Family Background and the Responses to Higher SAT Scores

Georg Graetz, Björn Öckert and Oskar Skans

No 13343, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Using discontinuities within the Swedish SAT system, we show that additional admission opportunities causally affect college choices. Students with high-educated parents change timing, colleges, and fields in ways that appear consistent with basic economic theory. In contrast, very talented students with low-educated parents react to higher scores by increasing overall enrolment and graduation rates. Remarkably, most of this effect arises from increased participation in college programs and institutions that they could have attended even with a lower score. This suggests that students with low-educated parents face behavioral barriers even in a setting where colleges are tuition-free, student grants are universal and application systems are simple.

Keywords: regression discontinuity design; intergenerational transmission of education; educational choice (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I21 I23 J62 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 66 pages
Date: 2020-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu, nep-eur and nep-ore
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Published - published online in: Journal of Human Resources , June 2023

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Related works:
Working Paper: Family background and the responses to higher SAT scores (2020)
Working Paper: Family Background and the Responses to Higher SAT Scores (2020)
Working Paper: Family background and the responses to higher SAT scores (2020)
Working Paper: Family background and the responses to higher SAT scores (2020)
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