%0 Report
        %A Bamieh, Omar
%A Cintolesi, Andrea
%A Pagliero, Mario
        %T Estimating the Returns to Occupational Licensing: Evidence from Regression Discontinuities at the Bar Exam
        %D 2026
        %8 2026 Jul
        %I Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        %C Bonn
        %7 IZA Discussion Paper
        %N 18816
        %U https://www.iza.org/index.php/publications/dp18816
        %X We estimate the earnings returns to occupational licensing by exploiting regression discontinuities at the Italian bar exam. Law graduates who became lawyers after barely passing the exam earned 20,000 euros (50%) more per year than they would have in alternative occupations. This premium is not driven by monopoly rents from entry barriers. Instead, it reflects a compensating differential for the greater earnings risk inherent in the legal profession relative to the outside options available to law graduates.
        %K labor market regulation
%K occupational licensing
%K field of study
%K lawyers