Central School Exit Exams and Labor-Market Outcomes

32 Pages Posted: 27 Sep 2012

See all articles by Marc Piopiunik

Marc Piopiunik

CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute) - Department Human Capital and Innovation

Guido Schwerdt

University of Konstanz - Faculty of Economics and Statistics

Ludger Woessmann

Ifo Institute for Economic Research; Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA); CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute for Economic Research); University of Munich - Ifo Institute for Economic Research

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Date Written: September 26, 2012

Abstract

Many countries use centralized exit exams as a governance devise of the school system. While abundant evidence suggests positive effects of central exams on achievement tests, previous research on university-bound students shows no effects on subsequent earnings. We suggest that labor-market effects may be more imminent for students leaving school directly for the labor market and, on rigid labor markets, for unemployment. Exploiting variation in exit-exam systems across German states, we find that central exams are indeed associated with higher earnings for students from school types directly bound for the labor market, as well as with lower unemployment.

Keywords: central exit exams, earnings, unemployment, Germany

JEL Classification: I200, J240, J310, J640

Suggested Citation

Piopiunik, Marc and Schwerdt, Guido and Woessmann, Ludger, Central School Exit Exams and Labor-Market Outcomes (September 26, 2012). CESifo Working Paper Series No. 3940, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2152269 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2152269

Marc Piopiunik

CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute) - Department Human Capital and Innovation ( email )

Poschingerstr. 5
Munich, 81679
Germany

Guido Schwerdt

University of Konstanz - Faculty of Economics and Statistics ( email )

Universitaetsstr. 10
78457 Konstanz
Germany

Ludger Woessmann (Contact Author)

Ifo Institute for Economic Research ( email )

Poschingerstr. 5
Munich
Germany
++49 89 9224 1699 (Phone)
++49 89 9224 1460 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.cesifo.de/link/woessmann_l.htm

Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)

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CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute for Economic Research)

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