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Choosing Differently? College Application Behavior and the Persistence of Educational Advantage

Author

Listed:
  • Delaney, Judith M.

    (University of Bath)

  • Devereux, Paul J.

    (University College Dublin)

Abstract
We use administrative data from Ireland to study differences in college application behavior between students from disadvantaged versus advantaged high schools. Ireland provides an interesting laboratory for this analysis as applicants provide a preference-ordering of college programs (majors) and marginal applications are costless. Also, college admission depends almost completely on grades in the terminal high school examinations. Thus, we can compare the application choices of students who have equal chances of admission to college programs. Conditional on achievement and college opportunities, we find that students from advantaged high schools are more likely to apply to universities and to more selective college programs. They are also more likely to have preferences that cluster by program selectivity rather than by field of study. Our results suggest that, alongside differences in achievement, differences in college application behavior also cause persons from advantaged high schools to be more likely to enroll in selective colleges and enter more selective programs. Importantly, we find that enrollment gaps for equally qualified applicants are smaller than differences in application behavior; the relatively meritocratic centralized admissions system based on achievement undoes much of the effect of the differences in application behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Delaney, Judith M. & Devereux, Paul J., 2020. "Choosing Differently? College Application Behavior and the Persistence of Educational Advantage," IZA Discussion Papers 13251, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp13251
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Delaney, Judith M. & Devereux, Paul J., 2021. "High School Rank in Math and English and the Gender Gap in STEM," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    2. Judith M. Delaney & Paul J. Devereux, 2020. "How Gender and Prior Disadvantage Predict Performance in College," The Economic and Social Review, Economic and Social Studies, vol. 51(2), pages 189-239.
    3. Yuta Kuroda, 2023. "What do high-achieving graduates bring to nonacademic track high schools?," DSSR Discussion Papers 138, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Tohoku University.
    4. Delaney, Judith M. & Devereux, Paul J., 2021. "Gender differences in college applications: Aspiration and risk management," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    5. Del Bono, Emilia & Fumagalli, Laura & Holford, Angus & Rabe, Birgitta, 2022. "University access: the role of background and COVID-19 throughout the application process," ISER Working Paper Series 2022-07, Institute for Social and Economic Research.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    higher education; college major choice; centralized admissions system; high school advantage; college applications; educational mismatch;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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