Essays on school choice

This thesis, written in a three-article/chapter format, explores several questions that are at the centre of the theoretical and empirical debates around school choice in developing countries. The implementation of India’s national school choice policy provides the context for this inquiry. The policy (hereafter referred to as the 25 percent mandate) sets aside 25 percent of places in private schools for children from disadvantaged backgrounds with government paying the tuition fee to private schools. The empirical analysis in based on three primary datasets and several secondary data sources relating to the applicants to the 25 percent mandate (children aged 7-8 years) in the south Indian state of Karnataka