China has implemented a higher education expansion policy since 1999, increasing the number of higher education institutions and increasing the number of expansions. This paper uses panel data and intensity double difference method for 31 provinces in China from 1996 to 2020 for the analysis. It is found that the higher education expansion policy has increased the level of population mobility, especially for the southeastern coastal and economically developed regions. Further mechanism tests show that after the implementation of higher education expansion policy, regions increase investment in education and enrich education resources, but also widen the economic gap between regions, triggering factor endowment and neoclassical growth mechanisms, which affect population mobility. This paper suggests increasing funding for higher education in regions with weaker economic development, slowing down the expansion of higher education in economically developed regions, and strengthening inter-university cooperation.

Xuechun Wang. Higher Education Expansion and Population Mobility. Academic Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences (2023) Vol. 6, Issue 11: 64-72. https://doi.org/10.25236/AJHSS.2023.061110.

[1] Zhang L, He J, Ma RH. How do housing prices affect labor mobility? [J]. Economic Research, 2017, 52(8):155-170.

[2] Wang W.T., Xie J.S., Zhang L. Regional intergenerational mobility preferences of population migration: micro evidence and influence mechanism [J]. Management World, 2019, 35(7):89-103+135.

[3] Fu Wenlin. Structural barriers to population mobility: An empirical analysis based on competition in public spending [J]. World Economy, 2007(12):32-40.

[4] Yao Zizhong, Zhou Sufang. Labor mobility and regional disparities [J]. World Economy, 2003(4):35-44.

[5] Ruan Rongping, Liu Li, Zheng Fengtian. Research on the impact of population mobility on human capital in the output place [J]. China Population Science, 2011(1):83-91+112.

[6] Hou Li. The impact of labor mobility on human capital formation and allocation [J]. Journal of Population, 2003(6):34-39.

[7] Yan Yinguan. A study on the influence of education level of migrant population on cross-regional mobility decision [J]. China Population Science, 2020(1):90-101+128.

[8] Xing Chunbing, Jia Suyan, Li Shi. Regional differences in returns to education and their impact on labor mobility [J]. Economic Research, 2013, 48(11):114-126.

[9] Wu, Wu, Zhao, Quan. College expansion and employment of college graduates [J]. Economic Research, 2010, 45(09):93-108.

[10] Li S, Whalley J, Xing C. China's higher education expansion and unemployment of college graduates [J]. China Economic Review, 2014, 30: 567-582.

[11] Ma Guangrong, Ji Yang, Xu Jianwei. How does university expansion affect the higher education premium? [J]. Management World, 2017(8):52-63

[12] Xu Shu. The impact of labor market discrimination and college expansion - Structural estimation based on a signaling game model [J]. Economics (Quarterly), 2010, 9(4):1519-1538.

[13] Fu Y. The significance of human capital investment on the transfer of surplus rural labor - an analysis based on population mobility and labor market [J]. Population and Economy, 2004(3):55-59.

[14] He Xiaogang, Luo Qi, Chen Jinling. High-quality human capital and industrial structure upgrading in Chinese cities: Evidence from the "college expansion"[J]. Economic Review, 2020(04):3-19.

[15] Filipa Sá. Immigration and House Prices in the UK [J]. The Economic Journal, 2015, 125(587): 1393-1424.

[16] Sjaastad Larry A. The Costs and Returns of Human Migration [J]. Journal of Political Economy, 1962(5)