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Apply Yourself: Racial and Ethnic Differences in College Application

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  • Sandra E. Black
  • Kalena E. Cortes
  • Jane Arnold Lincove

Abstract

Access to higher education begins with a student’s decision whether and where to apply to college. This paper examines racial and ethnic differences in college application behavior of high school graduates, using two recent graduation cohorts from Texas. We estimate racial and ethnic differences in the probability of applying to college, controlling for a student’s college readiness, high school quality, certainty of college admissions, and high school fixed effects. We then investigate racial and ethnic differences in the choice of where to apply. We enhance the typical model of college matching by considering the social setting and high school feeder patterns of state universities. We find that racial and ethnic gaps in application rates, particularly for Hispanic students, are not explained by differential levels of college readiness, high school quality, or information regarding college admission processes. When applying to college, minorities are influenced by more than just matching their academic ability to the institution, and prefer institutions with a large proportion of same race students and campuses where same race students from their high school have been successful in the past.

Suggested Citation

  • Sandra E. Black & Kalena E. Cortes & Jane Arnold Lincove, 2015. "Apply Yourself: Racial and Ethnic Differences in College Application," NBER Working Papers 21368, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:21368
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Andrews, Rodney J. & Ranchhod, Vimal & Sathy, Viji, 2010. "Estimating the responsiveness of college applications to the likelihood of acceptance and financial assistance: Evidence from Texas," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 104-115, February.
    2. David Card & Alan B. Krueger, 2005. "Would the Elimination of Affirmative Action Affect Highly Qualified Minority Applicants? Evidence from California and Texas," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 58(3), pages 416-434, April.
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    4. Kalena E. Cortes & Jane Arnold Lincove, 2016. "Can Admissions Percent Plans Lead to Better Collegiate Fit for Minority Students?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 106(5), pages 348-354, May.
    5. Andrews, Rodney J. & Imberman, Scott A. & Lovenheim, Michael F., 2020. "Recruiting and supporting low-income, high-achieving students at flagship universities," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    6. Charles T. Clotfelter & Helen F. Ladd & Jacob L. Vigdor, 2015. "Public Universities, Equal Opportunity, and the Legacy of Jim Crow: Evidence from North Carolina," NBER Working Papers 21577, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    8. John P. Papay & Richard J. Murnane & John B. Willett, 2011. "How Performance Information Affects Human-Capital Investment Decisions: The Impact of Test-Score Labels on Educational Outcomes," NBER Working Papers 17120, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    10. Peter Arcidiacono & Michael Lovenheim, 2016. "Affirmative Action and the Quality-Fit Trade-Off," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 54(1), pages 3-51, March.
    11. Page, Lindsay C. & Scott-Clayton, Judith, 2016. "Improving college access in the United States: Barriers and policy responses," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 4-22.
    12. Sandra E. Black & Kalena E. Cortes & Jane Arnold Lincove, 2015. "Academic Undermatching of High-Achieving Minority Students: Evidence from Race-Neutral and Holistic Admissions Policies," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(5), pages 604-610, May.
    13. Eric Bettinger & Bridget Terry Long, 2004. "Shape Up or Ship Out: The Effects of Remediation on Students at Four-Year Colleges," NBER Working Papers 10369, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Eleanor Wiske Dillon & Jeffrey Andrew Smith, 2020. "The Consequences of Academic Match between Students and Colleges," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 55(3), pages 767-808.
    15. Mark C. Long, 2004. "Race and College Admissions: An Alternative to Affirmative Action?," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(4), pages 1020-1033, November.
    16. Griffith, Amanda L. & Rothstein, Donna S., 2009. "Can't get there from here: The decision to apply to a selective college," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(5), pages 620-628, October.
    17. Amanda Pallais, 2015. "Small Differences That Matter: Mistakes in Applying to College," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 33(2), pages 493-520.
    18. Niu, Sunny Xinchun & Tienda, Marta & Cortes, Kalena, 2006. "College selectivity and the Texas top 10% law," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(3), pages 259-272, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. de Roux, Nicolás & Riehl, Evan, 2022. "Disrupted academic careers: The returns to time off after high school," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    2. Gregory C. Wolniak & Marjolein Muskens, 2021. "Undermatching and Noncognitive Development during the First Year of College: A Longitudinal Study of College Students in the Netherlands," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 62(6), pages 855-884, September.
    3. Joshua Goodman & Michael Hurwitz & Christine Mulhern & Jonathan Smith, 2019. "O Brother, Where Start Thou? Sibling Spillovers in College Enrollment," NBER Working Papers 26502, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Cortes, Kalena E. & Klasik, Daniel, 2020. "Uniform Admissions, Unequal Access: Did the Top 10% Plan Increase Access to Selective Flagship Institutions?," IZA Discussion Papers 13988, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Darren Page, 2024. "College applications and enrollment effects of the Common Application," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 42(2), pages 237-258, April.
    6. Klasik, Daniel & Cortes, Kalena E., 2022. "Uniform admissions, unequal access: Did the top 10% plan increase access to selective flagship institutions?," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    7. Sarah Ovink & Demetra Kalogrides & Megan Nanney & Patrick Delaney, 2018. "College Match and Undermatch: Assessing Student Preferences, College Proximity, and Inequality in Post-College Outcomes," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 59(5), pages 553-590, August.
    8. Acton, Riley & Cortes, Kalena E. & Miller, Lois & Morales, Camila, 2024. "Distance to Degrees: How College Proximity Shapes Students' Enrollment Choices and Attainment across Race-Ethnicity and Socioeconomic Status," IZA Discussion Papers 17338, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy

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