[go: up one dir, main page]
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/iza/izadps/dp12886.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The Effect of Grants on University Drop-Out Rates: Evidence on the Italian Case

Author

Listed:
  • Modena, Francesca

    (Bank of Italy)

  • Rettore, Enrico

    (University of Padova)

  • Tanzi, Giulia

    (Bank of Italy)

Abstract
In this paper we evaluate the impact of need-based grants on university drop-out rates in the first year of enrollment, using student-level administrative data from all Italian universities in the period 2003-2013. We exploit the fact that not all eligible students receive financial aid due to limited resources to generate a treatment and a control group. Using this partition, we estimate the average treatment effect, i.e. the average effect on low income students, controlling for a set of observable characteristics by running regressions on blocks defined on the propensity score. Results point towards a sizeable effect of grants in reducing dropping out from higher education: around one third of these students would have left university in the first year in absence of the grants. This evidence is robust to a variety of specifications and sample selection criteria.

Suggested Citation

  • Modena, Francesca & Rettore, Enrico & Tanzi, Giulia, 2020. "The Effect of Grants on University Drop-Out Rates: Evidence on the Italian Case," IZA Discussion Papers 12886, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12886
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://docs.iza.org/dp12886.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Checchi, Daniele & Ichino, Andrea & Rustichini, Aldo, 1999. "More equal but less mobile?: Education financing and intergenerational mobility in Italy and in the US," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(3), pages 351-393, December.
    2. Pietro Garibaldi & Francesco Giavazzi & Andrea Ichino & Enrico Rettore, 2012. "College Cost and Time to Complete a Degree: Evidence from Tuition Discontinuities," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 94(3), pages 699-711, August.
    3. Di Pietro, Giorgio & Cutillo, Andrea, 2008. "Degree flexibility and university drop-out: The Italian experience," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(5), pages 546-555, October.
    4. Christopher Cornwell & David B. Mustard & Deepa J. Sridhar, 2006. "The Enrollment Effects of Merit-Based Financial Aid: Evidence from Georgia's HOPE Program," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 24(4), pages 761-786, October.
    5. Susan Dynarski, 2008. "Building the Stock of College-Educated Labor," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 43(3), pages 576-610.
    6. Ralph Stinebrickner & Todd Stinebrickner, 2008. "The Effect of Credit Constraints on the College Drop-Out Decision: A Direct Approach Using a New Panel Study," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(5), pages 2163-2184, December.
    7. Guido W. Imbens, 2015. "Matching Methods in Practice: Three Examples," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 373-419.
    8. Fabrizia Mealli & Carla Rampichini, 2012. "Evaluating the effects of university grants by using regression discontinuity designs," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 175(3), pages 775-798, July.
    9. Thomas J. Kane, 2003. "A Quasi-Experimental Estimate of the Impact of Financial Aid on College-Going," NBER Working Papers 9703, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Cappellari, Lorenzo & Lucifora, Claudio, 2009. "The "Bologna Process" and college enrollment decisions," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(6), pages 638-647, December.
    11. David Deming & Susan Dynarski, 2009. "Into College, Out of Poverty? Policies to Increase the Postsecondary Attainment of the Poor," NBER Working Papers 15387, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Helena Skyt Nielsen & Torben Sørensen & Christopher Taber, 2010. "Estimating the Effect of Student Aid on College Enrollment: Evidence from a Government Grant Policy Reform," NBER Chapters, in: Income Taxation, Trans-Atlantic Public Economics Seminar (TAPES), pages 185-215, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Glocker, Daniela, 2011. "The effect of student aid on the duration of study," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 177-190, February.
    14. Hans J. Baumgartner & Viktor Steiner, 2006. "Does More Generous Student Aid Increase Enrolment Rates into Higher Education?: Evaluating the German Student Aid Reform of 2001," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 563, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    15. Massimiliano BRATTI & Chiara BROCCOLINI & Stefano STAFFOLANI, 2006. "Is '3+2' Equal to 4? University Reform and Student Academic Performance in Italy," Working Papers 251, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche (I), Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali.
