Does Higher Education Expansion Reduce Credentialism and Gender Discrimination in Education?

This paper investigates the effects of higher education expansion on the phenomena of credentialism and gender discrimination in education. Using the survey data of Family Income and Expenditure by DGBAS, Taiwan from 1980 to 2009, we examine the time path of the effect of higher education expansion on household expenditures for children's education in Taiwan for five sub-periods: 1980-1990, 1991-1995, 1996-2000, 2001-2005, and 2006-2009. We show that, surprisingly, although the higher education expansion during the 1990s lowers the requirement of college entrance, credentialism seems to continue to prevail in the Taiwanese society. However, the higher education expansion does change parents' attitude on female children's education and increase the possibility for female children to attain higher education.