Andrei Munteanu
@andrei-econ.bsky.social
Assistant Professor of Economics @ the University of Québec in Montréal (UQAM) | Postdoc @ Harvard CID
Education, labor, applied micro
https://www.andrei-munteanu.com/
Education, labor, applied micro
https://www.andrei-munteanu.com/
As a Montrealer, where this has been tried before: this doesn't work, for free rider problem reasons.
December 1, 2025 at 2:14 AM
As a Montrealer, where this has been tried before: this doesn't work, for free rider problem reasons.
In short, our results identify a strategy to promote STEM higher education and careers while also highlighting potential trade-offs.
November 29, 2025 at 1:14 PM
In short, our results identify a strategy to promote STEM higher education and careers while also highlighting potential trade-offs.
4/ Assignment to STEM is risky for low-achieving kids: STEM classes require more time and are graded more harshly. Hence, doing STEM reduces low-achieving kids’ chances of passing a high school exit exam and enrolling in college.
November 29, 2025 at 1:14 PM
4/ Assignment to STEM is risky for low-achieving kids: STEM classes require more time and are graded more harshly. Hence, doing STEM reduces low-achieving kids’ chances of passing a high school exit exam and enrolling in college.
3/ Curricula affect political preferences: STEM makes boys more conservative, while shifting some of girls' views to the left. Humanities foster kids’ inclination to read, to have female friends, and to be empathetic.
November 29, 2025 at 1:14 PM
3/ Curricula affect political preferences: STEM makes boys more conservative, while shifting some of girls' views to the left. Humanities foster kids’ inclination to read, to have female friends, and to be empathetic.
2/ Assignment changes beliefs/preferences: Students who study STEM come to believe they are good at STEM; those who study Humanities come to feel they are strong in Humanities. Preferences for coursework follow similarly. This holds regardless of gender or initial achievement.
November 29, 2025 at 1:14 PM
2/ Assignment changes beliefs/preferences: Students who study STEM come to believe they are good at STEM; those who study Humanities come to feel they are strong in Humanities. Preferences for coursework follow similarly. This holds regardless of gender or initial achievement.
1/ Assignment to STEM vs. humanities affects what students do: for example, students who study STEM in high school are 25 percentage points more likely to also do it in college (with symmetrical effects for Humanities).
November 29, 2025 at 1:14 PM
1/ Assignment to STEM vs. humanities affects what students do: for example, students who study STEM in high school are 25 percentage points more likely to also do it in college (with symmetrical effects for Humanities).
cont'd from before (kulaks): I think viewing exam success as meritocratic is embedded in the mentality and will be difficult to dislodge. Whenever I talk to Romanians, they find the current system "fair".
September 2, 2025 at 8:13 PM
cont'd from before (kulaks): I think viewing exam success as meritocratic is embedded in the mentality and will be difficult to dislodge. Whenever I talk to Romanians, they find the current system "fair".
A thought: a really nice book I read "Peasants under siege" made the case that the Romanian peasant mentality (and let's be honest, we were a country of peasants until recently) is that hard work = success. Outrage at kulaks didn't really work in Romania.
September 2, 2025 at 8:12 PM
A thought: a really nice book I read "Peasants under siege" made the case that the Romanian peasant mentality (and let's be honest, we were a country of peasants until recently) is that hard work = success. Outrage at kulaks didn't really work in Romania.
That's a very good and tough question. I am leaning towards "by chance", because this system has been in place in times when studying abroad was either 1. impossible, or 2. was not as difficult as today.
September 2, 2025 at 8:10 PM
That's a very good and tough question. I am leaning towards "by chance", because this system has been in place in times when studying abroad was either 1. impossible, or 2. was not as difficult as today.
I had to look up the "Magurele laser", I have to admit. The name is so good, it sounds made up. It almost sounds like "Falansterul de la Scăieni", or something like that.
September 2, 2025 at 3:26 PM
I had to look up the "Magurele laser", I have to admit. The name is so good, it sounds made up. It almost sounds like "Falansterul de la Scăieni", or something like that.
I don't disagree with you. I'm just saying the current system, if you buy my argument, does maximize something. Namely, admissions to top schools abroad. There are reasons why this may be desirable. I'm not arguing that it's socially optimal, of course. I'm just saying there is a logic to it.
