Information and STEM majors: A Matched Pair Cluster-Randomized Control Trial

Last registered on June 28, 2021
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Information and STEM majors: A Matched Pair Cluster-Randomized Control Trial
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0007883
Initial registration date
June 26, 2021

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
June 28, 2021, 4:45 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
China
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Ming Gu
Affiliation
Duke Kunshan University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Junjie Zhang
PI Affiliation
Duke Kunshan University
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2021-06-26
End date
2021-07-31
Keywords
Education
Additional Keywords
Information, STEM, Higher Education
JEL code(s)
I2, J24
Secondary IDs
Abstract
The goal of the study is to determine whether providing information on the current state of affairs of STEM occupations/industries (in comparison with other occupations/industries) affects the major choice of science-track high school graduates. The information will be provided to high school graduates and their parents through a mobile website via private messaging through Wechat (a widely used messaging and social media app with over one billion users worldwide).
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Gu, Ming and Junjie Zhang. 2021. "Information and STEM majors: A Matched Pair Cluster-Randomized Control Trial." AEA RCT Registry. June 28. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.7883-1.0
Sponsors & Partners

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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2021-06-28
Intervention End Date
2021-07-02

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
• Choosing a STEM major as the first-choice in college application
• Percentage of STEM majors in college application
• Receiving an offer to a STEM university program
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Students and their parents from two high schools (21 science-track classes) are potential participants. Classes in the same course tracks from the same school are first put into pairs. Each course track denotes a particular three-course combination, e.g. "physics, biology, and chemistry" is one particular course track whereas "physics, biology, and geography" is another. Students from the same class study the same three subjects in their last two years of high school, and they are tested on these three subjects during the National College Entrance Examination (NCEE). We will use a computer to perform a random selection process to assign one class from each pair into treatment group and the other into control group.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization done by a psuedorandom number generator in Stata.
Randomization Unit
Class
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
21 Classes
Sample size: planned number of observations
2100
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
11 Classes
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Duke Kunshan University Institutional Review Board
IRB Approval Date
2021-06-19
IRB Approval Number
FWA00021580
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials