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The Effects of Working While in School: Evidence from Employment Lotteries

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  • Thomas Le Barbanchon
  • Diego Ubfal
  • Federico Araya

Abstract

Does working while in school smooth students' transition into the labor market? We provide evidence on this question by leveraging a one-year work-study program that randomized job offers among over 90,000 student applicants in Uruguay. Program rules forbade employers from employing participants in the same job after program completion, and less than 5 percent of participants ever worked in the same firm again. Two years after the program, participants had 8 percent higher earnings. Our results suggest that the program's focus on work-related skills was a key mechanism for earnings impacts.

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  • Thomas Le Barbanchon & Diego Ubfal & Federico Araya, 2023. "The Effects of Working While in School: Evidence from Employment Lotteries," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 15(1), pages 383-410, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aejapp:v:15:y:2023:i:1:p:383-410
    DOI: 10.1257/app.20210041
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    1. Demir, Gökay & Sandner, Malte & Hertweck, Friederike & Yükselen, Ipek, 2023. "Students' Coworker Networks and Labor Market Entry," VfS Annual Conference 2023 (Regensburg): Growth and the "sociale Frage" 277580, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration

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