The USE and Olympiads as the Mechanisms of Admission to Higher Education: an Analysis of Efficiency

Despite the fact that admission based on the results of the Unified State Exam is the main mechanism of applicants selection, admission based on the results of Olympiads is an alternative mechanism for admission. Admission based on the results is widespread in the segment of highly selective universities. As a result, such situation can be observed in which at the beginning of the admission campaign, most of the budget places are occupied by the winners or prize-winners of the Olympiads. This can lead to unequal access to higher education. The study analyzes the relative effectiveness of two selection mechanisms (the unified state examination and Olympiads) in the selection of applicants for the educational program "Public Administration" of the Higher School of Economics. It was found that selection based on the USE results is the most effective method for selecting applicants. Olympiads do not show the best academic performance, but they do have significant admission benefits. As a result, recommendations were formulated for improving the admission policy of the educational program "Public Administration" of National Research University Higher School of Economics.