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The information value of central school exams

Guido Schwerdt and Ludger Wößmann
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Ludger Woessmann

Munich Reprints in Economics from University of Munich, Department of Economics

Abstract: The central vs. local nature of high-school exit exam systems can have important repercussions on the labor market. By increasing the informational content of grades, central exams may improve the sorting of students by productivity. To test this, we exploit the unique German setting where students from states with and without central exams work on the same labor market. Our difference-in-difference model estimates whether the earnings difference between individuals with high and low grades differs between central and local exams. We find that the earnings premium for a one standard-deviation increase in high-school grades is indeed 6% when obtained on central exams but less than 2% when obtained on local exams. Choices of higher-education programs and of occupations do not appear major channels of this result.

Date: 2017
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

Published in Economics of Education Review 56(2017): pp. 65-79

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Related works:
Journal Article: The information value of central school exams (2017) Downloads
Working Paper: The Information Value of Central School Exams (2016) Downloads
Working Paper: The Information Value of Central School Exams (2015) Downloads
Working Paper: The Information Value of Central School Exams (2015) Downloads
Working Paper: The Information Value of Central School Exams (2015) Downloads
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