Research

The affordability and stability of housing are key determinants of economic well-being, but their effects on the academic success of university students remain underexplored. This paper investigates the causal effect of early access to affordable student housing on academic performance using a unique lottery-based allocation system in Sweden. The findings show that early access to student housing significantly improves students' academic performance, with grades increasing by 28\% of a standard deviation. The results suggest that housing stability allows students to focus more on their studies, reducing the need for employment and long commutes.

Documenting productivity differences between female and male workers, and their impact on gender pay gaps, is challenging when female workers are assigned less productive tasks. This paper addresses this challenge by utilizing a context where high-skilled workers are quasi-randomly assigned to homogeneous tasks. The study focuses on the Swedish Employment Agency, where caseworkers were assigned job seekers based on their birth date within the month, ensuring that our performance measures are not confounded by task assignment. Our findings reveal that female caseworkers are at least as productive as their male counterparts and earn similar wages. However, significant gender gaps in promotions persist, with female caseworkers being substantially less likely to be promoted despite their equal productivity.