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We examine the effect of same-race/same-nativity networks on the annual earnings and employment of college students using data from multiple cohorts of students entering a large public college system merged with state unemployment insurance records. We identify network effects from small changes in same-race/same-nativity shares across cohorts within college-majors. White native-born, Black native-born, and Black immigrant students who belong to cohorts with larger shares of same group peers experience higher earnings and employment in the 10 years after college entry. Benefits to Black immigrants are particularly large: a 1 standard deviation increase in the share of peers who are Black immigrants results in an approximate 2 percent increase in annual earnings. Among Hispanic immigrants, the effects of same-group peers on earnings and educational attainment are negative in the years immediately after college entry, while the effects on employment are large and positive. Hispanic native-born students do not receive earnings gains from a larger potential network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The female advantage in college enrollment and completion has generated concern among university officials and sparked debate about gender-conscious college admissions. There are a number of explanations for this increasing gender imbalance on college campuses. This paper focuses on the role played by admissions policies that base decisions solely on applicants’ high school grades. Given that females earn higher grades than males, such policies can contribute to growing female shares in admissions. To exemplify this trend, I use publicly-available data from Texas to show that the Texas Top 10% plan, which guarantees public university admission to students who graduate in the top decile of their high school class, led to an increase in the female share of accepted students. The increase was particularly large among black students, where the female share of admitted students was already highest among the major racial/ethnic groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]