Parag Pathak and Jay Sethuraman investigate a simplified method for understanding how lotteries are used in assigning students to schools. This work stems from design of new student assignment mechanisms coupled with interests by policymakers from authorities such as the NYC Department of Education. Here Pathak and Sethuraman uncover that single and multiple lottery mechanisms are equivalent for the problem of allocating students to schools in which students have strict preferences and the schools are indifferent.
