New Class of First-Year Master’s Students Arrive

New Class of First-Year Master’s Students Arrive

23 August 2016 11:43AM

Orientation Week began Monday for incoming Duke Economics master’s students, with the department’s welcome session marking the first of several events organized specifically with the new students in mind. Other department events include a two-day math review, Q&A session with second-year students, group advising sessions, and a welcome diner.

“There’s a lot our students will need to do during Orientation Week in order to mentally and physically prepare themselves for the start of the school year,” said M.A. Program Assistant Addie Stagg. “Ultimately, they should keep in mind that there are a lot of resources at their disposal — not only in the department but also across the university.”

One crucial resource, though it may get overlooked, is friendship. “There typically is lot of camaraderie among the students, and they tend to bond quickly. With such a large class, that shouldn’t be difficult,” Stagg said. 

In the four programs combined — M.A. in economics (MAE), M.A. in analytical political economy (MAPE), M.S. in economics and computation (MSEC), and M.S. in statistical and economic modeling (MSEM) — there are 94 students, holding about steady from the previous year. They represent 11 different countries: China, Ghana, India, Italy, Mexico, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, the United States, and Vietnam.

The MAE program received 517 applications, and with 70 new students, it continues to be the Graduate School’s largest matriculating class. MSEM received 240 applications and has 4 matriculates; MSEC received 83 applications and has 11 matriculates. MAPE, in its inaugural year, received 59 applications and yielded 8 matriculates.

“The incoming MAPE students seem to be a talented, diverse class, and I’m looking forward to working with them,” said Professor Charles Becker, who serves as admissions director and co-director of graduate studies for the MAPE and MSEC programs. “Professor Pablo Beramendi, my counterpart in the Department of Political Science, and I are both enthused about the program content, and hope to build a great cohort of young modelers with excellent quantitative analysis skills.”

MAPE students can expect to gain advanced skills in formal theory (microeconomics, game theory, macroeconomics and international finance, and political choice modeling), econometrics and data analytic techniques, and probability and statistics. 

In a group of such high-achieving students, Becker understands there already will be some anxiety about future career choices — specifically, the choice between Ph.D. programs or jobs. “It's an important choice, but it is one that is likely to change, and also will become revealed as one discovers how much one loves research relative to policy-making or operations,” he said. “Rather, the area of interest is going to be key. As a student, you should focus on whether you care more about issues involving political structures and design, trade policy, environmental policy, or inequality; whether you enjoy theory or empirical work; or both. Once you have answered those questions, course choices, advisors, RA-ships, internships … all fall into place.”