Working Paper: NBER ID: w24315
Authors: Elira Kuka; Naama Shenhav; Kevin Shih
Abstract: This paper studies human capital responses to the availability of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which provides temporary work authorization and deferral from deportation for undocumented, high-school-educated youth. We use a sample of young adults that migrated to the U.S. as children to implement a difference-in-differences design that compares non-citizen immigrants ("eligible") to citizen immigrants ("ineligible") over time. We find that DACA significantly increased high school attendance and high school graduation rates, reducing the citizen-noncitizen gap in graduation by 40%. We also find positive, though imprecise, impacts on college attendance.
Keywords: DACA; human capital; education; immigration policy
JEL Codes: I20; I26; J1; J13
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| DACA (K37) | high school attendance (I21) |
| DACA (K37) | high school graduation rates (I21) |
| DACA (K37) | college attendance (I23) |
| DACA (K37) | high school graduation for males (I21) |
| DACA (K37) | high school graduation for females (I21) |
| DACA (K37) | educational attainment gap (I24) |