Where does information about education programs in the School to work transition tool come from?

A field of study refers to an area of learning or training a student can study at a post-secondary institution. With the School to work transition tool you can search either a general field of study or a more specific education program to get information on employment and earnings outcomes of graduates. The information comes from the Census 2016 (Statistics Canada) and is available for 75 postsecondary fields of study by level, that is:

• College diploma/certificate
• Bachelor's degree
• Master's degree
• Registered apprenticeship trade

The National Graduates Survey

The National Graduates Survey (Statistics Canada), which reports on things like graduates' satisfaction, provides information on 13 broadly defined fields. These 13 fields group together similar programs. For example, if you select "Electrical Engineering", the National Graduates Survey results on student satisfaction will be shown for the broader category "Architecture and Engineering" which includes electrical engineering and other fields of engineering. 

Data from the survey include information about graduates' views on the match between their current job and their completed postsecondary field of study. Students were asked if their jobs were closely related, somewhat related or not related at all. Although the category "don't know" appears in the list of possible responses, "don't know" responses were not included in the tool. The National Graduates Survey was used in the tool to provide information about the opinions of college and university graduates, specifically:

• Are graduates in jobs related to their field of study?
• Would graduates choose the same field of study again?
• Did graduates decide to pursue further postsecondary studies?

Important: Data may not be available for certain fields of study where there were not enough data to provide reliable estimates. Statistics Canada suppresses these estimates to ensure the quality of the data and/or anonymity of survey respondents.

National Apprenticeship Survey

The National Apprenticeship Survey (Statistics Canada) was used in the tool to provide information about the opinions of apprenticeship/trades graduates, specifically:

• Are graduates satisfied with their job earnings?
• Did graduates pursue additional training or education?
• Are graduate satisfied with job security?

Apprentices were asked if they were very satisfied, satisfied or dissatisfied with their earnings and job security. Due to the low numbers of respondents for some occupations, the outcomes of the category "very dissatisfied" and "dissatisfied" were merged. The category "don't know" also appears in the list of possible responses but was not included in the tool.

• What career paths are best suited to my personality and skills?
• Which education program is right for me?
• Where does the data presented in the School to work transition tool come from?
• What is the School to work transition tool and how can I use it?
• Where does information about education programs in the School to work transition tool come from?
• How can I find information about employment outcomes and earnings of recent graduates in my education program?