Economics Research Community Seminar – Dr Stephan Maurer

Title: Understanding Gender Match Effects in Higher Education: The Role of Class Size

Date: 21 February 2024

Time: 13:30-14:30

Location: NUBS.2.03

If you would like to attend, please register using the following link:

Understanding Gender Match Effects in Higher Education: The Role of Class Size

Speaker: Dr Stephan Maurer,  University of Edinburgh

Stephan received his PhD in Economics at the London School of Economics in 2017. Prior to joining the University of Edinburgh, he was an assistant professor at the University of Konstanz. He is also an Associate in the Centre for Economic Performance‘s Growth and Labour Markets Programmes.

His research interests lie in the areas of Labour Economics, Economic History, Urban Economics, International Trade, and Political Economy.

Abstract:

It is widely believed that female students perform better when taught by female professors. However, little is known about the mechanisms explaining these gender match effects. Using administrative records from a German public university, which cover all programs and courses between 2006 and 2018, we show that gender match effects are sizable in smaller classes, but are absent in larger classes. These results suggest that direct and frequent interactions between students and professors are crucial for gender match effects to emerge. In contrast, the mere fact that one’s professor is female is not sufficient to increase performance of female students.