Zhu Xiaofan
ZHU XIAOFAN
Ph.D Candidate in Economics
I am a job market candidate and I will be available for interviews.
REFERENCES
Professor Fali Huang
Email: flhuang@smu.edu.sg
Tel: +65 68280859
Professor Sunha Myong
Email: sunhamyong@smu.edu.sg
Tel: +65 68281914
WORKING PAPERS
“Educational Decisions in the Shadow of Cronyism: An Empirical Study of College Graduates in
China”, with Chen Xiang (Job Market Paper)
This study investigates how inefficient political institutions, marked by rampant corruption and cronyism, shape students’ educational choices based on their family’s political connections. We exploit the onset of China’s anti-corruption campaign and compare the educational choices of college students with at least one cadre parent versus those without, from more corrupt regions versus less corrupt regions, before and after the campaign. We find that after the campaign, college students with at least a cadre parent from regions previously characterised by higher corruption levels are more likely to pursue further education after graduation. The effects are more pronounced for male students, for students with liberal art track majors, for students with lower academic performance during college, and for students with cadre parents with higher positional ranks. Moreover, we examine the underlying mechanisms and find evidence of a more equitable post-campaign employment environment, where connected students need stronger educational qualifications and more human capital stock to remain competitive against their unconnected
counterparts.