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Do Public Colleges in Developing Countries Provide Better Education than Private ones? Evidence from General Education Sector in India

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  • Sheetal Sekhri
  • Yona Rubinstein

Abstract

College educational outcomes of students graduating from public colleges in many developing countries are better than those graduating from private colleges. This is attributed to better quality of education provided. However, public colleges are subsidized suggesting that the observed gap might reflect pre-determined differences among students sorting into public colleges. We evaluate the impact of public colleges using a unique dataset that links admission records to college educational outcomes in India. We exploit the features of admission rules in a Regression-Discontinuity-Design, and find that the public colleges have no added value in the neighborhood of the admission cutoff scores. Controlling for entry scores, we find no differences between the exit exam outcomes of students graduating from public and private colleges..

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  • Sheetal Sekhri & Yona Rubinstein, "undated". "Do Public Colleges in Developing Countries Provide Better Education than Private ones? Evidence from General Education Sector in India," Virginia Economics Online Papers 375, University of Virginia, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:vir:virpap:375
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    Cited by:

    1. Park, Albert & Shi, Xinzheng & Hsieh, Chang-tai & An, Xuehui, 2015. "Magnet high schools and academic performance in China: A regression discontinuity design," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(4), pages 825-843.
    2. Binelli, Chiara & Rubio-Codina, Marta, 2013. "The Returns to Private Education: Evidence from Mexico," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 198-215.
    3. Cristian Pop-Eleches & Miguel Urquiola, 2013. "Going to a Better School: Effects and Behavioral Responses," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 103(4), pages 1289-1324, June.
    4. Jannet Farida Jacob, 2018. "Higher Education in India from 1983 to 2014: Participation, Access and Labour Market Outcomes across Socio-religious Groups," Indian Journal of Human Development, , vol. 12(1), pages 74-92, April.
    5. Giuseppe Bertola & Daniele Checchi, 2013. "Who Chooses Which Private Education? Theory and International Evidence," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 27(3), pages 249-271, September.
    6. Francesca Marchetta & Tom Dilly, 2019. "Supporting Education in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges for an Impact Investor," Working Papers hal-02288103, HAL.
    7. Sheetal Sekhri & Yona Rubinstein, "undated". "Do Public Colleges in Developing Countries Provide Better Education than Private ones? Evidence from General Education Sector in India," Virginia Economics Online Papers 375, University of Virginia, Department of Economics.
    8. Stefanie Fischer, 2016. "The Downside of Good Peers: How Classroom Composition Differentially Affects Men’s and Women’s STEM Persistence," Working Papers 1605, California Polytechnic State University, Department of Economics.
    9. Adrienne M. Lucas & Isaac M. Mbiti, 2014. "Effects of School Quality on Student Achievement: Discontinuity Evidence from Kenya," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 6(3), pages 234-263, July.
    10. MacLeod, W. Bentley & Urquiola, Miguel, 2012. "Competition and Educational Productivity: Incentives Writ Large," IZA Discussion Papers 7063, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    11. Katja Maria Kaufmann & Matthias Messner & Alex Solis, 2013. "Returns to Elite Higher Education in the Marriage Market: Evidence from Chile," Working Papers 489, IGIER (Innocenzo Gasparini Institute for Economic Research), Bocconi University.

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    JEL classification:

    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods

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