Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/250687 
Year of Publication: 
2022
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 15026
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
We examine the efficacy of affirmative action at universities whose value depends on peer and alumni networks. We study an elite Brazilian university that adopted race- and income-based affirmative action at a large scale. Using employer-employee data, we show that a key benefit of attending the university is access to high-paying jobs affiliated with its alumni. Affirmative action increased disadvantaged students' access to these firms and raised their early-career earnings. But these benefits faded over time. Further, the increase in student body diversity lowered the job prospects and earnings of the school's most highly ranked students.
Subjects: 
affirmative action
alumni network
higher education
JEL: 
I23
I26
J31
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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