At a Crossroads: First Results for the 18-20-year-old Cohort of the Youth in Transition Survey

This report provides a descriptive overview of the first results from the 2000 Youth in Transition Survey (YITS) for 18-20-year-olds in Canada. The YITS, developed through a partnership between Human Resources Development Canada and Statistics Canada, is a longitudinal survey designed to collect a broad range of information on the education and labour market experiences of youth.

This report provides new information on high school dropout rates as of December 1999 and compares high school graduates and dropouts on a number of dimensions, including family background, parental education and occupation, engagement with school, working during high school, peer influence, and educational aspirations. This report also provides a first look at pathways followed by young people once they are no longer in high school, including their participation in post-secondary education, employment status, self-assessed skills levels, and barriers to post-secondary education.