PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Sekhri, Sheetal
AU  - Hossain, Md Amzad
AU  - Khosla, Pooja
TI  - Access to Colleges, Human Capital, and Empowerment of Women
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.0620-10948R4
DP  - 2024 Mar 01
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 502--544
VI  - 59
IP  - 2
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/59/2/502.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/59/2/502.full
AB  - Women’s enrollment in colleges in developing countries is staggeringly low. Due to cultural norms and safety concerns, women may not be allowed to enroll. Alternatively, local colleges might be in short supply. Using the variation in college construction in India under a college construction grant policy, we assess whether increased access to colleges in home districts improves human capital outcomes for women. We find an improvement in educational and other development outcomes. The educational gains accruing to women are twice as large as for men. The benefits accrue to the rural women but do not spillover to the neighboring districts.