TY  - RPRT
        AU  - Thomsen, Stephan L.
AU  - Haaren, Friederike von
        TI  - Did Tuition Fees in Germany Constrain Students' Budgets? New Evidence from a Natural Experiment
        PY  - 2014/Nov/
        PB  - Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        CY  - Bonn
        T2  - IZA Discussion Paper
        IS  - 8623
        UR  - https://www.iza.org/publications/dp8623
        AB  - Less than a decade ago, several German states introduced tuition fees for university education. Despite their comparatively low level, fees were perceived by the public to increase social injustice, and have been abolished. Whereas other studies have shown no effect on enrollment, we analyze the effects on students' budgets. To identify causal effects, we exploited the natural experiment established by the introduction of fees. They did not affect students' spending behavior independently of social background, but females experienced a small negative effect. Effects on other outcomes indicate that students increased their budgets only marginally; fees did not increase social inequality.
        KW  - natural experiment
KW  - student spending
KW  - tuition fees
KW  - Germany
        ER  -