@workingpaper {683960, title = {School-Based Mentoring Relationships and Human Capital Formation. }, year = {Working Paper}, abstract = { We document a largely unrecognized pathway through which schools promote human capital development {\textendash} by fostering informal mentoring relationships between students and school personnel. Using longitudinal data from a large, nationally representative sample of adolescents, we explore the frequency, nature, and consequences of school-based natural mentorships. Estimates across a range of fixed effect (FE) specifications, including student FE and twins FE models, consistently show that students with school-based mentors achieve greater academic success and higher levels of post-secondary attainment. These apparent benefits are evident for students across a wide range of backgrounds but are largest for students of lower socioeconomic status. }, url = {https://edworkingpapers.com/ai21-441}, author = {Kraft, M. A. and Bolves, A. and Hurd, N.} }