New IZA DPs -- Education
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IZA Publications
Aug 31, 2025, 1:29:28 PMAug 31
to it...@umich.edu
Dear Italo Gutierrez,
These new IZA Discussion Papers are now available online.
DP 18037 - DeMalach/Schlosser:
Short- and Long-Term Effects of Universal Preschool: Evidence from the Arab Population in Israel
DP 18053 - Argan/Gary-Bobo/Goussé:
Is There a Devaluation of Degrees? Unobserved Heterogeneity in Returns to Education and Early Experience
DP 18067 - Seah/Pan/Tan:
Depth or Diversity? Examining the Longer Run Impacts of College Curriculum Breadth
DP 18071 - El Fatmaoui/Ransom:
Do Elite Universities Pick Sports to Pick Students? Athletic Admissions and SES Targeting
DP 18077 - Patrinos/Psacharopoulos:
Causal Returns to Education
DP 18080 - Rowland/Jahanshahi/McVicar/Miller:
The Educational Achievement Penalty from School Exclusion
Please find the abstracts and download links below.
You might also be interested in this IZA World of Labor content:
Is the return to education the same for everybody?
IZA DP No. 18037
Elad DeMalach, Analia Schlosser:
Short- and Long-Term Effects of Universal Preschool: Evidence from the Arab Population in Israel
Abstract:
We estimate the causal impacts of universal preschool by leveraging a quasi-experimental design based on Israel’s implementation of free public preschool for children ages 3 and 4 beginning in September 1999. We focus on the Arab population, who were the main beneficiaries of the first phase of the Law’s implementation. Using a difference-in-differences research design, we find that universal preschool enhanced individuals’ academic performance from elementary school through high school, improved the learning environment, and increased postsecondary enrollment. Additional benefits include reduced juvenile delinquency among males and decreased early marriage among females.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18037.pdf
IZA DP No. 18053
Damiano Argan, Robert J. Gary-Bobo, Marion Goussé:
Is There a Devaluation of Degrees? Unobserved Heterogeneity in Returns to Education and Early Experience
Abstract:
We study how the returns to higher education evolved in France during a period of educational expansion. We study possible changes in the mix of unobservable characteristics of the graduate population. Using a finite mixture model with latent types, we estimate type-specific log-wage, experience accumulation, and education-choice equations. We find that expected real wages declined for higher-education degrees, and that this result is not driven by adverse selection. Returns to education and experience decreased for certain unobserved types but increased for others. The composition of types among Master’s graduates suggests improved student selection over time, despite rising graduate numbers.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18053.pdf
IZA DP No. 18067
Kelvin Seah, Jessica Pan, Poh Lin Tan:
Depth or Diversity? Examining the Longer Run Impacts of College Curriculum Breadth
Abstract:
Existing research suggests that broad versus specialized university curricula does not significantly lead to differences in earnings and unemployment outcomes shortly after graduation. This paper builds on previous work by examining the impact of curriculum breadth on medium-term labor market outcomes, up to six years after students have graduated. Exploiting a unique episode in the history of the National University of Singapore, in which a university-wide revision in graduation requirements in 2007 prompted students in a large faculty to unexpectedly read a more specialized curriculum, we find, using a difference-in-differences approach, that while taking a more specialized curriculum does not initially affect labor earnings shortly after graduation, its effect becomes negative and increases with work experience. We find no evidence that lower earnings are due to a lower propensity to switch jobs, suggesting weaker within-firm earnings trajectories among more specialized gr aduates.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18067.pdf
IZA DP No. 18071
Ahmed El Fatmaoui, Tyler Ransom:
