I'm interested in Everything -Patrese (Economics)
The one thing I HATE about being a student on the precipice of beginning a doctoral program is the first question EVERYONE asks me is "What are your research interests?" I am currently crafting an automatic response for this question (so people can not ask follow up questions after I attempt to answer this), because my research interests are macroeconomics, monetary theory, development economics, and economic growth- and saying this is equivalent to saying “I am interested in almost everything in Economics.”
I know that the sole purpose of a doctoral degree is to seek a career that engages in research, and eventually I believe I will seek a position within academia to do just this. My interest in research was mostly influenced by my involvement in the 2012 American Economics Association (AEA) Summer Research program at the University of New Mexico. While I was participating in the AEA program we looked at an array of data sets that contained information pertaining to economic growth, neonatal care in Nepal, patent infringements, geographic locations of american poverty, drug use, educational attainment rates, etc. etc. From this research program I learned that economic theory and econometric tools can be applied to almost any data set and that data analysis has the potential to answer and explain almost any and everything.
I have always been extremely interested in people why they do what they do, move where they move, why some people are poor and others extremely rich. While other disciplines like psychology, sociology, and anthropology seek to answer these questions these subjects (in my opinion) were never concrete- they lacked the use of quantitative tools to prove their theories and methods and looked more to qualitative evidence to support their postulations, while some people might enjoy qualitative work I gravitate towards more quantitative and analytical areas. Economics merged my interest in people and the choices they make with my love of mathematics and analytical work (it was a perfect fit).
As I matriculate through the PhD program here and learn more economic theory, mathematics and statistics my research interests will evolve into a more defined area. An undergrad professor used the analogy that grad school was like Home Depot a place for you to pick up all the tools to build something new. I’m not sure what I am building yet, but I am looking forward to adding some tools to my toolbox so that I may contribute new research to the the preexisting body of knowledge within my discipline. Whether this future research will explore the dynamics of trans-generational poverty or how monetary policy influences the macroeconomic environment I am unsure (currently these are two things that I am interested in). For now I question everything about people and the choices they make and am excited about learning new tools, techniques, and existing theories that will help me answer some of of the more pertinent questions being asked in our society.
And I am unsure what my research topic will be for the summer. Maybe that will be in my next blog post.
-Patrese
Hey Patrese,
ReplyDeleteThanks for this contribution. Whereas there is an emphasis on specialization and specificity more and more as we advance, there is still a role for exploration. And in fact, the capacity to still be open will only make your graduate experience that more fruitful, as you'll be able to explore these interests and open questions at the highest level and with the most capable people. So in that respect, you're in a better position than most :)
I know how you feel, being interested in basically everything about your field, while I am particularly drawn to one area of mathematics I enjoy studying almost all the others. I am sure as you take graduate courses and engage in research you will begin to find that one area that really calls to you.
ReplyDeleteI can also appreciate your interest in people, and your preference for quantitative over qualitative work, I hope you enjoy your research this summer and I wish you the best with finding your niche.