Job opportunity at EPI

For graduating seniors who do not have a job yet, Economic Policy Institute in DC is hiring two research assistants. They have hired Gettysburg grads in the past and do some really interesting policy work.

http://www.epi.org/about/jobs/

Final post for the semester (#11)

As sort of a final semester wrap-up, this week you should read Chapter 4 of Freakonomics and the journal article that inspired part of it: The Impact of Legalized Abortion on Crime by Donohue and Levitt.

On Moodle, find the articles entitled LevittAbortion.pdf and LevittAbortionCritique.pdf. Read both of them, in that order. What did you find surprising? How do you reconcile the chapter in Freakonomics and the two papers. Limit your response to 600 words.

There will be no comments on this post, but you have two weeks to work on it. It is due on Friday, May 3 at 9am.

It’s the last one, make it a good one.

Assignment #10 Spring 2013

Read Poor Economics, Chapter 7. Write a <500 word response, analyzing, not summarizing, the content. Things to think about are:

1. How do they present statistics?
2. How do the authors use statistics to make the big points in the chapter?
3. What did you learn?
4. What questions do you have left after reading the chapter?

No blog post this week

I hope you all are hard at work on your rough drafts. They are due on Friday at the beginning of class. No blog post for this week. Enjoy!

Extra credit opportunities

Three extra credit opportunities. A blog post with analysis, meaning a critique of what was said, relationship to current events or class material, etc., is due on the Monday morning following the event. Summaries of material are not sufficient to get credit for this assignment. Please limit your comments to about a page (400 words).

April 11, 7:30pm: Hesburgh Lecture on energy prices, Mara Auditorium

April 18, 11:30am: FEC Commissioner Ellen Weintraub and Bob Biersak from the Center for Responsive Politics in the Economics Department’s Annual Finance Symposium

April 18, 7pm: Former Senator Russ Feingold on Campaign Finance Reform

Assignment #9 Spring 2013

For this week’s blog post, write a brief (2-3 sentence) summary of one of the papers you’ve read regarding your research project, then answer the following questions.

• What new information does it bring to light regarding your research project?
• Does it suggest any issues you might have regarding the assumptions of the classical linear regression model?
• If it does suggest that your model might violate any assumptions of the model, do you know an easy way to fix them?
• Make sure to cite the paper in your blog post and, if possible, link to a .pdf version of the paper

Assignment #8 Spring 2013

Your regression results are due (hard copy) in class on Friday, March 22. For this week’s blog post, in 400 words or less, pick one regression and explain in detail your findings in an accessible manner. Imagine your are explaining it to your one of your grandparents. The following questions may help to guide you:

1. What is the primary relationship of interest?
2. What does the estimated coefficient on your variable of interest show?
3. What conclusions can you draw from your regression?
4. Are there things missing from your regression?
5. Can you make a causal link between your variable of interest and the outcome variable?

Nate Silver and the Voting Rights Act

If you all don’t read Nate Silver, I highly recommend it. He does an excellent job of discussing statistics and discussing how we present statistics to tell stories. His post today on the Voting Rights Act claims made by John Roberts during the Supreme Court hearings is a very good read.

Assignment #7 Spring 2013

Read Poor Economics, Chapter 4 by Banerjee and Duflo, “Top of the Class”. In post of less than 500 words, answer the following questions in a clear, concise manner. This assignment is due on Friday, March 8 at the start of class.

1. Find a news article or recent blog post (within the last six months) that addresses some of the same issues presented in the book. Offer a compare and contrast analysis of an issue in the book to the article you found. Which story do you find more convincing? How are the stories different? What additional information would you like to see? What statistics or numbers do the authors of each use to make their case?
2. Make sure to mention the news article or blog post in your post and link to the article or blog using the link function on your toolbar.
3. Leave a comment for the author on the original post or article with a short summary of your own thoughts the matter. You can even link back to your post in the comment.

Job posting at SSRC

Hi all, this might be a good opportunity for graduating seniors, if you’re interested.

Program Assistant | Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa
Summary
The Social Science Research Council (SSRC), a not-for-profit organization devoted to the advancement of social science research and scholarship, seeks a program assistant for the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa Program.

Description
The Social Science Research Council (SSRC), a not-for-profit organization devoted to the advancement of social science research and scholarship, seeks a program assistant for the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa Program.

The Next Generation of African Social Sciences Fellowship Program responds to a shortage of well-trained faculty in African higher education. The program offers fellowships to nurture the intellectual development and increase retention of early-career faculty in Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. Additionally, the program features a thematic focus on renewing basic research agendas that address peace, security, and development topics, and on strengthening interdisciplinary social science research capacity on these issues. Funded by Carnegie Corporation of New York, this project complements foundation initiatives to develop and strengthen the next generation of African scholars.

Qualifications
• Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Sciences degree

• Previous work experience with or detailed knowledge of Africa (preferred)

• Excellent interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills and a high degree of professionalism

• Excellent organizational skills with strong attention to detail

• Experience or familiarity with website and database development (preferred)

• Demonstrated ability to take initiative and respond flexibly to changing demands

• Proficiency in MS Office (including Word, Excel, and Outlook), database management, and Internet applications

• Ability to multitask and prioritize daily activities to meet competing deadlines

• 1–2 years administrative, research, or other related work experience in a nonprofit or academic environment (preferred)

• Ability to travel internationally

Responsibilities
• Support the program director with overall administration of the fellowship program.

• Develop and maintain the program’s online presence, including website and online application portal.

• Aid in the selection process of committee members, including maintaining a database of and corresponding with potential committee members.

• Plan on- and off-site workshops and meetings; this includes handling logistical support, the preparation of agendas and other materials, and all related correspondence with workshop participants, as well as supporting participants during meetings.

• Provide additional support for program workshops and meetings (e.g., take meeting notes, write up meeting summaries, etc.).

• Assist in production of advertising and program outreach materials.

• Serve as primary liaison to fellowship applicants during application seasons.

• Provide administrative support for application review process.

• Communicate with fellows and track progress through the program.

• Manage fellowship database and fellow files.

• Assist with financial budgets and expenses.

• Additional responsibilities and projects depending upon interest and capacity.

Terms, Salary and Benefits
Annual salary is $30,000. Comprehensive benefits include health, dental, vision, disability, life, and gym reimbursement; $1,500 annual tuition or student loan reimbursement; outstanding pension plan and tax savings programs; generous vacation and sick leave; and more.

Application Information
To apply, please send cover letter including where you viewed this posting, resume and brief writing sample to applications@ssrc.org (with “Next Gen Africa Fellowship PA Search” in the title of your e-mail).