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What's the link between household income and going to university?

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  • Jake Anders

    (Institute of Education, University of London, 20 Bedford Way, London WC1H 0AL, UK.)

Abstract

The association between household income and university entry is a matter of clear academic and policy interest. This paper sheds new light on the matter using the LSYPE, a recent longitudinal survey from England. While those in the top income quintile group are more likely than those in the bottom quintile group to attend university (66% vs. 24%), much of this gap is explained by earlier educational outcomes. The paper also examines admissions decisions in more detail, separating applying from attending. This analysis yields results suggesting most of the difference in participation rates is driven by the application decision. The attendance gap conditional on having applied is much smaller (85% vs. 68%) and closes completely when earlier educational outcomes are taken into account. Finally, the paper considers attendance at high quality Russell Group universities. By contrast with the main analysis, the Russell Group attendance gap persists even among those who attend university. The findings suggest policies aimed at reducing the university participation gap at point of entry face small rewards. More likely successful are policies aimed at closing the application gap, for example encouraging a wider cross-section of the population to apply and ensuring they have the necessary qualifications.

Suggested Citation

  • Jake Anders, 2012. "What's the link between household income and going to university?," DoQSS Working Papers 12-01, Quantitative Social Science - UCL Social Research Institute, University College London.
    • Handle: RePEc:qss:dqsswp:1201
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    File URL: https://repec.ucl.ac.uk/REPEc/pdf/qsswp1201.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Peter M. White & David M. Lee, 2020. "Geographic Inequalities and Access to Higher Education: Is the Proximity to Higher Education Institution Associated with the Probability of Attendance in England?," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 61(7), pages 825-848, November.
    2. Giovanni Gallo & Claudia Garofoli, 2023. "Proxying the socio-economic background through real estate values. An application on performances of university students," Center for the Analysis of Public Policies (CAPP) 0184, Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Economia "Marco Biagi".
    3. Delaney, Judith M. & Devereux, Paul J., 2020. "Choosing differently? College application behavior and the persistence of educational advantage," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    4. 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.
    5. Augusto Cerqua & Giorgio Di Pietro, 2017. "Natural disasters and university enrolment: evidence from L’Aquila earthquake," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(14), pages 1440-1457, March.
    6. Jungmin Lee & Frank Fernandez & Hyun Kyoung Ro & Hongwook Suh, 2022. "Does Dual Enrollment Influence High School Graduation, College Enrollment, Choice, and Persistence?," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 63(5), pages 825-848, August.
    7. Jake Anders & Francesca Foliano & Matt Bursnall & Richard Dorsett & Nathan Hudson & Johnny Runge & Stefan Speckesser, 2021. "The effect of embedding foramtive assesment on pupil attainment," CEPEO Working Paper Series 21-10, UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, revised Nov 2021.
    8. Adamecz-Völgyi, Anna & Henderson, Morag & Shure, Nikki, 2020. "Is ‘first in family’ a good indicator for widening university participation?," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Higher Education; Household Income; Socioeconomic Gradient; Intergenerational Mobility;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion

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