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The effect on science of government cuts to doctoral scholarships.

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Title: The effect on science of government cuts to doctoral scholarships.
Authors: Rossello, Giulia (AUTHOR)
Source: Studies in Higher Education. Mar2026, Vol. 51 Issue 3, p665-683. 19p.
Subjects: College scholarships, Doctoral programs, Educational finance, Scholarly publishing, Orbán, Viktor, 1963-, STEM education, Right to education, Budget cuts, Education policy
Geographic Terms: Hungary
Abstract: The 'there are too many PhDs' debate lacks evidence on the consequences of reducing the number of PhDs. This paper provides causal estimates of the impact on STEM students of cuts to government-funded PhD scholarships based on a unique quasi-natural experiment. I use data on the staggered cuts made by the Hungarian Government between 2010 and 2021 to expand Orbàn's political influence over the university system. The political aim of these cuts ensures that they are exogenous to the economic cycle and universities' evolution. The analysis uses the enrolment records of all doctoral students in Hungary and employs a generalized difference-in-differences approach. The results show that a severe cut to PhD scholarships increases the chance of PhD completion by 1 percentage point (pp) but that this positive effect is countered by a persistent and growing reduction in female and first-generation student entry rates. This suggests that while they might result in improved training and/or a more efficient education system, cuts to scholarships will come at the expense of inclusion. Additionally, the findings indicate that the negative impact on scientific production is temporary, with doctoral student productivity decreasing by 2pp and the quality of scientific output declining by 0.2–1pp. My results highlight these tradeoffs. Cuts to funding that reduce the numbers of PhD scholarships might increase efficiency in terms of student attainment but are likely to reduce inclusion, scientific production, and research quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Studies in Higher Education is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: The effect on science of government cuts to doctoral scholarships.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Rossello%2C+Giulia%22">Rossello, Giulia</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Studies+in+Higher+Education%22">Studies in Higher Education</searchLink>. Mar2026, Vol. 51 Issue 3, p665-683. 19p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22College+scholarships%22">College scholarships</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Doctoral+programs%22">Doctoral programs</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+finance%22">Educational finance</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Scholarly+publishing%22">Scholarly publishing</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Orbán%2C+Viktor%2C+1963-%22">Orbán, Viktor, 1963-</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22STEM+education%22">STEM education</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Right+to+education%22">Right to education</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Budget+cuts%22">Budget cuts</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Education+policy%22">Education policy</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Hungary%22">Hungary</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: The 'there are too many PhDs' debate lacks evidence on the consequences of reducing the number of PhDs. This paper provides causal estimates of the impact on STEM students of cuts to government-funded PhD scholarships based on a unique quasi-natural experiment. I use data on the staggered cuts made by the Hungarian Government between 2010 and 2021 to expand Orbàn's political influence over the university system. The political aim of these cuts ensures that they are exogenous to the economic cycle and universities' evolution. The analysis uses the enrolment records of all doctoral students in Hungary and employs a generalized difference-in-differences approach. The results show that a severe cut to PhD scholarships increases the chance of PhD completion by 1 percentage point (pp) but that this positive effect is countered by a persistent and growing reduction in female and first-generation student entry rates. This suggests that while they might result in improved training and/or a more efficient education system, cuts to scholarships will come at the expense of inclusion. Additionally, the findings indicate that the negative impact on scientific production is temporary, with doctoral student productivity decreasing by 2pp and the quality of scientific output declining by 0.2–1pp. My results highlight these tradeoffs. Cuts to funding that reduce the numbers of PhD scholarships might increase efficiency in terms of student attainment but are likely to reduce inclusion, scientific production, and research quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Studies in Higher Education is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=pbh&AN=192007620
RecordInfo BibRecord:
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/03075079.2025.2484656
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 19
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    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: College scholarships
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Doctoral programs
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Educational finance
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Scholarly publishing
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      – SubjectFull: Orbán, Viktor, 1963-
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: STEM education
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      – SubjectFull: Right to education
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      – SubjectFull: Budget cuts
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Education policy
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      – SubjectFull: Hungary
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      – TitleFull: The effect on science of government cuts to doctoral scholarships.
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              M: 03
              Text: Mar2026
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              Y: 2026
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