September 2, 2025 at 3:23 PM
I don't disagree with you. I'm just saying the current system, if you buy my argument, does maximize something. Namely, admissions to top schools abroad. There are reasons why this may be desirable. I'm not arguing that it's socially optimal, of course. I'm just saying there is a logic to it.
Sure, but Romania is a country of 20 million people with very low educational attainment by most standards. I'm not sure that in expectation, if you randomly draw Fields medal winners, you would expect Romania to have one.
September 2, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Sure, but Romania is a country of 20 million people with very low educational attainment by most standards. I'm not sure that in expectation, if you randomly draw Fields medal winners, you would expect Romania to have one.
In fact conditional on Western unis existing and being very selective, it does seem like it could be a good strategy to just max out on signaling high ability via Olympiads in order to insure that a lot of HS students get admitted. Then, they egt the best possible education.
September 2, 2025 at 2:04 PM
In fact conditional on Western unis existing and being very selective, it does seem like it could be a good strategy to just max out on signaling high ability via Olympiads in order to insure that a lot of HS students get admitted. Then, they egt the best possible education.
I agree. Counterfactuals are very hard... Especially when the two comparison groups (Western countries vs Romania) are different on so many dimensions... But when you have resources that are very rationed, like in Romania, if your goal is to produce elites, it might actually be quite efficient.
September 2, 2025 at 2:02 PM
I agree. Counterfactuals are very hard... Especially when the two comparison groups (Western countries vs Romania) are different on so many dimensions... But when you have resources that are very rationed, like in Romania, if your goal is to produce elites, it might actually be quite efficient.
I am also in early talks about writing an article about this. :) Yes, I agree, empirical evidence is needed.
September 2, 2025 at 2:00 PM
I am also in early talks about writing an article about this. :) Yes, I agree, empirical evidence is needed.
Oh, and I agree in principle that there's too much overspecialization and too early. The interesting thing is that humanities is actually more overspecialized, in the sense that science students have a lot of language classes, but humanities students have almost no science training.
September 2, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Oh, and I agree in principle that there's too much overspecialization and too early. The interesting thing is that humanities is actually more overspecialized, in the sense that science students have a lot of language classes, but humanities students have almost no science training.
As for Romania's performance in the Olympiads: it really is a lot like sports in communism. You have quasi-professionalism in some countries like Romania competing with what essentially amount to a hobby in the West. Of course the former system will have good results.
September 2, 2025 at 11:01 AM
As for Romania's performance in the Olympiads: it really is a lot like sports in communism. You have quasi-professionalism in some countries like Romania competing with what essentially amount to a hobby in the West. Of course the former system will have good results.
I strongly agree with you, with one exception. I do believe that Olympiads create scientific elites. However, the irony is that those elites are almost exclusively trained abroad. The Olympics is just a signaling mechanism for these very good students to gain admission to elite Western universities.
September 2, 2025 at 10:59 AM
I strongly agree with you, with one exception. I do believe that Olympiads create scientific elites. However, the irony is that those elites are almost exclusively trained abroad. The Olympics is just a signaling mechanism for these very good students to gain admission to elite Western universities.
There are also other issues related to your point. Namely, what people call "teaching to the test" (for the bac). Also, I find the Romanian bac and admission exams woeful. I think they should test reading comprehension of new texts, not ask about memorized "classic", and have subject lists.
September 1, 2025 at 7:37 PM
There are also other issues related to your point. Namely, what people call "teaching to the test" (for the bac). Also, I find the Romanian bac and admission exams woeful. I think they should test reading comprehension of new texts, not ask about memorized "classic", and have subject lists.
A very good point. Not only does the Romanian system track by ability, but also places students in highly-specialized tracks. My coauthors and I are currently working on a project comparing the effects of the different types of tracks (real, uman, tehnologic) on different outcomes, including non-cog
September 1, 2025 at 7:33 PM
A very good point. Not only does the Romanian system track by ability, but also places students in highly-specialized tracks. My coauthors and I are currently working on a project comparing the effects of the different types of tracks (real, uman, tehnologic) on different outcomes, including non-cog
... footage cuts to Brodeur playing the puck behind the net.
July 7, 2025 at 1:58 AM
... footage cuts to Brodeur playing the puck behind the net.