The Accidental Equalizer

"Though equality is one of the most dearly cherished and proudly proclaimed ideals of our nation, you don't have to look far to see that we not only fall short of it, inequality often grows from one generation to the next. But what if I were to tell you that an egalitarian system has been hiding in plain sight? In this project, Duke sociologist Jessi Streib puts forward a new and bold conclusion: a college degree is the greatest economic equalizer because graduates enter a job market in which success is based on luck. Streib shows that among students who meet a low bar of employability-in particular business majors at a non-elite public university-people from different class backgrounds receive equal pay because luck determines who earns how much. So how do employers for these middle-class jobs manage to short-circuit our unequal system? They do it above all through a strategic use of ignorance: the sector and jobs Streib studied offer very little information to applicants. For instance, some employers pay significantly better than others, but job applicants have no way of knowing which ones offer higher salaries. What's more, evaluation criteria for jobs are not advertised and are incredibly variable. While some hiring managers prefer bubbly, chatty candidates, some prefer candidates who are circumspect and serious. Even seemingly objective criteria didn't get candidates ahead: Streib found that mid-tier employers focused on who could do the job, not on who completed the most internships or where they developed their skills. Even class background seemed to have little influence over a candidate's likelihood of getting a job-hiring managers didn't care whether a candidate's leisure activities were expensive or free. The advantages that applicants access once they're hired extend beyond their salaries: they receive equal access to mentoring and professional growth opportunities, and these advantages carry through into subsequent jobs. Streib's deep dive into the luckocracy uncovers its many faults and advantages, all while suggesting how we can create better and fairer opportunities for everyone"--