Department of Economics

“As a student, it is often times difficult to imagine myself in a professional role after college. Before I had the opportunity to attend dinner with Mr. Brooks, I imagined that an associate at an investment firm in Chicago would be a finance robot, constantly crunching numbers in a calculator-like, money-driven brain; however, after speaking with Mr. Brooks, I learned that he is a normal person with a family who was in a very similar position as me when he was my age, which proves that aiming for success like his is both tangible and possible. Over dinner, Mr. Brooks shared with me that he began his collegiate career set on becoming a sports journalist, but upon actually studying within the major, he decided it was not for him and ended up completing his undergraduate with a degree in economics and mathematics and economics after a period of exploration. I have been experiencing difficulty declaring my own major, however, Mr. Brooks eased my anxieties by informing me that some of the most successful professionals he has encountered in his career have gone through large periods of exploration before finding their passion. Through his lecture, I also had the opportunity to see our class material being applied in a real-world setting and learned some of the metrics that investors use to evaluate stock value, which I can directly use in my own personal investing.”

- Brant Gingerich, Class of 2021

“The alumni presentation in our Microeconomics course on equity investing through applied economics provided a refreshing change from routine lectures by enabling us to learn about economics in a different context. During the lecture, we were shown real financial documents from Fortune 500 corporations which many of us have never seen before. These were broken down in a fashion that allowed us to comprehend very high-level material. The lecture also covered ways to measure the value of a stock, the nature of competitive firms in the stock market, and how microeconomics can be applied to making choices regarding education and career choices. A thought-provoking point made by the lecturer was that incentives are integral in the business world. Namely, enabling CEOs to hold a large share of the company’s stock can incentivize them to increase the value of their firm. Through having dinner afterward with Professor Snow, Professor Glomm, and the lecturer, we were able to have our individual questions answered and learn more about promising career prospects after earning a degree in economics. This experience was incredibly valuable as it opened our eyes to the wide-ranging impacts that economics has on the world.”

- Julia Braeuner, Class of 2022