Research
Research
Addressing Inequalities in Higher Education
I study the consequences of providing universities with financial incentives to increase the intake of students from underrepresented groups. Using rich administrative data on the universe of students in England, I first identify where access gaps to selective universities for less advantaged students arise along the application-to-enrollment pipeline. I then investigate the effects of the incentives introduced under England's Widening Participation policy. I document how the policy acted as a lever to expand the supply of outreach activities targeted at less advantaged students, and investigate its effect on students' outcomes by adopting a regression discontinuity design leveraging area-based student targeting criteria. I find that the policy encouraged students to apply to more selective programs. In the later phase of the policy, targeted students are 2.4 percentage points (13%) more likely to apply to a program in the top 10% by selectivity - a reduction of the selectivity gap relative to their more affluent peers by up to one-third. These gains persist through admissions and enrollment, without compromising student success. The results highlight how institutional incentives can reduce inequality in access to selective programs and promote social mobility.
Access to Justice, with Diogo Britto, François Gerard, Joana Naritomi, and Breno Sampaio
Access to Justice and Social Protection (2025), AEA Papers and Proceedings, with Diogo Britto, François Gerard, Joana Naritomi, and Breno Sampaio
Governments in developing countries are expanding social protection policies, yet coverage remains imperfect. This paper explores how the justice system influences coverage and the consequences of unequal access to justice for targeting. Using administrative microdata from Brazil, we document how two distinct groups – displaced workers and the elderly poor – resort to the courts to secure social protection. Using the justice system for this purpose correlates with key individual characteristics – notably income and geographical distance from courts – suggesting that barriers to accessing justice influence policy targeting.
Is the Road to Hell Paved with Good Intentions? An Empirical Analysis of Budgetary Follow-up in the EU (2023), Journal of International Money and Finance, with Roel Beetsma, Matthias Busse, Massimo Giuliodori, and Martin Larch.