This study is led through a long-standing partnership between Josh Angrist, Parag Pathak, and New York City Public Schools. They link the district’s high school admissions lottery and administrative data to novel Internal Revenue Service and Census Bureau data, providing causal evidence on the long‑run mobility impacts of skills developed in high school career and technical education (CTE) courses across comprehensive and specialized schools. The unique outcome data allow for more careful examination of economic mobility using parental education and income with the students’ later federal earnings records and social safety net participation to estimate the long‑term effects of New York City’s CTE pathways on adult labor market outcomes. The researchers also examine how different CTE programs cultivate academic and career‑oriented competencies that translate into mobility for different student groups. Leveraging randomized elements of New York City’s high school admissions system, the study generates causal evidence to illuminate how CTE works, for whom it is most effective, and how it can inform future policy and program design while complementing ongoing research supported by current grantees.

Data Sources 

• Data: NYC high school admissions rankings, educational administrative and test data, and NYC School Survey data, National Student Clearinghouse postsecondary enrollment and completion records, and parent education and occupation
• Mobility Outcomes: Census and IRS long-term earnings and employment outcomes data