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Teenagers' expectations of applying to university: how do they change?

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  • Jake Anders

    (Department of Quantitative Social Science, Institute of Education, University of London)

  • John Micklewright

    (Department of Quantitative Social Science, Institute of Education, University of London)

Abstract

We show how young people's expectations about application to university change during the teenage years, drawing on the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (LSYPE). We reveal the pattern of change by family background (measured by parental education and family income), prior attainment at the end of primary school (measured by Key Stage 2 tests) and, critically, the combination of the two. We document the relationship between expectations about university application and the decision on whether to stay on in full-time education at 16. We point to the importance of schools in sustaining or changing expectations. We relate the expectations reported by the teenagers in LSYPE to their actual university application decisions by age 20 or 21. Expectations are high but not universally high. Family background gaps in expectations widen during the teenage years.

Suggested Citation

  • Jake Anders & John Micklewright, 2013. "Teenagers' expectations of applying to university: how do they change?," DoQSS Working Papers 13-13, Quantitative Social Science - UCL Social Research Institute, University College London.
    • Handle: RePEc:qss:dqsswp:1313
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Haroon Chowdry & Claire Crawford & Lorraine Dearden & Alissa Goodman & Anna Vignoles, 2013. "Widening participation in higher education: analysis using linked administrative data," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 176(2), pages 431-457, February.
    2. Jake Anders, 2012. "Using the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England for research into Higher Education access," DoQSS Working Papers 12-13, Quantitative Social Science - UCL Social Research Institute, University College London.
    3. Haroon Chowdry & Claire Crawford & Alissa Goodman, 2010. "The role of attitudes and behaviours in explaining socio-economic differences in attainment at age 16," IFS Working Papers W10/15, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    4. Jake Anders, 2012. "The Link between Household Income, University Applications and University Attendance," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 33(2), pages 185-210, June.
    5. Marcello Sartarelli, 2011. "Do Performance Targets Affect Behaviour? Evidence from Discontinuities in Test Scores in England," DoQSS Working Papers 11-02, Quantitative Social Science - UCL Social Research Institute, University College London.
    6. John Jerrim, 2011. "Disadvantaged children’s ``low'' educational expectations: Are the US and UK really so different to other industrialized nations?," DoQSS Working Papers 11-04, Quantitative Social Science - UCL Social Research Institute, University College London.
    7. Michael Sanders & Ariella Kristal & Farooq Sabri & Alex Tupper, 2013. "Aspiration & Inspiration - A pilot study of mentoring in schools," The Centre for Market and Public Organisation 13/314, The Centre for Market and Public Organisation, University of Bristol, UK.
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    Cited by:

    1. Katherin Barg & Simon Benham-Clarke & Anna Mountford-Zimdars, 2020. "Investigating the Imagination of Possible and ‘Like-to-Avoid’ Selves among Higher Education Students from Different Socioeconomic Backgrounds at a Selective English University," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 9(5), pages 1-20, May.
    2. Benjamin Alcott, 2017. "Does Teacher Encouragement Influence Students’ Educational Progress? A Propensity-Score Matching Analysis," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 58(7), pages 773-804, November.
    3. Marina Della Giusta & Sarah Jewell & Danica Vukadinovic Greetham, 2017. "Beliefs, Exams and Social Media: A Study of Girls and Boys in the UK," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2017-02, Department of Economics, University of Reading.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    expectations; university application; family background; LSYPE;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D84 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Expectations; Speculations
    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality

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