Author Archives: Jordyn McLuen

The “Anything” You Can Do with an Economics Degree Part 3:  Grad School

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The final portion of this 3-part series discusses the pros and cons of pursuing a graduate degree in economics. A graduate degree in economics is very valuable and useful if you are pursuing a career in advanced economic analysis, teaching, or research.  However, there are careers out there for economics students that do not require a Master’s degree; two of those careers are discussed in parts 1 and 2 of this series. So is the extra schooling worth the additional time and money?  As economics students know is often the case, it depends. Some Ph.D. programs offer a Master’s degree upon Continue reading The “Anything” You Can Do with an Economics Degree Part 3:  Grad School→

The “Anything” You Can Do With an Economics Degree Part 2:  Economic Consulting

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Consulting is another popular career path for recently graduated economics students; Puget Sound econ grads often go to work for firms like Hitachi Consulting.  So, what does a consulting position entail? wiseGEEK provides the following perspective on economic consulting: In general, economic consulting firms are founded by academics, usually in the fields of economics and business, who wish to apply their knowledge to real world situations by providing corporations and the public sector with research and advice on matters pertinent to their area of expertise. Essentially, economic consultants can apply their knowledge of economic theory and concepts directly to real Continue reading The “Anything” You Can Do With an Economics Degree Part 2:  Economic Consulting→

The “Anything” You Can Do with an Economics Degree Part 1:  Financial Advising

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For many graduating seniors, having a job or grad school admission lined up before you graduate is an important and stressful task.  Seniors are faced with finishing their thesis, handling their regular academic responsibilities, applying for jobs or to grad schools, and still enjoying their last year or last semester with friends they’ve made along the way. For senior economic students, things are no different.  However, as we go through the process of sorting out the beginning of our “real lives”, a lot of us hear this: “Oh, you’re graduating with an economics degree, you can do anything!” Not as Continue reading The “Anything” You Can Do with an Economics Degree Part 1:  Financial Advising→

Continue along The Why Axis with Sound Economics

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In a Sound Economics post from earlier this week, Tesha introduced us to The Why Axis. If you liked what you read and are interested in reading along with us, we will be posting along the way.  Here is our current reading/posting schedule: Week of 3/21: Chapters 1 and 2 Week of 3/28: Chapter 3 and 4 Week of 4/5: Chapter 5 and 6 Week of 4/12: Chapter 7 Week of 4/19: Chapter 8 Week of 4/26: Chapter 9 Week of 5/3: Chapter 10 and 11 We would love to hear your comments and responses as we develop and share our Continue reading Continue along The Why Axis with Sound Economics→

Seasonal workers and the ever-sensitive immigration debate

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A recent article in the Wall Street Journal discusses the recently released seasonal worker visa program, or the H-2B.  While the purpose of the program is to enable seasonal staff to do jobs that American citizens typically don’t want, there has been significant backlash. Immigration is an extremely sensitive and controversial issue across the nation.  So really any program dealing with migrant workers, even if their visas are temporary, is bound to get attention (and some backlash). The WSJ article points out that new H-2B applies primarily to certain industries (landscaping, forestry, amusement, tourism and construction), and clarifies that many Continue reading Seasonal workers and the ever-sensitive immigration debate→

No one knows how to make a pencil: Globalization and interdependence

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Consider the following question: If you…wanted to…go into the forest naked and create something from scratch, anything, what do you think you could pull off? The latest Freakonomics podcast points out something very unexpected; no individual knows how to create a pencil.  While it may seem unimportant that we won’t have artisanal pencils in the future, it raises some interesting questions about globalization and the interdependence that it has created in the production processes of even simple goods. We have evolved into a highly specialized and widely globalized society.  Each piece of a pencil, for example, is made in different places Continue reading No one knows how to make a pencil: Globalization and interdependence→

Economists and Tinder: Why economists don’t find each other on Valentine’s Day

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Valentine’s Day is almost upon us and in a recent article from The Economist, it was asked why more economists don’t find love with other economists. Would economists benefit from a dating app made just for them? Perhaps this would maximize efficiency in the dating market, or perhaps there’s a reason economists aren’t drawn to each other. They explain that the first obstacle for love between economists is that the market is not thick enough—economics is a field dominated by men. For an “economists only” dating app to work, the market would have to be thick enough to generate network Continue reading Economists and Tinder: Why economists don’t find each other on Valentine’s Day→

The economics of study abroad: Is it worth it?

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  Study abroad programs have grown more and more popular in recent years; however, skeptics wonder if the benefits are really worth the costs.  Spoiler alert:  It really depends on the program.  That being said, there are a few things to keep in mind when making the decision to study abroad. Location, program structure, and individual commitment levels will ultimately determine whether or not the experience is a huge waste of time and money. In an NPR interview with Mark Salisbury, director of Institutional Research and Assessment at Augustana College, Salisbury primarily exposes the unforeseen costs of study abroad programs. Continue reading The economics of study abroad: Is it worth it?→