  This survey article provides insights regarding the future of affirmative
action by analyzing the implementation methods and the empirical evidence on
the use of placement quotas in the Brazilian higher education system. All
federal universities have required income and racial-based quotas in Brazil
since 2012. Affirmative action in federal universities is uniformly applied
across the country, which makes evaluating its effects particularly valuable.
Affirmative action improves the outcomes of targeted students. Specifically,
race-based quotas raise the share of black students in federal universities, an
effect not observed with income-based quotas alone. Affirmative action has
downstream positive consequences for labor market outcomes. The results suggest
that income and race-based quotas beneficiaries experience substantial
long-term welfare benefits. There is no evidence of mismatching or negative
consequences for targeted students' peers.
