nep-edu New Economics Papers
on Education
Issue of 2023‒12‒11
seven papers chosen by
Nádia Simões, Instituto Universitário de Lisboa 


  1. Do management practices matter in further education? By Sandra McNally; Luis Schmidt; Anna Valero
  2. Estimates of Earnings Returns by Field of Study for For-Profit Schools and Community Colleges By Christopher Jepsen; Peter Mueser; Kenneth Troske; Kyung-Seong Jeon
  3. Reaching for gold! The impact of a positive reputation shock on career choice By Daniel Goller; Stefan C. Wolter
  4. Does Dual Vocational Education and Training Pay Off? By Samuel Bentolila; Antonio Cabrales; Marcel Jansen
  5. Late Bloomers: The Aggregate Implications of Getting Education Later in Life By Zsófia L. Bárány; Moshe Buchinsky; Pauline Corblet
  6. On The Nonlinearity of the Finance and Growth Relation: the Role of Human Capital By Alberto Bucci; Boubacar Diallo; Simone Marsiglio
  7. Trade shocks and social mobility: The intergenerational effect of import competition in Brazil By César, Andrés; Ciaschi, Matías; Falcone, Guillermo; Neidhöfer, Guido

  1. By: Sandra McNally; Luis Schmidt; Anna Valero
    Abstract: Further Education colleges are a key way in which 16-19 year olds acquire skills in the UK (much like US Community Colleges), especially those from low income backgrounds. Yet, little is known about what could improve performance in these institutions. We design and conduct the world's first management practices survey in these colleges (based on the World Management Survey) and match this to administrative longitudinal data on over 40, 000 students. Value added regressions with rich controls suggest that structured management matters for educational outcomes (e.g. upper secondary qualifications), especially for students from low-income backgrounds. In a hypothetical scenario where a learner is moved from a college at the 10th percentile of management practices to the 90th, this would be associated with 8% higher probability of achieving a good high school qualification, which is nearly half of the educational gap between those from poor and non-poor backgrounds. Hence, improving management practices may be an important channel for reducing inequalities.
    Keywords: management practices, further education
    Date: 2022–03–08
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:poidwp:026&r=edu
  2. By: Christopher Jepsen; Peter Mueser; Kenneth Troske; Kyung-Seong Jeon
    Abstract: This paper estimates labor-market returns for students pursuing certificates or associate’s degrees in eight broad fields of study at community colleges and for-profit institutions. The data contain 400, 000 students beginning their studies between 2005 and 2012 in one state. We estimate two-step models to address recent econometric concerns with two-way fixed effects models. Our analyses show important differences in return by field, with similar patterns for for-profit schools and community colleges. Apart from those studying in health fields, returns are generally greater for those attending for-profit schools than those attending community colleges. Higher estimated overall returns for for-profit schools are not primarily due to differences in areas of study.
    Keywords: postsecondary education, labor-market returns, for-profit schools
    JEL: J24 I26
    Date: 2023
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_10754&r=edu
  3. By: Daniel Goller; Stefan C. Wolter
    Abstract: We analyze the causal influence a positive reputation shock for a particular occupation may have on career choice. The measure of the positive reputation shock is the unpredictable event that a young adult from one's own country wins a (gold) medal in a particular occupation at the World Skills - the world championship of vocational skills. In an occupation with a gold medal won, searches for apprenticeship vacancies increase significantly by around 7 percent compared to occupations that do not win a competition. In occupations where only a silver or bronze medal is awarded, the effect is also positive and statistically significant, but less pronounced. More importantly, the increase in searches for apprenticeship vacancies in the current year has also led to around 2.5 percent more contracts being signed in the winning occupation, and there are indications that these apprenticeships have a better match between employers and employees (trainees).
    Keywords: role models, reputation shock, career choice, labor supply, apprenticeship
    JEL: I21 J22 J24
    Date: 2023–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iso:educat:0208&r=edu
  4. By: Samuel Bentolila; Antonio Cabrales; Marcel Jansen
