Does Lowering Entry Costs to Economics for Underrepresented Students Affect Outcomes? Preliminary Experimental Evidence

Abstract

Economics lags other disciplines in inclusivity both as a field of study and career track. We conduct the first longitudinal randomized controlled trial of a diversity program in economics to evaluate the causal impact of the University of Chicago’s EDE/EDE+ program. We randomize acceptance among qualified applicants and track academic, professional, and attitudinal outcomes via follow-up surveys and LinkedIn data. We describe the experimental design, sample characteristics, and outcome measurement and present preliminary data from surveys with four cohorts. We are continuing to randomize cohort admissions, and collect outcome data, to increase sample size and measure longer-run outcomes.

The authors' own abstract, copied from semanticscholar.org.

How to cite it

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Buchsbaum, J., Greenstone, M., & Rostapshova, O. (2026). Does Lowering Entry Costs to Economics for Underrepresented Students Affect Outcomes? Preliminary Experimental Evidence. AEA Papers and Proceedings. https://doi.org/10.1257/pandp.20261084

Buchsbaum, Jesse, et al. "Does Lowering Entry Costs to Economics for Underrepresented Students Affect Outcomes? Preliminary Experimental Evidence." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 2026, https://doi.org/10.1257/pandp.20261084.

@article{buchsbaum2026does,
  title = {Does Lowering Entry Costs to Economics for Underrepresented Students Affect Outcomes? Preliminary Experimental Evidence},
  author = {Jesse Buchsbaum and Michael Greenstone and Olga Rostapshova},
  journal = {AEA Papers and Proceedings},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1257/pandp.20261084},
}

What it is

Jesse Buchsbaum, Michael Greenstone and Olga Rostapshova test whether making it easier to start studying economics changes outcomes for underrepresented students (AEA Papers and Proceedings, May 2026).

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