Entrepreneurial returns to college

Edwin Leuven and Ingrid Mikkelsen Semb

Memo 03/2025

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Abstract

How does college education shape entrepreneurship? We first document striking differences between college fields in the share of students becoming entrepreneurs. We then leverage quasi-random variation in college admissions near GPA-based thresholds to study the causal impact of the college environment on subsequent entrepreneurship. Exposure to more entrepreneurially intensive college programs, measured as a higher share of entrepreneurs among alumni, substantially increases the probability that a student starts their own business.

Link to the paper [PDF].

Published Nov. 28, 2025 11:46 AM - Last modified Nov. 28, 2025 11:46 AM