Elite universities and the intergenerational transmission of human and social capital

Andrés Barrios Fernández, Christopher Neilson and Seth Zimmerman

CEP Discussion Papers from Centre for Economic Performance, LSE

Abstract: Do elite colleges help talented students join the social elite, or help incumbent elites retain their positions? We combine intergenerationally-linked data from Chile with a regression discontinuity design to show that, looking across generations, elite colleges do both. Lower-status individuals who gain admission to elite college programs transform their children's social environment. Children become more likely to attend high-status private schools and colleges, and to live near and befriend high-status peers. In contrast, academic achievement is unaffected. Simulations combining descriptive and quasi-experimental findings show that elite colleges tighten the link between social and human capital while decreasing intergenerational social mobility.

Keywords: elite universities; intergenerational mobility; human capital; social capital (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024-08-28
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu, nep-soc and nep-ure
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Related works:
Working Paper: Elite Universities and the Intergenerational Transmission of Human and Social Capital (2024)
Working Paper: Elite universities and the intergenerational transmission of human and social capital (2024)
Working Paper: Elite Universities and the Intergenerational Transmission of Human and Social Capital (2024)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp2026

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