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Admission to selective schools, alphabetically

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  • Jurajda, Stepán
  • Münich, Daniel

Abstract

One's position in an alphabetically sorted list may be important in determining access to over-subscribed public services. Motivated by anecdotal evidence, we investigate the importance of the position in the alphabet of Czech students for their admission chances into over-subscribed schools. Empirical evidence based on the population of students graduating from secondary schools and applying to universities is consistent with the use of alphabet in admission procedures at both secondary and tertiary level, implying potential inefficiency in the matching of students with universities.

Suggested Citation

  • Jurajda, Stepán & Münich, Daniel, 2010. "Admission to selective schools, alphabetically," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(6), pages 1100-1109, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecoedu:v:29:y:2010:i:6:p:1100-1109
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    13. Jurajda, Stepán & Münich, Daniel, 2010. "Admission to selective schools, alphabetically," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(6), pages 1100-1109, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jan Hanousek & Štěpán Jurajda, 2018. "Názvy společností a jejich vliv na výkonnost firem [Corporate Names and Performance]," Politická ekonomie, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2018(6), pages 671-688.
    2. Štěpán Jurajda & Daniel Münich, 2015. "Candidate ballot information and election outcomes: the Czech case," Post-Soviet Affairs, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 31(5), pages 448-469, September.
    3. Alessandro Pluchino & Alessio Emanuele Biondo & Andrea Rapisarda, 2018. "Talent Versus Luck: The Role Of Randomness In Success And Failure," Advances in Complex Systems (ACS), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 21(03n04), pages 1-31, May.
    4. Moon, Sue H. & Zhou, Mingming & Zhu, Yun, 2023. "What’s in a name? Leaders’ names, compensation, and firm performance," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    5. Meer, Jonathan & Rosen, Harvey S., 2011. "The ABCs of charitable solicitation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(5-6), pages 363-371, June.
    6. Alessandro Pluchino & Alessio. E. Biondo & Andrea Rapisarda, 2018. "Exploring the role of talent and luck in getting success," Papers 1811.05206, arXiv.org.
    7. Jurajda, Stepán & Münich, Daniel, 2010. "Admission to selective schools, alphabetically," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(6), pages 1100-1109, December.
    8. Steven Glazerman & Ira Nichols-Barrer & Jon Valant & Jesse Chandler & Alyson Burnett, "undated". "Nudging Parents to Choose Better Schools: The Importance of School Choice Architecture," Mathematica Policy Research Reports dd5063086be143fb75deb193b, Mathematica Policy Research.
    9. Stepan Jurajda & Daniel Munich, 2014. "Alphabetical Order Effects in School Admissions," CERGE-EI Working Papers wp509, The Center for Economic Research and Graduate Education - Economics Institute, Prague.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Admissions Alphabetical order Serial position Order effects;

    JEL classification:

    • I2 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education
    • J7 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination

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