Study strategies during emergency-related distance learning. The role of gender and field of study

Abstract We study the impact of distance learning on students’ exam choices and achievement in higher education, pointing to the mediating role of the field of study and gender. Identification relies on the exogenous shift from in-person to online teaching during the second semester of the 2019–2020 academic year in Italy due to the sudden outbreak of COVID-19. We estimate Difference-in-Differences models using administrative data for different cohorts of students from the University of Bergamo in Northern Italy. Results show that online teaching during the pandemic is associated with a lower number of credits earned and with an increase in the average grade; both outcomes are associated with a reduction in the number of exams, while postponing tougher exams pays only in terms of grades. Additional analyses provide evidence for significant heterogeneity by field of study and gender, with women in engineering degrees being those whose performance declined the most, especially in terms of passed exams. Survey evidence suggests that these results may be explained by gender differences in study-life balance, well-being and learning efficacy related to the lack of in-person relations with both peers and teachers.