Employment and salaries of university graduates: impact evaluation of a financial aid programme by means of propensity score matching - Empleo y salarios de los graduados universitarios: evaluación del impacto de un programa de ayuda financiera mediante propensity score matching

• Published in: Suma de negocios 2024-07, Vol.15 (33), p.99-110
• Main Authors: Patricia Hernández-Medina, Daniel Goncalves Hernández, Luis Morales La Paz
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: educación superior; empleo graduado; evaluación de impacto; financial aid programme; graduated employment; graduated salary; higher education; impact evaluation; programa de ayudas económicas; propensity score matching; salario graduado
• ISSN: 2215-910X; 2215-910X
• DOI: 10.14349/sumneg/2024.V15.N33.A3

Introduction / Objective: Educational funding in Venezuela is limited, especially in private higher education institutions, due to existing budget constraints. Despite these limitations, some grant programmes manage to serve a significant proportion of students. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the impact of a financial aid programme at a Latin American university by analysing the probability of employment and remuneration at three key points in time: during the degree programme, upon graduation, and three years after graduation. Methodology: A sample of graduates from various programmes was used, and information about their career paths was collected by means of a follow-up survey. The analysis was conducted using propensity score matching through the Average Treatment Effect on the Treated (ATT) estimator, employing both parametric and non-parametric methods. Results: The results indicate an inverse relationship between the financial aid received and the salary earned during the evaluation periods, alongside a positive relationship with the probability of being employed. However, none of the estimated coefficients were significant, whether for the nearest neighbour, the 5 or 10 nearest neighbours, the Kernel estimation, or the local linear estimation, taking into account the common support and the 20% trimming. Conclusions: It cannot be concluded that the grant received during the degree programme significantly improves employment and remuneration outcomes. This suggests the need for a comprehensive programme that includes support in job placement processes in order to enhance these outcomes. RESUMEN: Introducción / objetivo: el financiamiento educativo en Venezuela es limitado, especialmente en instituciones de educación superior privadas, debido a restricciones presupuestarias. A pesar de estas limitaciones, algunos programas de subvenciones logran atender a una proporción significativa de estudiantes. El propósito de esta investigación fue evaluar el impacto de un programa de ayuda financiera en una universidad latinoamericana, analizando la probabilidad de empleo y la remuneración en tres momentos clave: durante la carrera, al graduarse y tres años después de egresar. Metodología: se utilizó una muestra de graduados de diversos programas, recolectando información sobre su trayectoria laboral mediante una encuesta de seguimiento. El análisis se realizó utilizando la metodología de propensity score matching mediante el estimador del efecto