Explaining Participation Differentials in Dutch Higher Education: The Impact of Subjective Success Probabilities on Level Choice and Field Choice

In this article we examine whether subjective estimates of success probabilities explain the effect of social origin, sex, and ethnicity on students’ choices between different school tracks in Dutch higher education. The educational options analysed differ in level (i.e. university versus professional college) and fields of study (i.e. science versus non-science). First we analyse students’ self-assessed success probabilities for specific tracks in higher education. We hypothesize that differences in demonstrated academic ability explain these perceived success probabilities. Next, we test whe... Mehr ...