Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/333535 
Year of Publication: 
2025
Series/Report no.: 
Discussion Papers of the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods No. 2025/11
Publisher: 
Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods, Bonn
Abstract: 
Financial student aid improves educational outcomes and reduces social inequality, yet many eligible students do not take it up. To examine whether correcting misperceptions increases take-up, I conducted an RCT with 6,225 university students across Germany who were not receiving aid. I find that 63% of students systematically underestimate the financial benefits and overestimate repayment obligations of student aid, and 86% misperceive their eligibility. Providing combined information about the program conditions and individual eligibility significantly corrected misperceptions after six months and increased take-up by 46% after one year. This increase is particularly strong among disadvantaged students. After take-up, students report higher available income while reducing earnings and parental support. These findings suggest that correcting misperceptions can reduce social inequality by alleviating financial constraints among disadvantaged students and their parents.
Subjects: 
student aid
misperceptions
field experiment
social inequality
BAföG
JEL: 
C93
D14
D83
D90
H52
I22
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.