent variable measuring level of education in three categories. The results showed that both parents’ education is important, for males and females. However, the influence of mother’s and father’s education is different for males and females, supporting the need to include the education levels of both parents into models of educational attainment, and also to allow for different effects for males and females.