Arbeitspapier

Estimating marginal returns to education

This paper estimates the marginal returns to college for individuals induced to enroll in college by different marginal policy changes. The recent instrumental variables literature seeks to estimate this parameter, but in general it does so only under strong assumptions that are tested and found wanting. We show how to utilize economic theory and local instrumental variables estimators to estimate the effect of marginal policy changes. Our empirical analysis shows that returns are higher for individuals more likely to attend college. We contrast the returns to well-defined marginal policy changes with IV estimates of the return to schooling. Some marginal policy changes inducing students into college produce very low returns.

Language
Englisch

Bibliographic citation
Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 5275

Classification
Wirtschaft
Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
Subject
returns to schooling
marginal return
average return
marginal treatment effect

Event
Geistige Schöpfung
(who)
Carneiro, Pedro
Heckman, James J.
Vytlacil, Edward
Event
Veröffentlichung
(who)
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)
(where)
Bonn
(when)
2010

Handle
Last update
20.09.2024, 8:23 AM CEST

Data provider

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Object type

  • Arbeitspapier

Associated

  • Carneiro, Pedro
  • Heckman, James J.
  • Vytlacil, Edward
  • Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)

Time of origin

  • 2010

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