RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Beyond the “Old Boys’ Network”: Social Networks and Job Finding at Community Colleges
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 0921-11888R2
DO 10.3368/jhr.0921-11888R2
A1 Zhu, Maria
YR 2022
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2022/11/01/jhr.0921-11888R2.abstract
AB Research and popular discourse on social networks in higher education have focused on elite universities, even though most students do not attend such institutions. This paper sheds novel light on how classmate networks at community colleges influence job finding. Using data from a state community college system linked to matched employer-employee records, I exploit quasi-random variation in class section enrollment within courses to detect network effects. I find students are significantly more likely to get a job at a classmate’s firm later than at the firm of a peer enrolled in a different section of the same course.