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In March 2024, five Economics Department faculty and 10 undergraduate and graduate students, all Dyson economics and business economics majors, presented their research papers at the annual Eastern Economic Association (EEA) conference in Boston, one of the major conferences for professional economists on the East Coast of the United States.

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The student presentations, organized by Assistant Professors Mary Kaltenberg, PhD and Eric Osborne Christenson, PhD, focused on timely topics such as labor economics, sports economics, applied microeconomics, and the savings and financial markets. Both faculty and students fielded many questions and comments from professional economists as well as other engaged attendees who took part in the well-attended sessions.

The participation in the EEA conference by students is a prime example of the many innovative, experiential education opportunities provided by the Economics Department (another being the College Federal Reserve Challenge, through which �������’s team won the National College Federal Reserve Challenge five times in the last nine years, besting Harvard and Princeton). As part of their research leading up to the EEA conference, students had the opportunity to develop analytical and quantitative skills, while also building their portfolio and resume in a way that will stand out to employees, thus enhancing their competitive edge in today’s job market.

Professor and Chair of Economics Anna Shostya said, “Through original research and guidance from faculty mentors, our students gained the capacity to convert theoretical knowledge into practical use, bridging the gap between academic learning and real-world problem-solving.” 

Training in the (economic) trenches

McKenna Moore ’24, who is in the combined program, and also a sports enthusiast, wanted to choose a topic that both interested her and was technically challenging, requiring the use and enhancement of the web scraping skills learned in R and Python classes taken at �������.

“Through weekly meetings with Professor Kaltenberg, I was able to learn about different types of modeling that I never would have been exposed to in the classroom while pursuing my dual degree."

—McKenna Moore ’24

On her experience researching the topic, An Examination of the “Loser Effect” in the NFL, she said, “Through weekly meetings with Professor Kaltenberg, I was able to learn about different types of modeling that I never would have been exposed to in the classroom while pursuing my dual degree. I was also able to lean on my peers who were simultaneously doing research to get their feedback as I progressed through this research, which was very helpful."

The comradery among students and their support of each other, in fact, did not go unnoticed by Kaltenberg, who was particularly impressed by the long hours they spent digging into each other’s research papers and their dedication to providing quality feedback. When asked about feedback provided by other attendees at the conference, she shares that many were surprised that students were at the undergraduate or even graduate level, and presenting original work.

“Many attendees assumed our students were doctoral students. I was proud of the level of their work–many used advanced econometric techniques, had clever topics and ideas, and presented professionally,” she said.

Liam Chentoufi ’25 is a BA in Economics major who, for the past two years, has also been a member of the College Federal Reserve Challenge team, which, just prior to the EEA conference, had met with the Board of Governors in Washington, DC (as well as Chairman Powell) to ask competition-specific questions to a panel of judges as a finale to the 2023 competitive season. Given this, Chentoufi was drawn to questions surrounding the Fed and the macroeconomy, and his EEA presentation topic was Understanding the Federal Reserve.

His main takeaway from the experience was learning more about how economics conferences are conducted and, relatedly, how he can further develop his research skills. He said, “In addition to presenting our own work, attendees are often asked to be a ‘discussant’ for other papers in which one presents their interpretation/questions for the peer paper assigned to them. After receiving audience feedback, I now have more organized ideas as to what can be improved upon in my personal project.”

“Many attendees assumed our students were doctoral students. I was proud of the level of their work–many used advanced econometric techniques, had clever topics and ideas, and presented professionally."

—Assistant Professor of Economics Mary Kaltenberg, PhD

Macey Cooper ’24, who is also in the combined program, had always been interested in the healthcare sector, and, when she was younger, thought she might even want to be a doctor. Her presentation topic, Medicaid and Maternal Mortality Rates, was therefore the perfect opportunity to combine her interest in both the medical field and in economics, as she chose to look at Medicaid expansion under Obamacare, and how it might affect pregnant women.

She shares how attending the EEA conference brought her out of her comfort zone as she was tasked with presenting in front of individuals outside of the ������� community. To use an economics term, her experience was very “macro:” “I was able to gain insight into how my research resonated with a broader community, and how it fits into the overall ecosystem of the economic impact on healthcare,” she said.

The importance of funding

Kaltenberg, who also presented research at the conference with colleague, Eric Osborne Christenson, PhD, on the effect of a lack of childcare access due to Covid-19 on female labor force participation, shared that many students had been motivated to continue a career in research or consider a graduate degree in economics due to their experiences.

It was all made possible by the Dyson Initiative Fund, which allows students to participate annually, versus every two to three years, as is the case with the New York City conference.

“This funding is crucial to allow every generation of economics majors the opportunity to present their work in a professional environment. We hope to send our best students who do original research to this conference every year,” said Kaltenberg.