From high school to what’s next: Education and work pathways in Atlantic Canada
Author: DataNB
Posted on Jul 14, 2026
Category: DataNB
Across the Atlantic provinces, many high school graduates continue to follow familiar routes as they move from school into further education and early work. DataNB first examined these pathways in a 2024 report that tracked graduates up to the 2020 cohort in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia. The latest update builds on that foundation, adding newly available data for Prince Edward Island and extending the analysis to include the 2021 graduating class.
Many of the patterns highlighted in the earlier DataNB report continue to hold in this expanded update. When graduates choose to pursue further education, most enrol in colleges and universities close to home, and many remain in their province after completing their studies. Early employment also tends to be local: the majority of graduates who are working one year after finishing high school or post-secondary programs report employment in their home province. Earnings rise over time across all education levels, with higher mean incomes among those who complete college or university.
Even with some variation from province to province, a consistent theme emerges: graduates across Atlantic Canada tend to stay connected to home. Many study locally, many work locally, and many who leave for post-secondary programs return soon after completing them. These early choices keep graduates closely tied to their communities and contribute to local economies in the first years after graduation.