Master's Students

 

Taige Wang, Course Track MS Student

I truly appreciate the opportunities the Econ MS program at Tufts provided me with. I studied Mathematics at William & Mary as my undergraduate. I am thankful to Tufts Economics for the generous tuition scholarship, which is a recognition of my achievement in the past. Moreover, the whole environment is supportive and professional. The professors and administrators helped me waive a course in statistics that I have taken before. Also, they frequently send us job opportunities via email. I obtained a part-time research assistant position even before the program began. I also had great experiences with the lieutenant at University Police Department and other notaries on campus while applying for employment authorization. You could feel this is a “student-centered” community!

 

Kendall Mahavier, Course Track MS Student

After graduating from Oberlin College with a B.A. in Economics in 2018, I spent the next few years working as an Economist for the U.S. Department of Transportation. Specifically, I worked with the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, an agency based in Cambridge, MA. My job has given me wonderful exposure to applied economics and the variety of career opportunities that are available to economists. Many of my colleagues at work had advanced graduate degrees, and I eventually decided that it was time to return to school to get a Master’s degree to improve my knowledge of economics and further my career. I love living in Boston, and knew I wanted to stay in the area, which was one of the many reasons that Tufts was a perfect choice for me. The one-year, course-based program was exactly I was looking for. I know that the Tufts program will set me up for future career success, and I’m so excited to see where this journey will take me!

 

John Luigi Dela Pena, Research Track MS Student

The Tufts Master’s in Economics strikes the balance between a rigorous curriculum apt for those gearing towards a PhD and a practically tailored program to those aspiring to be applied economists in any field right after graduation.  As a former forex professional from the Philippines transitioning as an economist tackling energy markets and environmental issues, I was able to delve deeper not only to what I have learned from my undergraduate economics, but also to the how-tos in the frontiers in recent empirical research. The Economics Department supports students through various avenues, be it via interacting with professors turned mentors and the diverse cohort of students, extending scholarship and on-campus employment opportunities, or enabling students to explore other courses from other departments. Academically rooted yet contemporarily oriented, the Master's in Economics at Tufts is the optimal choice for anyone passionate in the theory and practice of Economics.  

 

Jie Zhou, Research Track MS Student

Before coming to Tufts for my graduate study, I did my undergraduate study in the field of International Economics and Trade in Beijing. I want to pursue a PhD in economics or a relevant field, so I applied for several Master’s programs to have a more solid background. The reasons I chose Tufts include the excellent faculty, rigorous coursework, good location, the availability of scholarship, and TA and RA opportunities. After I came here, I found that our department is a very welcoming and warm family. All the professors, staff, and students are very helpful and supportive. I believe Tufts is a great choice and will lay a solid foundation for my future career development.

 

Fatimah Faisal, Research Track MS Student

As an undergraduate student of Economics and Politics at LUMS University, Pakistan’s leading research facility, I developed an interest in impact evaluation of social policies through econometric techniques. My on-ground experience of working with community organizations in rural areas on education reform and women-led poverty reduction led me to discover a gap in my technical skills. In the quest for building the right skillset, I found the quantitatively rigorous program being offered by Tufts to be the perfect fit. At a glance, I discovered that the faculty is well affiliated with renowned organizations in my area of interest such as J-PAL; that’s when I knew I wanted to stay for the second year by opting for the Research Track. The flexibility in structure allowed me to take courses from The Fletcher School as well as the Computer Science department, equipping me with useful research tools. The generous scholarships offered, along with an access to the rich academic community in Boston, make Tufts an excellent choice for an aspiring graduate student of economics.  

 

Aidan S. Oliveira, Course Track MS Student

I have always had a fascination with city life and urban areas. I decided early on in college that I was interested in studying urbanism from a quantitative angle. Accordingly, I decided to pursue an undergraduate degree in Economics and Mathematics with a minor in Urban Studies when I was a student at New College of Florida. Upon completing my undergraduate studies, I enrolled in Cornell’s Regional Science Master’s Program. My time at Cornell allowed me to further expand my skill set by pursuing a diverse set of courses, such as machine learning, system dynamics, and network modeling. The skills learned from these courses have been invaluable in aiding my research on regional and urban-related topics. However, as the topics of my academic interest began to be more refined, and increasingly dependent on economic methods, I made it a goal to achieve a more thorough understanding of graduate level economic theory. In that endeavor, Tufts’ Economics MS program was perfect for two reasons: the program takes its core economics courses seriously, and there are faculty members working here who are active in urban economics research and well known for their contributions. Tufts’ MS program will give me access to faculty whose research involves the precise topics that interest me: agglomeration economies, network economics, and house price capitalization, just to name a few. After Tufts, I hope to eventually pursue a PhD program in Economics where I can continue researching these topics in greater depth.