PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Choi, Eleanor Jawon
AU  - Hwang, Jisoo
AU  - Son, Hyelim
TI  - The Effects of Exposure to a Large-Scale Recession on Higher Education and Early Labor Market Outcomes
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.0823-13067R1
DP  - 2025 Nov 04
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 0823-13067R1
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2025/10/31/jhr.0823-13067R1.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2025/10/31/jhr.0823-13067R1.full
AB  - This study examines the effects of timing of exposure to the Asian financial crisis on higher education and early labor market outcomes. We estimate a generalized difference-in-differences model exploiting variation in age at exposure and regional severity of the recession in South Korea. Using the Census and Youth Panel data, we find that individuals from hard-hit regions are less likely to attain a college education, tend to shift away from humanities to STEM majors, and have lower-quality first jobs, than their peers in the same cohort. These effects are more pronounced among individuals who experienced the recession at younger ages.