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Closing the Gap Between Vocational and General Education? Evidence from University Technical Colleges in England

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  • Terrier, Camille
  • Machin, Stephen
  • McNally, Sandra
  • Ventura, Guglielmo

Abstract

England introduced University Technical Colleges (UTCs) in 2010, hybrid schools which combine general and vocational education. We use an instrumental variable approach to evaluate the causal effect of attending a UTC on student academic and vocational achievement and on their labour market outcomes. For pupils who enter at age 14, UTCs dramatically reduce their academic achievement on national exams at age 16. For students who enter at age of 16, UTCs boost vocational achievement without harming academic achievement. They also improve achievement in STEM qualifications, enrolment in apprenticeships, employment prospects (by age 19) and probability of studying STEM at university.

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  • Terrier, Camille & Machin, Stephen & McNally, Sandra & Ventura, Guglielmo, 2020. "Closing the Gap Between Vocational and General Education? Evidence from University Technical Colleges in England," CEPR Discussion Papers 15456, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:15456
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    2. Bertoni, Marco & Heller-Sahlgren, Gabriel & Silva, Olmo, 2023. "Free to improve? The impact of free school attendance in England," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 121281, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

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    Keywords

    Technical education; Tracking; School value-added;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy

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