Such is the level of political polarization in the nation that it’s now influencing where students want to attend college. A study by Riley Acton at Miami University, Emily Cook at Texas A&M University, and Paola Ugalde Araya at Louisiana State University finds that students are willing to pay thousands of dollars more in tuition to avoid classmates with opposing political views, contributing to a growing ideological divide on campus.
To better understand how ideology shapes enrollment, the researchers surveyed 1,028 undergraduates, presenting them with hypothetical colleges that varied in cost, type, location and political leanings of both the schools’ student bodies and the states in which they’re located. Using this experimental design, Acton, Cook and Araya found a strong willingness to pay for political alignment.