Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/96844 
Year of Publication: 
2014
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 4732
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
The Great Recession brought large increases in unemployment and college enrollment; we explore how changing labor market conditions affected the decision to enroll, focusing on the role of state-specific dimensions of Unemployment Insurance (UI) policy. We measure the enrollment response to changing economic conditions, comparing eighteen and nineteen year-olds with older individuals likely to have accumulated some labor market experience. We find that individuals in their mid to late-twenties are proportionally more responsive to cyclical variation in economic conditions, and we identify a substantial role of the UI program in determining post-secondary enrollment outcomes. States in which academic post-secondary programs unrelated to a specific occupation are allowable under UI have substantially magnified enrollment responses to local economic conditions. In addition, we provide some of the first evidence that the duration of UI affects a displaced individual’s propensity to enroll. These findings identify a substantial overlap between UI policy and post-secondary enrollment decisions, indicating the potential importance of UI in not only providing income but also facilitating investments in skills.
JEL: 
I23
J64
J65
I38
H53
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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