Utilizing propensity score matching analysis to examine the effects of postsecondary education on the employment outcomes of young adults with mental illnesses

Background: Helping young adults with mental illnesses attend college will increase their chances of being employed with benefits, which can pave the way for a successful career and a middle-class life. Objective: This study sought to examine whether receiving vocational rehabilitation (VR) services of four-year college or university training would lead to improved employment outcomes for young adults with mental illnesses. Methods: Based on the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA)-911 data, a propensity score matching technique was employed to create a comparison group of young adults with mental illnesses who did not receive college or university training and a treatment group of those who did. The quasi-experimental design investigated differences in the employment outcomes between the two groups. Results: Analyses revealed that the group who received college or university training was more likely to be engaged in competitive integrated employment upon exit from the VR program than the matched comparison group who did not receive the training. Participants with mental illnesses who received college or university training and had secured competitive integrated employment at the time of exit not only had significantly higher hourly wages and worked more hours per week than did non-college or university training recipients, they were also more likely to obtain employer-subsidized health insurance benefits. Conclusions: College and university training is positively related to employment outcomes for young people with mental illnesses. Implications for state VR counsellors are discussed.