    16. Ilaria De Angelis & Vincenzo Mariani & Francesca Modena & Pasqualino Montanaro, 2016. "Academic enrolment, careers and student mobility in Italy," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 354, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    17. Jeffrey T. Denning & Benjamin M. Marx & Lesley J. Turner, 2019. "ProPelled: The Effects of Grants on Graduation, Earnings, and Welfare," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 11(3), pages 193-224, July.
    18. Viktor Steiner & Katharina Wrohlich, 2012. "Financial Student Aid and Enrollment in Higher Education: New Evidence from Germany," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 114(1), pages 124-147, March.
    19. Eric P. Bettinger & Bridget Terry Long & Philip Oreopoulos & Lisa Sanbonmatsu, 2012. "The Role of Application Assistance and Information in College Decisions: Results from the H&R Block Fafsa Experiment," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 127(3), pages 1205-1242.
    20. Ilaria De Angelis & Vincenzo Mariani & Roberto Torrini, 2017. "New Evidence on Interregional Mobility of Students in Tertiary Education: The Case of Italy," Politica economica, Società editrice il Mulino, issue 1, pages 73-96.
    21. Giorgio Di Pietro, 2004. "The determinants of university dropout in Italy: a bivariate probability model with sample selection," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(3), pages 187-191.
    22. Benjamin L. Castleman & Bridget Terry Long, 2016. "Looking beyond Enrollment: The Causal Effect of Need-Based Grants on College Access, Persistence, and Graduation," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 34(4), pages 1023-1073.
    23. Mocetti Sauro, 2007. "Intergenerational Earnings Mobility in Italy," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 7(2), pages 1-25, December.
    24. Vergolini, Loris & Zanini, Nadir, 2015. "Away, but not too far from home. The effects of financial aid on university enrolment decisions," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 91-109.
    25. Roberto Zotti, 2015. "Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Dropping Out From University: An Empirical Analysis Of Students’ Performances," Working Papers 70, AlmaLaurea Inter-University Consortium.
    26. Goodman, Joshua, 2008. "Who merits financial aid?: Massachusetts' Adams Scholarship," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(10-11), pages 2121-2131, October.
    27. Federico Cingano & Piero Cipollone, 2007. "University drop-out. The case of Italy," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 626, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    28. Hans Fricke, 2018. "Tuition Fees, Student Finances, and Student Achievement: Evidence from a Differential Raise in Fees," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 12(3), pages 504-541.
    29. Judith Scott-Clayton, 2011. "On Money and Motivation: A Quasi-Experimental Analysis of Financial Incentives for College Achievement," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 46(3), pages 614-646.
    30. Peter Cappelli & Shinjae Won, 2016. "How You Pay Affects How You Do: Financial Aid Type and Student Performance in College," NBER Working Papers 22604, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    31. Effrosyni Adamopoulou & Giulia Martina Tanzi, 2017. "Academic Drop-Out and the Great Recession," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 11(1), pages 35-71.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Modena, Francesca & Rettore, Enrico & Tanzi, Giulia, 2021. "Does Gender Matter? The Effect of High Performing Peers on Academic Performances," IZA Discussion Papers 14806, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Olivier Coibion & Yuriy Gorodnichenko & Tiziano Ropele, 2020. "Inflation Expectations and Firm Decisions: New Causal Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 135(1), pages 165-219.
    3. Berlingieri, Francesco & Diegmann, André & Sprietsma, Maresa, 2023. "Preferred field of study and academic performance," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    4. Delogu, Marco & Lagravinese, Raffaele & Paolini, Dimitri & Resce, Giuliano, 2024. "Predicting dropout from higher education: Evidence from Italy," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    5. Minaya, Veronica & Agasisti, Tommaso & Bratti, Massimiliano, 2022. "When need meets merit: The effect of increasing merit requirements in need-based student aid," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    6. Francesca Modena & Santiago Pereda-Fernández & Giulia Martina Tanzi, 2023. "On the Design of Grant Assignment Rules," Politica economica, Società editrice il Mulino, issue 1, pages 3-40.
    7. Fabrizio Ferriani & Filippo Natoli & Giovanni Veronese & Federica Zeni, 2019. "Risk premium in the era of shale oil," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 1215, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    8. Michele Loberto, 2019. "Safety traps, liquidity and information-sensitive assets," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 1216, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    9. Giuseppe Ferrero & Andrea Nobili & Gabriele Sene, 2019. "Credit risk-taking and maturity mismatch: the role of the yield curve," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 1220, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    10. Alberto Martini & Davide Azzolini & Barbara Romano & Loris Vergolini, 2021. "Increasing College Going by Incentivizing Savings: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial in Italy," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(3), pages 814-840, June.
