PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Rodríguez, Jorge
AU  - Urzúa, Sergio
AU  - Reyes, Loreto
TI  - Heterogeneous Economic Returns to Post-Secondary Degrees: Evidence from Chile
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.51.2.0213-5474R1
DP  - 2016 Mar 31
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 416--460
VI  - 51
IP  - 2
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/51/2/416.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/51/2/416.full
SO  - J Hum Resour2016 Mar 31; 51
AB  - We analyze the economic returns to post-secondary degrees in Chile. We posit a schooling decision model with unobserved ability, degree-specific tuition costs, and earnings. We use administrative records to carry out our empirical analysis. Our results show positive average returns to post-secondary education, especially for five-year degrees. However, we also uncover significant heterogeneity. We document how unobserved characteristics (ability) determine the economic benefits of first- and second-best choices, even leading to negative returns to post-secondary degrees. Our findings illustrate the importance of allowing for heterogeneous treatment effects and individuals’ choices when examining the returns to education.