Abstract
This paper uses administrative North Carolina data linked from high school to college and national surveys to characterize the largest contributor to the STEM gender gap: engineering. Disparities are the result of differential entry during high school or earlier rather than postsecondary exit. Differences in pre-college academic preparation account for 5 to 7% of the gap. Females’ relative lack of academic self-confidence explains 8%, while other-regarding preferences and professional goals capture a further 14%. Empirical evidence using identifying variation in the gender composition of twins in North Carolina shows that opposite-sex pairs are more likely to pursue gender-stereotypical majors.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 129-143 |
Number of pages | 15 |
Journal | Economics of Education Review |
Volume | 64 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jun 2018 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Economics of gender
- Human capital
- Occupational choice
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Education
- Economics and Econometrics