In this project, we will use new surveys and linked administrative data to investigate the factors that influence family formation in the ALSPAC cohort. Education is strongly associated with fertility, and after Mills et al fertility GWAS it's becoming increasingly apparent that this is likely to be causal. We only have limited evidence about why there are fertility differences by education. E.g. it could just be preferences, i.e. more education leads people to want fewer children, it could be because those with more education typically have less time after they complete education to start a family, or it could be because education makes people likely to find a partner. On the latter point, there is some evidence that men are reluctant to choose a partner who is more educated than they are. This may make it harder for educated women to find a partner. These questions would be relatively straight forwards to address using a survey of the ALSPAC young people, and they’re coming up to the age of peak fertility so it seems a natural time to survey them about it.