From Data to Action
Drawn to the field of economics by its blend of mathematical rigor and real-world impact, undergraduate Ella Curiel is exploring how numbers can drive social change. As she tells it, you might not be able to get people to agree with you politically but no one can ignore what the data says.
Why economics?
To me, economics perfectly intersects math and the social sciences. I chose economics because throughout my childhood, I enjoyed it, which is not something that's common and I wanted to take advantage of that fact.
In high school, I took a macroeconomics course that connected our lessons to the real world. It made me realize that not only could I apply those concepts, but I could also do it at an even higher quantitative level, that was what made me truly fall in love with economics.
The support behind the program
The level of effort I've seen advisors and the director of undergraduate studies put into this department and its students makes me passionate about the department. The advisors take on a lot to help facilitate the Economic Student Organization, the Economics Undergraduate Student Board, and the Women in Economics program. They've helped me to become successful by providing me with so many opportunities—it's just something that you don't always see.
The Women in Economics program connects current students, women, and non-binary people in the economics major with a mentor who is currently in the field or retired. They have the experience of what it's like to go to grad school and look for a job or be in the workforce as a woman in a male-dominated field.
It was validating to talk to these people who have much more experience in life than me and hear them say, "Yeah, your concerns are valid,” and “I can't tell you it's going to go away, but I can tell you it'll be okay."
The unique opportunities at UMN
The extensive opportunities the economics program has available have always stood out to me because of the different extracurricular activities and programs you can participate in. There are so many ways to get involved.
[For example] if you decide to get involved with the Economic Student Organization, they focus mainly on contacting employers, networking, and applying those connections in a professional setting. But if you get involved with the Economics Undergraduate Student Board, there's more of a focus on community building within the major and advocacy work for future majors.
All of these things give students different ways to get involved, find out how to lead and what kind of leader they want to be.
Currently, I’m participating as an undergraduate research assistant (RA) through the Heller-Hurwicz Economics Institute (HHEI) for Dr. Fahima Aziz. Every year there's a cohort of probably 12 to 15 undergrad RAs who work on research for the faculty and professors here. Right now I’m working on determining why the female labor force participation rate has decreased over the past 10 years.
But [being a research assistant goes] beyond just doing research on an undergrad level. HHEI has a more specific mission of connecting economic research to policy and providing research to influence policy. As an undergrad, it is a unique and rewarding experience to assist with research that has a larger target audience than just the field of academia. It's also a paid position so it's not something you sign up for. It can be a very selective program, and the alumni of this program have gone on to be very successful both in grad school and the workforce.
How research shapes economics
Research is how you investigate and analyze trends, which has a direct influence on public policy. Every time you see an inflation rate changing or you see that the Fed (Federal Reserve System) has lowered the interest rates, there's research and an analysis behind that.
Some big things that economics looks into are poverty, income inequality, research surrounding the causes of poverty, how to reduce it, and who's most affected by it.
You can see the distribution of wealth in the United States, and you always hear about the 1% (people with the highest income or net worth), So we look at how the economy can be more equal as far as the distribution of wealth across the entire country. Wealth redistribution—how to do it, what it means, and whether it will help the economy—has always been a hot topic for economists to discuss.
For my honors thesis, I’m looking into the impact of use of private prisons on the number of inmates that return to prison within three years, and the indirect costs of such impact. I also wrote a paper on the economic cost of incarceration and comparing it to the cost of investing more in welfare programs, crime prevention programs, and other deterrence methods.
By putting the numbers behind those issues, you can see how much we're spending to put somebody in prison, how much we could be spending to deter them from crime and use those numbers to influence policy within the criminal justice system or even reevaluate methods of prison reform.
Opportunities after graduation
An economics degree is very versatile as far as the jobs and opportunities it opens up post-graduation. It offers a toolkit for economic students to use by teaching them how to apply abstract concepts to public policy, data analytics, research, or even law.
One of the reasons I got into this major is to offer an economic perspective on social issues and public policies. So, after graduation, I'm interested in exploring how to use economics to influence public policy. Hopefully, I’ll pursue either a PhD in economics or even a master's in public policy with an economic emphasis.
This story was written by Joy Edwards, an undergraduate student in CLA.
