Traditional female and male's subjects: school grades and impact on educational choices

In almost all developed countries, girls and boys have an equal access to education and seem free to choose their educational field. However, educational choices are highly gendered, and partly remain a mystery according to an economist. Girls choose more fields leading to low-paid jobs et less prestigious careers, while they perform as well as boys at school. In this paper, I test the presence of non-monetary payoff affecting educational choices, as stereotypes and social norms. Particularly, I investigate if grades influence differently girls and boys' choices, and I test the assumption that girls are more influenced by their humanity grades, while boys decide more according to science grades. I use the French pupils panel (Panel d'élèves du second degré 1995-2011), and I concentrate on field choice after Baccalaureat (at eighteen). First results show that students make educational choices according to their grades. However, gender differences appear and are in accordance with the stereotype: girls have a lower probability to choose science, even if they are talented in science.