The importance of cognitive and social skills for the duration of unemployment

This paper studies how cognitive and social skills in childhood are related to the duration of unemployment in adolescence and early adulthood. I estimate a flexible proportional hazard rate model for the probability of making a transition from unemployment to employment during an individual’s first unemployment spell. The analysis is based on British cohort data from the National Child Development Study. Results show that higher cognitive and social skills at the age of 7 are associated with an increased probability of finding employment, even when controlling for educational attainment. For men, these effects are mostly driven by individuals with low social skills. The results are robust to controlling for family background, parenting activities and school characteristics

Essays on skills, school choice and their long-term consequences

This thesis consists of three essays. The first essay analyses the importance of cognitive and social skills in childhood for the duration of unemployment episodes in early adulthood. The second studies the effects of a Swedish school choice reform on short- and long-term student outcomes. The third essay explores whether students from different socio-economic background or at different parts of the grade distribution were affected differently by the Swedish school choice reform