New Publication in Applied Economics

So far, the effect of rankings on university choice has mostly been explored for Anglo-Saxon countries with a focus on domestic students. In the paper "University rankings as information source: Do they play a different role for domestic and international students?", Fabian Koenings, Giovanni di Meo and Silke Uebelmesser use data from a medium-sized German university to study the importance of rankings for domestic and international students. Results from an exploratory factor analysis suggest that the university position in rankings is highly relevant for both groups. Differences show up when comparing rankings and other sources of information: domestic students complement advice from classmates and alumni with rankings, while international students do this – if at all – for advice from family and friends. Interestingly, advice from authorities like teachers is substituted for rankings by international students.