This paper examines the impact of family income on the results of the Unified State Examination (the USE) and university choice in Russia. We argue that, even under the USE, which was introduced instead of high school exit exams and university-specific entrance exams, entrants from wealthy...

Despite the trends of massification of Russian higher education and recently introduced standardized entry exams, university applicants still may face barriers during the process of admission. As a result, they may be admitted to less selective universities, which generally offer low quality...

Ilya Prakhov, junior researcher at the International Laboratory for Institutional Analysis of Economic Reforms, Center for Institutional Studies, lecturer in the Subdepartment of Institutional Economics, National Research University - Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation....

Exposure to prenatal androgens affects both future behavior and life choices. However, there is still relatively limited evidence on its effects on academic performance. Moreover, the predicted effect of exposure to prenatal testosterone (T) - which is inversely correlated with the relative...

We estimate the influence of classmates’ ability characteristics on student achievement in exogenously formed student groups. The study uses administrative data on undergraduate students at a large selective university in Russia. The presence of high-ability classmates has a positive effect on...

Among the key issues of peer effects estimation is the correct identification of relevant peers. In this study, we explore how the individual performance of university students is influenced by characteristics and achievements of peers from individual’s social network. The analysis uses data...

It is now well established that highly developed countries tend to score well on measures of social capital and have higher levels of generalized trust. In turn, the willingness to trust has been shown to be correlated with various social and environmental factors (e.g. institutions, culture) on...

We analyze the characteristics of the social networks of students studying in the economics department in one Russian university. We focus on student friendship and study assistance ties and demonstrate how these networks are connected with the individual characteristics of students and their...

Ilya Prakhov - Ph.D. in Economics, Research Fellow, Center for Institutional Studies, National Research University - Higher School of Economics. Address: 20, Myasnitskaya str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation. E-mail: ipra@inbox.ru3rd Place in a Competition of Young Scientistsʼ Research...

This paper examines the dynamics of the prevalence of pre-entry coaching and corresponding investment in private tutoring before and after the introduction of the Unified State Exam (the USE). Besides, we estimate the effectiveness of private tutoring in 2012, i. e. a few years after the USE has...