Identifying Pathways to Employment for College Students

Last registered on September 10, 2026
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Identifying Pathways to Employment for College Students
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0009878
Initial registration date
August 03, 2022

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
August 03, 2022, 3:20 PM EDT

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

Last updated
September 10, 2026, 11:00 PM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Lisa Abraham
Affiliation
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Linh Tô
PI Affiliation
Boston University
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PI Name
Neil Thakral
PI Affiliation
Brown University
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PI Name
Daniel Bennett
PI Affiliation
University of Southern California
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Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-07-01
End date
2029-09-30
Keywords
Education, Labor
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This study examines whether greater engagement with career resources during college helps improve undergraduate students' career outcomes.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Abraham, Lisa et al. 2026. "Identifying Pathways to Employment for College Students ." AEA RCT Registry. September 10. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.9878-2.0
Sponsors & Partners

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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
The intervention will randomly incentivize some participants to increase their engagement with career search activities during the academic year.
Intervention Start Date
2026-09-11
Intervention End Date
2027-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Students’ career outcomes, including engagement in the career search process, the number and type of internship or job offers received, and other intermediate stages in the career search process (e.g., interviews).
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
Please see uploaded pre-analysis plan for more detail on the primary outcomes.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Please see uploaded pre-analysis plan for more detail on the secondary outcomes.
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Please see uploaded pre-analysis plan for more detail on the secondary outcomes.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The study is an individually randomized evaluation among undergraduate students. After consenting and completing an initial survey, participants will be assigned either to a comparison group with access to existing career resources or to a group offered monetary incentives to nudge them to utilize more career resources. Outcomes will be measured using surveys and administrative records over the academic year and, where available, after the academic year.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
50/50 randomization will be conducted by computer.
Randomization Unit
Individual student
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
Not clustered
Sample size: planned number of observations
N = 500 undergraduate students (minimum)
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
With two treatment arms, each arm will have a sample size of N/2.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Please see uploaded pre-analysis plan for more detail on the power calculations.
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
RAND Human Subjects Protection Committee (HSPC)
IRB Approval Date
2026-08-28
IRB Approval Number
2021-N0110-MOD-03
Analysis Plan

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