What Kind of Teachers Are Schools Looking For? Evidence from a Randomized Field Experiment

Abstract

Teacher quality is a pressing public policy concern, yet there is little evidence on what types of teachers schools actually prefer to hire. This paper reports the results of an experiment that involved sending schools fi ctitious resumes with randomly-chosen characteristics in an attempt to determine what characteristics schools value when hiring new teachers. The results of the study suggest that an applicant's academic background has little impact on the likelihood of success at private and charter schools, although public schools respond more favorably to candidates from more selective colleges. Additionally, private schools demonstrate a slight preference for female candidates, and all three sectors demonstrate a preference for in-state candidates.

Lost to the System? A Descriptive Exploration of Teacher Candidates’ Career Paths

“…Other research provides contrasting evidence about whether teacher licensure requirements are positively (Larsen et al, 2020) or negatively (Angrist & Guryan, 2008; Hanushek & Pace, 1995) related to the academic caliber of those who opt into teaching. There is also mixed evidence about the extent to which school systems favor hiring more academically capable teachers (Ballou, 1996; Boyd et al 2011; Boyd et al, 2013; Hinrichs, 2014).…”