Current Projects
How have recent changes impacted the field of admissions?
Through this qualitative project, we aim to understand how the field of admissions has changed over the past decade given significant policy and practice disruptions. Our goal is to interview 100 admission officers at different institutions to gain a broad understanding of what admissions practices currently entail and how admissions professionals are navigating a turbulent admissions landscape.
Is Calculus a Gatekeeper in Selective College Admissions?Insights from a Lab-in-the-Field Experiment with Admissions Officers
Lower-resourced high schools are far less likely to offer calculus, raising concerns that calculus availability may be a gatekeeper in selective college admissions. Using a lab-in-the-field experiment (292 admissions officers, 1768 total observations), we investigate whether STEM applicants are penalized for not taking calculus—even when it was unavailable to them. We also investigate whether Asian American applicants without calculus are more heavily penalized compared to similar White applicants.
Paper forthcoming
Are College Applicants Penalized for Not Submitting Test Scores? Experimental Evidence on Test-Optional Admissions
This study contributes to the growing body of literature on test-optional admissions policy by examining the decision making of individual admission officers as they evaluate STEM applications with and without standardized testing data. Through a lab-in-the-field experiment, we investigate whether STEM applicants who submit standardized testing are more likely to receive admission recommendations than equally qualified applicants without test scores. Informed by the Shifting Standards Model, we also test whether Asian American applicants who decline to submit test scores are evaluated more negatively than their White peers.
Paper forthcoming