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Career Choices and the Evolution of the College Gender Gap

Author

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  • Martín Rossi

    (Department of Economics, Universidad de San Andres)

  • Christian Ruzzier

    (Department of Economics, Universidad de San Andres)

Abstract

We propose a complementary explanation for the evolution of the college gender gap that emphasizes the raising opportunity cost of pursuing a college degree for men, due to the increase in the rewards to becoming a superstar in men-dominated occupations, like professional sports. We support our explanation with causal evidence from a natural experiment in European soccer markets that provides exogenous variation in male earnings in a superstar path. Consistent with our story, we find a significant positive effect of an increase in male superstar earnings on the ratio of female to male tertiary enrollment in college education.

Suggested Citation

  • Martín Rossi & Christian Ruzzier, 2015. "Career Choices and the Evolution of the College Gender Gap," Working Papers 120, Universidad de San Andres, Departamento de Economia, revised Mar 2015.
    • Handle: RePEc:sad:wpaper:120
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    File URL: https://webacademicos.udesa.edu.ar/pub/econ/doc120.pdf
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    Cited by:

    1. Brennan Mange & David C. Phillips, 2016. "Career Interruption and Productivity: Evidence from Major League Baseball during the Vietnam War Era," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 10(2), pages 159-185.
    2. Martín González Eiras & Nikolaj A. Harmon & Martín Rossi, 2017. "Fundamentals and Optimal Institutions: The case of US sports leagues," Working Papers 128, Universidad de San Andres, Departamento de Economia, revised Jan 2017.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    gender gap; superstars; education;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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