Playing the Admissions Game: Student Reactions to Increasing College Competition.

Gaining entrance to a four-year college or university, particularly a selective institution, has become increasingly competitive over the last several decades. We document this phenomenon and show how it has varied across different parts of the student ability distribution and across region, with the most pronounced increases in competition being found among higher-ability students and in the Northeast. Additionally, we explore how the college preparatory behavior of high school seniors has changed in response to the growth in competition. We also discuss the theoretical implications of increased competition on longer-term measures of learning and achievement and attempt to test them empirically; the evidence and related literature, while limited, suggests little long-term benefit. John Bound Department of Economics University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1220 and NBER [email protected] Brad Hershbein Department of Economics University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1220 [email protected] Bridget Terry Long Harvard University Graduate School of Education Gutman Library 465 6 Appian Way Cambridge, MA 02138 and NBER [email protected]