Redistribution without distortion: evidence from an affirmative action program at a large Brazilian university
Redistribution without distortion: evidence from an affirmative action program at a large Brazilian university
We examine an innovative affirmative action policy at UNICAMP, a large and highly ranked Brazilian university, designed to enhance access for disadvantaged (public high school) applicants. The university awarded bonus points to targeted applicants in their admission exam. We assess the effect of this policy on the composition of admitted students and investigate possible behavioural responses in terms of exam-preparation effort. We find that the policy significantly increased the admission probability of public high school applicants and redistributed university admission towards applicants from families with lower socio-economic status. Surprisingly, we find little evidence of behavioural reactions regarding exam-preparation effort.
post-secondary education, affirmative action programs, university admission, inequality
1182-1220
Estevan, Fernanda
90355085-b671-4cca-afbc-f971ba12e8c9
Gall, Thomas
8df67f3d-fe3c-4a3f-8ce7-e2090557fcd4
Morin, Louis-Philippe
6093bba9-3e17-4407-aef6-f5c03ce4a165
April 2019
Estevan, Fernanda
90355085-b671-4cca-afbc-f971ba12e8c9
Gall, Thomas
8df67f3d-fe3c-4a3f-8ce7-e2090557fcd4
Morin, Louis-Philippe
6093bba9-3e17-4407-aef6-f5c03ce4a165
Estevan, Fernanda, Gall, Thomas and Morin, Louis-Philippe
(2019)
Redistribution without distortion: evidence from an affirmative action program at a large Brazilian university.
The Economic Journal, 129 (619), .
(doi:10.1111/ecoj.12578).
Abstract
We examine an innovative affirmative action policy at UNICAMP, a large and highly ranked Brazilian university, designed to enhance access for disadvantaged (public high school) applicants. The university awarded bonus points to targeted applicants in their admission exam. We assess the effect of this policy on the composition of admitted students and investigate possible behavioural responses in terms of exam-preparation effort. We find that the policy significantly increased the admission probability of public high school applicants and redistributed university admission towards applicants from families with lower socio-economic status. Surprisingly, we find little evidence of behavioural reactions regarding exam-preparation effort.
Text
Unicamp_accepted_version_for_archive_02012018
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Accepted/In Press date: 2 January 2018
e-pub ahead of print date: 19 May 2018
Published date: April 2019
Keywords:
post-secondary education, affirmative action programs, university admission, inequality
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 417653
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/417653
ISSN: 0013-0133
PURE UUID: 894a7851-6287-43e9-9743-6240786583ee
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Date deposited: 08 Feb 2018 17:30
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 06:09
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Contributors
Author:
Fernanda Estevan
Author:
Louis-Philippe Morin
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