Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/328201 
Year of Publication: 
2025
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 18071
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
This study investigates the extent to which U.S. universities strategically use athletic admissions to shape the socioeconomic status (SES) of their student bodies. Using a novel dataset linking NCAA roster data to neighborhood characteristics, we document substantial SES segregation across sports and universities. More selective institutions, particularly elite private universities, allocate up to 30% of enrollment to athletes who typically come from higher-SES backgrounds than their non-athlete peers. However, contrary to popular belief, we find that elite institutions enroll similarly wealthy athletes across all sports. Estimates of our structural model of sports bundle choice reveal that this SES homogeneity across sports limits universities' ability to systematically choose sports offerings to target higher-SES students. Counterfactual analyses demonstrate that athletic enrollment caps would create additional seats for non-athletes but require complementary policies to meaningfully impact socioeconomic mobility.
Subjects: 
higher education
college athletics
income segregation
university admissions
JEL: 
C35
I23
I24
L83
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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