Next week is registration\u00a0for fall semester, which means Economics majors planning on graduating will be signing up for thesis seminar! This year the economics thesis will become an \u201cIn Progress\u201d course, which\u00a0will allow thesis students to have two semesters to write their theses, and students can choose between three professors.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0economic thesis professors are Kate Stirling, Matt Warning, and Bruce Mann, and the structure of the classes are designed to be similar. They all, however, have different research backgrounds\u00a0and foci as economics professors.\u00a0It is recommended that thesis students choose\u00a0a professor that focuses what you want to study.\u00a0Professor Stirling<\/a> has a strong\u00a0research background in poverty and\u00a0gender economics,\u00a0Professor Warning<\/a>\u00a0has a good deal of experience in international and development economics,\u00a0and Professor Mann<\/a>\u00a0focuses on labor and urban\u00a0economics, to very briefly generalize their research. Follow the links to get a little bit more information on each one specifically and check out their publications. Students are\u00a0not\u00a0limited to the scope of their thesis advisor\u2019s specific background, but it\u2019s helpful to know what you\u2019re interested in. The process can be difficult to get started though so this article is intended to help you find a place to start.<\/p>\n Choose something you like<\/strong><\/p>\n For most people, this will be the longest economics paper you write as an undergraduate, so you\u2019ll want to choose something you are genuinely interested. Don\u2019t choose a topic because you \u201cshould\u201d do, or choose something because it\u2019ll be easy. You\u2019ll get tired and burnt out. Take the time to choose something that you enjoy. It\u2019ll\u00a0fuel your energy to keep writing\u00a0and\u00a0rewriting in the long run, help you\u00a0get started, and help you power through the final months.<\/p>\n Start by\u00a0thinking about classes you\u2019ve been in. Did you enjoy taking Behavior Economics?\u00a0Or did you write a paper you\u2019re particularly proud of in Gender Economics? Pull out some of your old work that you\u2019ve done and see if it reignites interest in something you\u00a0have worked on before.\u00a0Expanding on a previous paper or\u00a0research project is highly encouraged by the professors for the thesis\u00a0and puts you ahead of the game.<\/p>\n Look at examples<\/strong><\/p>\n Reading examples of previous theses\u00a0can be very helpful for getting ideas on how broad or specific your idea will end up being. Many theses from previous Economics majors at Puget Sound\u00a0are posted online<\/a>.\u00a0Realize that these papers are much farther along than you need to be, but it can be helpful to see the end point and work with that in mind. They can also be\u00a0helpful in thinking about what kind of paper you\u2019ll write.\u00a0You\u2019ll notice that there are several types of papers you can write.\u00a0Mainly these are categorized as\u00a0theoretical, empirical, or case studies. You don’t have to decide which kind of paper you want to write right now, but it can help ground you to think about which kind you’d like to do. [Editor’s Note: Also see Thesis Corner<\/a> for in-depth interviews with thesis writers themselves!<\/em>]<\/p>\n Think about potential sources<\/strong><\/p>\n Depending on the type of paper some research projects will learn more heavily on citations or data sets\u00a0and often times, students find\u00a0their biggest challenge is lack of relevant sources or data. Having an econometric section is not required, but having at least some data to rely on is a great way to support your thesis, and thus it can be helpful for some people to work backwards. Take a minute and do some basic\u00a0searches in relevant data sources\u00a0to see if your topic generally has data.<\/p>\n For example, you might be interested in looking into illegal trade in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but not be able to find enough economic research\u00a0to do a paper, short of doing research on the ground yourself. In contrast however, writing about something local can bridge this gap. Doing your own research in Tacoma or the Northwest could\u00a0 give you access to datasets\u00a0and it wouldn\u2019t be\u00a0unreasonable to email local organizations for potential datasets.<\/p>\n Keep at it<\/strong><\/p>\n Don\u2019t go too long without thinking about your topic. Keep it fresh in your mind and ask new questions. Do a Google search to see what\u2019s out there,\u00a0or check out a book.<\/p>\n The moral of this story is, start thinking about your thesis topic now.\u00a0The thesis professors are all available to talk over the summer, by email\u00a0to give advice. Start thinking about what you want to write about now, you will thank yourself later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Next week is registration\u00a0for fall semester, which means Economics majors planning on graduating will be signing up for thesis seminar! This year the economics thesis will become an \u201cIn Progress\u201d course, which\u00a0will allow thesis students to have two semesters to write their theses, and students can choose between three professors. The\u00a0economic thesis professors are Kate Stirling, Matt Warning, and Bruce Mann, and the structure of the classes are designed to be similar. They all, however, have different research backgrounds\u00a0and foci as economics professors.\u00a0It is recommended that thesis students choose\u00a0a professor that focuses what you want to study.\u00a0Professor Stirling has a Continue reading Choosing a Thesis Topic<\/span>