A new approach to researching school effects on higher education participation is proposed here, which combines insights from the school effectiveness field of research with sociological theories and concepts of schooling. In doing so, it draws attention to some of the problems with the dominant approach often taken in this area and attempts to offer a more analytically precise way of measuring and explaining school effects on higher education choice. It will be argued that whilst past approaches can make it difficult to decipher school effects, the new approach proposed here provides greater understanding about the extent and nature of the school's influence.