Resumen The aim of this paper is to examine the state of higher education in Colombia and estimate the efficiency of different academic programs from institutions of higher education in the country. To estimate efficiency measures, we use stochastic frontier techniques and the results of the Saber Pro test. Estimations evaluate the effect of variables associated with the teaching staff and infrastructure of institutions, and environmental factors that are not directly under the control institutions, such as the family income and parental education. Results highlight the importance of environmental factors, suggesting that while many institutions have margin to improve their efficiency, many of them are restricted by the influence of students’ socioeconomic factors. © 2017, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economia. All rights reserved.
Área temática D24 - Producción; Coste; Productividad del capital; Productividad total de los factores; (PTF) Productividad factorial; Capacidad I21 - Análisis de la educación I23 - Centros de enseñanza superior y de investigación