Do Elite Universities Pick Sports to Pick Students? Athletic Admissions and SES Targeting
Abstract:
This study investigates the extent to which U.S. universities strategically use athletic admissions to shape the socioeconomic status (SES) of their student bodies. Using a novel dataset linking NCAA roster data to neighborhood characteristics, we document substantial SES segregation across sports and universities. More selective institutions, particularly elite private universities, allocate up to 30% of enrollment to athletes who typically come from higher-SES backgrounds than their non-athlete peers. However, contrary to popular belief, we find that elite institutions enroll similarly wealthy athletes across all sports. Estimates of our structural model of sports bundle choice reveal that this SES homogeneity across sports limits universities' ability to systematically choose sports offerings to target higher-SES students. Counterfactual analyses demonstrate that athletic enrollment caps would create additional seats for non-athletes but require complementary policies to m eaningfully impact socioeconomic mobility.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18071.pdf
IZA DP No. 18077
Harry Anthony Patrinos, George Psacharopoulos:
Causal Returns to Education
Abstract:
Using 182 estimates from 140 studies in 55 countries, this paper compares ordinary least squares (OLS) and instrumental variables (IV) estimates of the private returns to schooling. IV returns average 9.7 percent—38 percent higher than OLS—and exceed OLS in nearly 80 percent of cases, with the largest gaps in developing countries. These patterns align with theories of diminishing marginal returns, scarcity rents, and attenuation from measurement error. While IV methods mitigate bias, instrument validity and external validity concerns persist. Evidence consistently shows substantial causal returns, particularly for disadvantaged populations, underscoring the need for rigorous research.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18077.pdf
IZA DP No. 18080
Neil Rowland, Babak Jahanshahi, Duncan McVicar, Corina Miller:
The Educational Achievement Penalty from School Exclusion
Abstract:
Exclusion is a disciplinary practice used by headteachers which removes misbehaving pupils from the classroom or from the school, either temporarily or permanently. Its growing use has led to increased concern about potential negative effects on excluded pupils, including on their educational achievement. This paper estimates the effect of being excluded on subject test scores and teacher assessment outcomes using detailed administrative data on an entire cohort of pupils in the English state school system. To mitigate selection bias, we use a novel empirical approach for this literature which compares excluded pupils with pupils who experienced exclusion after outcomes were measured but not before. We find that excluded pupils perform worse in subsequent tests and teacher assessments, with 0.03-0.07 standard deviation lower standardised test scores and 2.5-3.6 percentage point higher probability of not reaching the expected level in teacher assessments. We assess the extent to which these estimated associations might reflect a negative causal impact of exclusion.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18080.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 18037 - DeMalach/Schlosser:
Short- and Long-Term Effects of Universal Preschool: Evidence from the Arab Population in Israel
DP 18053 - Argan/Gary-Bobo/Goussé:
Is There a Devaluation of Degrees? Unobserved Heterogeneity in Returns to Education and Early Experience
DP 18067 - Seah/Pan/Tan:
Depth or Diversity? Examining the Longer Run Impacts of College Curriculum Breadth
DP 18071 - El Fatmaoui/Ransom:
Do Elite Universities Pick Sports to Pick Students? Athletic Admissions and SES Targeting
DP 18077 - Patrinos/Psacharopoulos:
Causal Returns to Education
DP 18080 - Rowland/Jahanshahi/McVicar/Miller:
The Educational Achievement Penalty from School Exclusion
Please find the abstracts and download links below.
You might also be interested in this IZA World of Labor content:
Is the return to education the same for everybody?
