Is taking a gap year between high school and postsecondary education beneficial or detrimental in the long term?

Following high school graduation, some students decide to delay their postsecondary education (PSE). This raises the issue of the long-term implications of taking a gap year. The main question asked in this study is “Among high school graduates who eventually registered for postsecondary studies, how do the long-term labour market outcomes compare between those who took a gap year (i.e. attended PSE between 12 and 15 months after high school graduation) and those who followed a more linear path into PSE (i.e. attended PSE within three months of high school graduation)?” The analysis is based on data from the Youth in Transition Survey, Cohort A (YITS-A) linked to the T1 Family File (T1FF) and takes into account differences in a very rich set of characteristics including academic performance, cognitive and non-cognitive ability, parental characteristics (presence, education, aspirations, education savings behaviour), peers, and high school fixed effects.