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Test-optional Admissions and Job Market Performance : Experimental Evidence from Japan

Author

Listed:
  • UCHIKOSHI, Fumiya
  • GAGNON, Etienne
  • YAMAGISHI, Atsushi

Abstract

We analyze how test-optional admissions affect students’ job market outcomes. To this end, we conduct an experiment that corrects employers’misperceptions about the prevalence of test-optional admissions in Japan, where both test-optional and test-based admissions coexist within the same schools and programs. We find that test-optional admissions function as a signal of students’ ability and induce statistical discrimination against test-optional applicants during resume screening. This discount applied to test-optional applicants is particularly pronounced at lower-ranked institutions, which tend to enroll students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Consequently, the adoption of test-optional admissions may disproportionately harm these students in the labor market.

Suggested Citation

  • UCHIKOSHI, Fumiya & GAGNON, Etienne & YAMAGISHI, Atsushi, 2026. "Test-optional Admissions and Job Market Performance : Experimental Evidence from Japan," Discussion Paper Series 775, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    • Handle: RePEc:hit:hituec:775
    as

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    File URL: https://hit-u.repo.nii.ac.jp/record/2061606/files/DP775.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wen LI & Kunio URAKAWA & Fumihiko SUGA, 2023. "The Gender Gap in the Returns From College Education in Japan: The Impact of Attending a High-Ranking College," Social Science Japan Journal, University of Tokyo and Oxford University Press, vol. 26(1), pages 61-76.
    2. Marianne Bertrand & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2004. "Are Emily and Greg More Employable Than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment on Labor Market Discrimination," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(4), pages 991-1013, September.
    3. David L. Dickinson & Ronald L. Oaxaca, 2009. "Statistical Discrimination in Labor Markets: An Experimental Analysis," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 76(1), pages 16-31, July.
    4. Bruce Sacerdote & Douglas O. Staiger & Michele Tine, 2025. "How Test Optional Policies in College Admissions Disproportionately Harm High Achieving Applicants from Disadvantaged Backgrounds," NBER Working Papers 33389, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Saboe, Matt & Terrizzi, Sabrina, 2019. "SAT optional policies: Do they influence graduate quality, selectivity or diversity?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 174(C), pages 13-17.
    6. David L. Dickinson & Ronald L. Oaxaca, 2009. "Statistical Discrimination in Labor Markets: An Experimental Analysis," Southern Economic Journal, Southern Economic Association, vol. 76(1), pages 16-31, July.
    7. Erik Snowberg & Leeat Yariv, 2021. "Testing the Waters: Behavior across Participant Pools," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 111(2), pages 687-719, February.
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J71 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - Hiring and Firing

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