IZA DP No. 18037
Elad DeMalach, Analia Schlosser:
Short- and Long-Term Effects of Universal Preschool: Evidence from the Arab Population in Israel
Abstract:
We estimate the causal impacts of universal preschool by leveraging a quasi-experimental design based on Israel’s implementation of free public preschool for children ages 3 and 4 beginning in September 1999. We focus on the Arab population, who were the main beneficiaries of the first phase of the Law’s implementation. Using a difference-in-differences research design, we find that universal preschool enhanced individuals’ academic performance from elementary school through high school, improved the learning environment, and increased postsecondary enrollment. Additional benefits include reduced juvenile delinquency among males and decreased early marriage among females.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18037.pdf
IZA DP No. 18053
Damiano Argan, Robert J. Gary-Bobo, Marion Goussé:
Is There a Devaluation of Degrees? Unobserved Heterogeneity in Returns to Education and Early Experience
Abstract:
We study how the returns to higher education evolved in France during a period of educational expansion. We study possible changes in the mix of unobservable characteristics of the graduate population. Using a finite mixture model with latent types, we estimate type-specific log-wage, experience accumulation, and education-choice equations. We find that expected real wages declined for higher-education degrees, and that this result is not driven by adverse selection. Returns to education and experience decreased for certain unobserved types but increased for others. The composition of types among Master’s graduates suggests improved student selection over time, despite rising graduate numbers.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18053.pdf
IZA DP No. 18067
Kelvin Seah, Jessica Pan, Poh Lin Tan:
Depth or Diversity? Examining the Longer Run Impacts of College Curriculum Breadth
Abstract:
Existing research suggests that broad versus specialized university curricula does not significantly lead to differences in earnings and unemployment outcomes shortly after graduation. This paper builds on previous work by examining the impact of curriculum breadth on medium-term labor market outcomes, up to six years after students have graduated. Exploiting a unique episode in the history of the National University of Singapore, in which a university-wide revision in graduation requirements in 2007 prompted students in a large faculty to unexpectedly read a more specialized curriculum, we find, using a difference-in-differences approach, that while taking a more specialized curriculum does not initially affect labor earnings shortly after graduation, its effect becomes negative and increases with work experience. We find no evidence that lower earnings are due to a lower propensity to switch jobs, suggesting weaker within-firm earnings trajectories among more specialized gr aduates.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18067.pdf
IZA DP No. 18071
Ahmed El Fatmaoui, Tyler Ransom:
Do Elite Universities Pick Sports to Pick Students? Athletic Admissions and SES Targeting
Abstract:
This study investigates the extent to which U.S. universities strategically use athletic admissions to shape the socioeconomic status (SES) of their student bodies. Using a novel dataset linking NCAA roster data to neighborhood characteristics, we document substantial SES segregation across sports and universities. More selective institutions, particularly elite private universities, allocate up to 30% of enrollment to athletes who typically come from higher-SES backgrounds than their non-athlete peers. However, contrary to popular belief, we find that elite institutions enroll similarly wealthy athletes across all sports. Estimates of our structural model of sports bundle choice reveal that this SES homogeneity across sports limits universities' ability to systematically choose sports offerings to target higher-SES students. Counterfactual analyses demonstrate that athletic enrollment caps would create additional seats for non-athletes but require complementary policies to m eaningfully impact socioeconomic mobility.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18071.pdf
IZA DP No. 18077
Harry Anthony Patrinos, George Psacharopoulos:
Causal Returns to Education
Abstract:
Using 182 estimates from 140 studies in 55 countries, this paper compares ordinary least squares (OLS) and instrumental variables (IV) estimates of the private returns to schooling. IV returns average 9.7 percent—38 percent higher than OLS—and exceed OLS in nearly 80 percent of cases, with the largest gaps in developing countries. These patterns align with theories of diminishing marginal returns, scarcity rents, and attenuation from measurement error. While IV methods mitigate bias, instrument validity and external validity concerns persist. Evidence consistently shows substantial causal returns, particularly for disadvantaged populations, underscoring the need for rigorous research.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18077.pdf
IZA DP No. 18080
Neil Rowland, Babak Jahanshahi, Duncan McVicar, Corina Miller:
The Educational Achievement Penalty from School Exclusion
Abstract:
Exclusion is a disciplinary practice used by headteachers which removes misbehaving pupils from the classroom or from the school, either temporarily or permanently. Its growing use has led to increased concern about potential negative effects on excluded pupils, including on their educational achievement. This paper estimates the effect of being excluded on subject test scores and teacher assessment outcomes using detailed administrative data on an entire cohort of pupils in the English state school system. To mitigate selection bias, we use a novel empirical approach for this literature which compares excluded pupils with pupils who experienced exclusion after outcomes were measured but not before. We find that excluded pupils perform worse in subsequent tests and teacher assessments, with 0.03-0.07 standard deviation lower standardised test scores and 2.5-3.6 percentage point higher probability of not reaching the expected level in teacher assessments. We assess the extent to which these estimated associations might reflect a negative causal impact of exclusion.
https://docs.iza.org/dp18080.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
Aug 31, 2025, 1:31:32 PMAug 31
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