    Abstract: This paper analyzes the causal impact of dual vocational education and training (VET) on the labor market insertion of youth. Using matched education and social security records, we estimate the causal impact of a major reform that introduced a new dual track, which combines firm- and school-based training, on the labor market outcomes of the first three dual VET cohorts in the Spanish region of Madrid. The control group is composed of individuals who graduated in the same fields and years in school-based VET. Selection into dual VET is dealt with using a distance-based instrumental variable. Dual VET is found to generate sizable improvements in employment and earnings, but no significant impact on job quality. The results are not driven by pre-reform differences in the quality of the schools that adopted dual VET and the higher retention rate of dual VET graduates only partly explains the dual premium.
    Keywords: dual vocational education and training, school-to-work transition, Spain
    JEL: D92 G33 J23
    Date: 2023
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_10762&r=edu
  5. By: Zsófia L. Bárány; Moshe Buchinsky; Pauline Corblet
    Abstract: It is generally agreed upon that most individuals who acquire a college degree do so in their early 20s. Despite this consensus, we show that in the US from the 1930 birth cohort onwards a large fraction – around 20% – of college graduates obtained their degree after age 30. We explore the implications of this phenomenon. First, we show that these so-called late bloomers have significantly contributed to the narrowing of gender and racial gaps in the college share, despite the general widening of the racial gap. Second, late bloomers are responsible for more than half of the increase in the aggregate college share from 1960 onwards. Finally, we show that the returns to having a college degree vary depending on the age at graduation. Ignoring the existence of late bloomers therefore leads to a significant underestimation of the returns to college education for those finishing college in their early 20s.
    JEL: I20 I26 J30
    Date: 2023–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:31874&r=edu
  6. By: Alberto Bucci (ICEA International Center for Economic Analysis, Waterloo Ontario); Boubacar Diallo (Central Bank of Luxembourg and Qatar University); Simone Marsiglio (University of Pisa)
    Abstract: We analyze the role that human capital plays in driving the non-monotonic relation between economic growth and financial development. At this aim we build a theoretical model of endogenous growth in which the nature of the growth and finance nexus is nonlinear and actually depends on the educational level, which ultimately determines the way through which financial development affects both the productivity and the depreciation of human capital. The dependence of the non-monotonic (i.e., bell-shaped) growth and finance nexus on human capital suggests that there may exist a threshold education level beyond which the sign of the relation changes. We econometrically test such a theoretical prediction in a rich and large data set comprising a cross-section of 133 countries over the period 1970-2011. We rely on the GMM instrumental variable approach to address endogeneity issues, and we consider a large number of control variables. After performing a number of robustness checks, all our results are consistent with the view that human capital helps to explain the nonlinear relationship between finance and growth. In particular, we find support for our theoretical model’s conclusion that financial development may be harmful to economic growth in countries that already have high levels of education, while it may be beneficial in those countries in which human capital is less abundant.
    Keywords: Economic Growth, Financial Development, Human Capital
    JEL: G00 G10 O40 O41
    Date: 2023–11–20
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rtv:ceisrp:567&r=edu
  7. By: César, Andrés; Ciaschi, Matías; Falcone, Guillermo; Neidhöfer, Guido
    Abstract: This paper investigates whether the impact of trade shocks on employment and wages persists across generations. Using survey data with retrospective information on parental employment, we study the causal effect of increased Chinese import competition in Brazilian industries on individuals with differently exposed fathers. Results show that several years after the shock, children of more exposed fathers have lower education and earnings, lower chances of formal jobs, and are more likely to rely on social assistance. These effects are substantially stronger for children from disadvantaged background, indicating that the shock had a negative impact on intergenerational mobility.
    Keywords: Import competition, Education, Social Mobility, Incomes, Brazil
    JEL: I24 J62 F14 F16 J23
    Date: 2023
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:zewdip:279786&r=edu

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