Template-Type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Carmen Aina 
Author-X-Name-First: Carmen
Author-X-Name-Last: Aina
Author-Email: carmen.aina@uniopo.it
Author-Workplace-Name: Dipartimento di Studi per l’Economia e l’Impresa, Università del Piemonte Orientale
Author-Name: Gabriele Lombardi
Author-X-Name-First: Gabriele
Author-X-Name-Last: Lombardi
Author-Email: gabriele.lombardi3@unisi.it 
Author-Workplace-Name: Area Organizzazione e Sistemi Informativi, Università degli Studi di Siena
Author-Name: Chiara Mussida
Author-X-Name-First: Chiara
Author-X-Name-Last: Mussida
Author-Email: chiara.mussida@unicatt.it 
Author-Workplace-Name: Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali,DISES, Università Cattolica, Piacenza
Title: Are business and economics alike?
Abstract: This paper investigates the decision of Italian high school leavers to enroll at Economics or Business degree courses. We use
data from National Student Register gathered by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research, which provides information
for all the students that enroll at the university as well as their academic career. The academic years analysed are 2008-2015. From the
aggregate data, we know that at matriculation, the ratio between the enrollment in Economics and Business is 1:3, but what happens in the
following years? Is that proportion stable or does it change? We estimate a multiple equation system model for each field of study. First,
we focus on the determinants of the decision to enroll. We analyse whether Economics and Business that might be perceived as similar
at the time of enrollment, might instead be different in many respects. Second, we exploit the panel component of the dataset to investigate
what happens after the first-year: is the student still enrolled in the same field? Or, is the student enrolled in a different major, or in a
different topic? We offer policy implications. 
Length: 26 pages
Creation-Date: 2020-10
Publication-Status: Published in Review of Economics
File-URL: http://www.dipartimenti.unicatt.it/dises-dises-wp_20_147.pdf
File-Format: Application/pdf
File-Function: First version, 2020
Number: dises2047
Classification-JEL: I20, I21, C30
Keywords: University performance; Major Switching; Dropout; Italy 
Handle: RePEc:ctc:serie2:dises2047