    11. Modena, Francesca & Rettore, Enrico & Tanzi, Giulia Martina, 2022. "Asymmetries in the gender effect of high-performing peers: Evidence from tertiary education," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Francesca Modena & Santiago Pereda-Fernández & Giulia Martina Tanzi, 2023. "On the Design of Grant Assignment Rules," Politica economica, Società editrice il Mulino, issue 1, pages 3-40.
    2. Veronica Rattini, 2022. "The Effects of Financial Aid on Graduation and Labor Market Outcomes: New Evidence from Matched Education-Labor Data," CESifo Working Paper Series 10010, CESifo.
    3. Aguirre, Josefa, 2021. "Long-term effects of grants and loans for vocational education," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    4. Bietenbeck, Jan & Leibing, Andreas & Marcus, Jan & Weinhardt, Felix, 2023. "Tuition fees and educational attainment," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    5. Tommaso Agasisti & Samuele Murtinu, 2013. "Are we wasting public money? No! The effects of grants on Italian university students’ performances," Working Papers 2013/33, Institut d'Economia de Barcelona (IEB).
    6. Brandén, Gunnar, 2022. "Replacing student grants with loans. Evidence from a Swedish policy reform," Working Paper Series 2022:7, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.
    7. Lindsay C. Page & Judith Scott-Clayton, 2015. "Improving College Access in the United States: Barriers and Policy Responses," NBER Working Papers 21781, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Alberto Martini & Davide Azzolini & Barbara Romano & Loris Vergolini, 2021. "Increasing College Going by Incentivizing Savings: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial in Italy," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(3), pages 814-840, June.
    9. Elena Mattana & Juanna Joensen, 2014. "Student Aid, Academic Achievement, and Labor Market Behavior: Grants or Loans?," 2014 Meeting Papers 707, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    10. Denny, Kevin & Doyle, Orla & McMullin, Patricia & O'Sullivan, Vincent, 2014. "Money, mentoring and making friends: The impact of a multidimensional access program on student performance," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 167-182.
    11. Daniele Bondonio & Fabio Berton, 2018. "The Impact of Degree Duration on Higher Education Participation: Evidence from a Large‐scale Natural Experiment," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 80(5), pages 905-930, October.
    12. Wright, Nicholas A., 2021. "Need-based financing policies, college decision-making, and labor market behavior: Evidence from Jamaica," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    13. Jeffrey T. Denning, 2019. "Born under a Lucky Star: Financial Aid, College Completion, Labor Supply, and Credit Constraints," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 54(3), pages 760-784.
    14. Lovenheim, Michael F. & Owens, Emily G., 2014. "Does federal financial aid affect college enrollment? Evidence from drug offenders and the Higher Education Act of 1998," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 1-13.
    15. Firoozi, Daniel, 2022. "The impact of post-admission merit scholarships on enrollment decisions and degree attainment: Evidence from randomization," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    16. Contini, Dalit & Salza, Guido, 2020. "Too few university graduates. Inclusiveness and effectiveness of the Italian higher education system," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    17. 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.
    18. Nicholas W. Hillman & Erica Lee Orians, 2013. "Financial Aid's Role in Meeting State College Completion Goals," Education Finance and Policy, MIT Press, vol. 8(3), pages 349-363, July.
    19. Vergolini, Loris & Zanini, Nadir, 2015. "Away, but not too far from home. The effects of financial aid on university enrolment decisions," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 91-109.
    20. Elena Mattana & Juanna Joensen, 2016. "Student Aid, Academic Achievement, and Labor Market Behavior," 2016 Meeting Papers 1102, Society for Economic Dynamics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    student financial aid; university dropout; higher education; human capital; blocking with regression adjustment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I22 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Educational Finance; Financial Aid
    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • C21 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Cross-Sectional Models; Spatial Models; Treatment Effect Models
    • C35 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models; Discrete Regressors; Proportions

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12886. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Holger Hinte (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/izaaade.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.