A major education reform in Germany reduced the length of the academic high school track by one year, while leaving the number of overall instruction hours unchanged. Accordingly, the fixed number of instruction hours was distributed over fewer years of schooling, such that learning intensity...

We examine the consequences of compressing secondary schooling on students' university enrollment. An unusual education reform in Germany reduced the length of academic high school while simultaneously increasing the instruction hours in the remaining years. Accordingly, students receive the...

The G8 high school reform to reduce the total number of years spent at Gymnasium (Germany’s academic-track secondary school) has been more controversial than almost any other education reform in recent years. Although there are few reliable empirical findings on the effects of the G8 reform,...

The G8 high school reform to reduce the total number of years spent at Gymnasium (Germany's academictrack secondary school) has been more controversial than almost any other education reform in recent years. Although there are very few reliable empirical findings on the effects of the G8 reform,...

Policy-makers face a trade-off between the provision of higher levels of schooling and earlier labour market entries. A fundamental education reform in Germany tackles this trade-off by reducing high school by one year while leaving the total instructional time unchanged. Employing...

Abiturientinnen und Abiturienten, die ihren Abschluss nach zwölf statt 13 Schuljahren erreichen (G8-Reform), nehmen nach dem Abitur seltener ein Studium auf: Um sechs Prozentpunkte sinkt im Vergleich zu einem Referenzszenario ohne G8-Reform der Anteil derer, die im Jahr des Abiturs oder im...

Following a landmark court ruling in 2005, more than half of Germany’s universities started charging tuition fees, which were subsequently abolished until 2015. We exploit the unusual lack of grandfathering in these policies to show that fees increase study effort and degree completion among...

We examine the consequences of compressing secondary schooling on students' university enrollment. An unusual education reform in Germany reduced the length of academic high school while simultaneously increasing the instruction hours in the remaining years. Accordingly, students receive the...

This paper examines the impact of tuition fees on graduation rates among high-school leavers. We analyse the introduction of fees in several German states in 2006-07 (around EUR 1,000 annually), using administrative microdata on all university graduates and a difference-in-differences approach....

Starting in 2009, the German state of Saxony distributed sports club membership vouchers among all 33,000 third graders in the state. The policy's objective was to encourage them to develop a long-term habit of exercising. In 2018, we carried out a large register-based survey among several...