Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/58880 
Year of Publication: 
2012
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 6285
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
We explore a potential source of human capital spatial disparities: the unequal access to tertiary education caused by the absence/presence of a local university. Because the entrance to a university is a sequential process in the Czech Republic we model both a student's decision to apply to a university and the admission process. Two possible sources of unequal access to university are distinguished: cost savings and informational advantages for those residing close to a university. Estimation results suggest that the presence of a university per se is not driving student's decision to apply. Further we find that information advantage due to university proximity plays a significant role in the admission process. However this advantage is specific to the field of study, and becomes stronger in the case of highly oversubscribed study fields. To equalize the chance of admission, policy makers should consider geographical expansion of the system of universities accompanied by the expansion of university programs.
Subjects: 
human capital
spatial distribution
access to tertiary education
JEL: 
I20
I21
J24
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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