Data and Code for: Student Representation in Undergraduate Economics: The impact of STEM-designation

Principal Investigator(s):  View help for Principal Investigator(s) Anthony Underwood, Dickinson College; Emily C. Marshall, Denison University; Eren Bilen, Dickinson College

Version:  View help for Version V1

Name File Type Size Last Modified
  Underwood-Marshall-Bilen 04/28/2026 11:14:AM

Project Citation: 

Underwood, Anthony , Marshall, Emily C., and Bilen, Eren. Data and Code for: Student Representation in Undergraduate Economics: The impact of STEM-designation. Nashville, TN: American Economic Association [publisher], 2026. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2026-05-05. https://doi.org/10.3886/E247616V1

Project Description

Summary:  View help for Summary This repository includes the data and code to replicate the results presented in the paper with the following abstract: 

This paper examines the impact of optional practical training (OPT) reforms on student representation in U.S. undergraduate economics programs. As of 2023, economics degrees, designated as STEM by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, comprise around 48% of all U.S. undergraduate economics degrees conferred annually, up from 2% in 2016. Using IPEDS completions data from 1997 to 2023 and a staggered difference-in-differences approach, this paper finds that STEM-designation significantly increases the number and percentage of undergraduate economics degrees awarded to women and non-resident students but mixed effects on the number and percentage of degrees conferred to under-represented minority students.  

Scope of Project

Subject Terms:  View help for Subject Terms optional practical training; STEM; economic education
JEL Classification:  View help for JEL Classification
      A20 Economic Education and Teaching of Economics: General
      I23 Higher Education; Research Institutions
      J61 Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
Geographic Coverage:  View help for Geographic Coverage United States
Time Period(s):  View help for Time Period(s) 1997 – 2023
Collection Notes:  View help for Collection Notes This paper uses publicly available administrative data from the U.S. Department of Education Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), provided by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).

Data Used: Completions (awards/degrees conferred by program (6-digit CIP code), award level, race/ethnicity, and gender), 1997–2023; and institutional characteristics (directory information), 2023.


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V1 [2026-05-05]

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