Racial and Low-Income Quotas in Brazilian Universities : Impact on Academic Performance

This paper examines the impact of racial and low-income quotas on academic performance considering all public and private universities in Brazil. Using data from the National Examination of Student Performance (ENADE) conducted in 2012, the results indicate that there is no statistically significant difference in academic performance between students admitted under the racial quota and those who had the regular admission (non-quota students). The impact is positive, however, for students from the North region of Brazil and among those with very low family income, whereas a negative impact is observed for those from the Central-West region. In regards to the low-income quota, quota students perform worse than eligible non-quota students as their scores are, on average, 14% lower. Similar findings are observed when different subsamples are considered