Grade Sensitivity and the Economics Major at a Women's College

Patrick McEwan, Sheridan Rogers and Akila Weerapana

AEA Papers and Proceedings, 2021, vol. 111, 102-06

Abstract: We use a regression discontinuity design to estimate the causal effect of letter grades in introductory courses on the probability of choosing an economics major at Wellesley College, a highly selective women's college. We find that women just above letter-grade cutoffs are 18 percentage points more likely to major in economics than women just below, a 50 percent increase. The effects are larger among financial aid recipients. Grade sensitivity among women is not explained by the presence of male students or instructors; it is more plausibly explained by lower precollege preferences for the major and gender-specific responses to noisy signals like grades.

JEL-codes: A22 J16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20211045

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