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The influence of peers' parental background on university enrollment: the role of education and occupation

Author

Listed:
  • Luca Brugnara

    (Bank of Italy)

  • Davide Dottori

    (Bank of Italy)

  • Francesca Modena

    (Bank of Italy)

  • Giulia Martina Tanzi

    (Bank of Italy)

Abstract

This paper investigates the influence of peers' parents in shaping high school students' decisions to enroll in university, highlighting the joint role of their education level and occupation. Using a rich longitudinal dataset on Italian students, we track individuals from high school to university enrollment and exploit within-school and cross-cohort variation to identify peer effects. Our results show that peers' parental education positively impacts university enrollment, and more strongly so when paired with the type of occupation. These findings hold across students' and parents' gender and are more pronounced in non-academic schools and among students whose parents do not hold a university degree, suggesting that the peer effect is particularly relevant in contexts where the propensity to attend university is lower. The paper also finds that the peer effect is non-linear and strongest at intermediate levels of exposure, suggesting that a certain degree of diversity in the educational background of peers' parents may maximize the overall effect.

Suggested Citation

  • Luca Brugnara & Davide Dottori & Francesca Modena & Giulia Martina Tanzi, 2026. "The influence of peers' parental background on university enrollment: the role of education and occupation," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 1039, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    • Handle: RePEc:bdi:opques:qef_1039_26
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    File URL: https://www.bancaditalia.it/pubblicazioni/qef/2026-1039/QEF_1039_26.pdf
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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