New IZA DPs -- Academia & Economics
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IZA Publications
Jan 30, 2026, 8:12:03 AMJan 30
to it...@umich.edu
Dear Italo Gutierrez,
These new IZA Discussion Papers are now available online.
DP 18336 - Hu/Winters:
Growing from the STEM? OPT Classification and International Students in Economics
DP 18347 - Dreier/Göthner/Lawson:
Matching or Clashing: Exploring Scientists’ Exit from Academia Through Intentions and Job Offers
DP 18348 - Singhal/Sierminska:
Who Studies What? Country of Origin, Gender, and Field Specialization Among Economics PhDs
Please find the abstracts and download links below.
IZA DP No. 18336
Shengrong Hu, John V. Winters:
Growing from the STEM? OPT Classification and International Students in Economics
Abstract:
The Optional Practical Training (OPT) program now provides up to 36 months of employment authorization for foreign students completing college degrees in the U.S. in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. Econometrics and Quantitative Economics (EQE) was added as a STEM field in 2012, triggering an explosion of EQE programs and degrees conferred, but some of this growth involved displacement from other economics programs. We document the growth of EQE and examine effects of OPT and EQE program creation on overall economics bachelor’s degrees conferred to international students. We find positive effects on international economics degrees with effects that appear larger at public colleges and universities than private ones. We also examine effects on domestic students and find more mixed results. Our results suggest that EQE program creation on average benefits foreign students and higher education institutions.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18336.pdf
IZA DP No. 18347
Lukas Dreier, Maximilian Göthner, Cornelia Lawson:
Matching or Clashing: Exploring Scientists’ Exit from Academia Through Intentions and Job Offers
Abstract:
Academically trained scientists play a pivotal role in innovation by advancing the knowledge frontier across industries, prompting firms to increasingly engage in proactive recruitment. This paper investigates academic scientists’ career transitions into industry by jointly examining two often separately studied mechanisms: scientists’ intentions to leave academia (the supply side) and firms’ recruitment efforts (the demand side). We conceptualize intersectoral mobility as the outcome of how these two mechanisms align or diverge. Using survey data from 469 scientists in Germany linked to follow-up information on their actual career outcomes more than three years later, our results show that exit intentions are the predominant predictor of subsequent transitions into industry jobs. Job offers reinforce the impact of existing exit intentions. By contrast, scientists who receive a job offer but do not intend to leave academia are the least likely to transition to private-sector employment. Implications for firms’ active recruiting strategies and for universities seeking to retain scientific staff are discussed.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18347.pdf
IZA DP No. 18348
Karan Singhal, Eva Sierminska:
Who Studies What? Country of Origin, Gender, and Field Specialization Among Economics PhDs
Abstract:
We study the determinants of field specialization among U.S. economics PhD students, focusing on individual, institutional, and contextual factors shaping early research careers. Using data on over 8,000 dissertations from 2009–2018, we classify each dissertation into one of ten fields using author-reported JEL codes and topic modeling of abstracts. We link dissertations to student gender, program characteristics, and country of origin inferred from surnames and matched to country-level indicators. We find substantial variation in field choice by region of origin. Gender gaps in specialization are not uniform but vary in size and direction across regions, indicating that gender and origin interact in shaping choices. Results are robust to alternative classification methods and to using genetic distance as a continuous measure of origin. Our findings highlight how early specialization in economics reflects inherited context and institutional exposure, with implications for res earch agendas, job market outcomes, and diversity across subfields.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18348.pdf
Please click here to change your subscription status.
If you have trouble downloading the papers, or for any other questions regarding the IZA Discussion Paper Series, contact public...@iza.org.
These new IZA Discussion Papers are now available online.
DP 18336 - Hu/Winters:
Growing from the STEM? OPT Classification and International Students in Economics
DP 18347 - Dreier/Göthner/Lawson:
Matching or Clashing: Exploring Scientists’ Exit from Academia Through Intentions and Job Offers
DP 18348 - Singhal/Sierminska:
Who Studies What? Country of Origin, Gender, and Field Specialization Among Economics PhDs
Please find the abstracts and download links below.
IZA DP No. 18336
Shengrong Hu, John V. Winters:
Growing from the STEM? OPT Classification and International Students in Economics
Abstract:
The Optional Practical Training (OPT) program now provides up to 36 months of employment authorization for foreign students completing college degrees in the U.S. in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. Econometrics and Quantitative Economics (EQE) was added as a STEM field in 2012, triggering an explosion of EQE programs and degrees conferred, but some of this growth involved displacement from other economics programs. We document the growth of EQE and examine effects of OPT and EQE program creation on overall economics bachelor’s degrees conferred to international students. We find positive effects on international economics degrees with effects that appear larger at public colleges and universities than private ones. We also examine effects on domestic students and find more mixed results. Our results suggest that EQE program creation on average benefits foreign students and higher education institutions.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18336.pdf
IZA DP No. 18347
Lukas Dreier, Maximilian Göthner, Cornelia Lawson:
Matching or Clashing: Exploring Scientists’ Exit from Academia Through Intentions and Job Offers
Abstract:
Academically trained scientists play a pivotal role in innovation by advancing the knowledge frontier across industries, prompting firms to increasingly engage in proactive recruitment. This paper investigates academic scientists’ career transitions into industry by jointly examining two often separately studied mechanisms: scientists’ intentions to leave academia (the supply side) and firms’ recruitment efforts (the demand side). We conceptualize intersectoral mobility as the outcome of how these two mechanisms align or diverge. Using survey data from 469 scientists in Germany linked to follow-up information on their actual career outcomes more than three years later, our results show that exit intentions are the predominant predictor of subsequent transitions into industry jobs. Job offers reinforce the impact of existing exit intentions. By contrast, scientists who receive a job offer but do not intend to leave academia are the least likely to transition to private-sector employment. Implications for firms’ active recruiting strategies and for universities seeking to retain scientific staff are discussed.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18347.pdf
IZA DP No. 18348
Karan Singhal, Eva Sierminska:
Who Studies What? Country of Origin, Gender, and Field Specialization Among Economics PhDs
Abstract:
We study the determinants of field specialization among U.S. economics PhD students, focusing on individual, institutional, and contextual factors shaping early research careers. Using data on over 8,000 dissertations from 2009–2018, we classify each dissertation into one of ten fields using author-reported JEL codes and topic modeling of abstracts. We link dissertations to student gender, program characteristics, and country of origin inferred from surnames and matched to country-level indicators. We find substantial variation in field choice by region of origin. Gender gaps in specialization are not uniform but vary in size and direction across regions, indicating that gender and origin interact in shaping choices. Results are robust to alternative classification methods and to using genetic distance as a continuous measure of origin. Our findings highlight how early specialization in economics reflects inherited context and institutional exposure, with implications for res earch agendas, job market outcomes, and diversity across subfields.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18348.pdf
Please click here to change your subscription status.
If you have trouble downloading the papers, or for any other questions regarding the IZA Discussion Paper Series, contact public...@iza.org.
IZA Publications
Jan 30, 2026, 8:14:07 AMJan 30
to italo...@gmail.com
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