The latest article on Partisan conflict and private investment by Professor Marina Azzimonti was published in the Journal of Monetary Economics on November 7, 2017.
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Meta Brown, Associate Professor, will be joining the Department of Economics in Spring 2017.
Prof. Brown is an applied microeconomist studying households’ consumption, investment,
and labor market experiences. Recent topics include the “graying” of American consumer
debt, the evolution of young Americans’ financial sophistication, the contributions
of debt, jobs, and housing to the surge in living with parents, the role of job market
referrals in shaping careers, and parents’ interdependent time investments in their
children in the shadow of family law. Her work has appeared in the American Economic
Review, the Review of Economic Studies, and the Review of Financial Studies, among
other outlets, and has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the National
Institutes of Health. Meta has worked as a Senior Economist at the Federal Reserve
Bank of New York and an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
She holds a Ph.D. from NYU.
The Today Show NBC: http://www.today.com/health/60-new-middle-age-heres-why-its-awesome-t15331
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NEWS & EVENTS
SBU Economics Faculty and Graduate students Attend American Economic Association Annual Meeting 2023
January 6-8, 2023 New Orleans, Louisiana Stony Brook University Department of Economics was represented by faculty and student attendees at the 2023 ASSA/AEA Annual Meeting.
Associate Professor David Wiczer, presented in the paper session Evidence and Theory
on MPC Heterogeneity on Friday January 6th , presenting on The Marginal Propensity
to Repay Debt. Dr. Wiczer was also a discussant in the paper session Covid-19 Pandemic
Economics: Incorporating Governement Data on Saturday January 7th . Visiting Associate
Professor Serguei Maliar presented in the paper session What AI Can Do in Economics?
on Friday January 6th , presenting on Deep Learning: Solving HANC and HANK Models
in the Absence of Krusell Smith Aggregation and Testing for Asymmetric Information
with Neural Networks.
Our Department sponsored several Ph.D. students to attend the ASSA/AEA meeting. Attendees
included Jiaxu Han, Brett Indelicato, Boyang Li, Lei Li, Siyuan Lyu, Rong Wang, and
Zhuotong Xie, The experience afforded students unique access to learning, professional
networking, and the cultural experience of visiting New Orleans.
This was my first time to spend a few days at such a splendid academic event, and
enjoyed every second. Based on my observation, a mass of empirical topics is broadly
discussed at ASSA 2023, such as education, market design, AI labor force, etc. It
is obvious that the economists are paying more and more attention to questions in
the real, post-COVID world. Not many lectures and papers are theory-based, but I still
managed to take a look at a few, and it is very helpful to see what the other young
scholars in micro theory are doing. January in New Orleans is still warm, which makes
the trip even more pleasant. When walking in the street of French Quarter, I saw people
discussing their research as well as musicians playing jazz everywhere. I guess this
strange yet harmonic scene will only happen in NOLA, and I am glad that the department
could offer this valuable chance for us to witness it in person.
- Siyuan Lyu (Third Year Ph.D.)
I really appreciate this experience. It was a great opportunity to know what’s is
going on in the economics world beyond our department. I got inspired by some great
papers about my current research interests and some aspects I never thought before.
In a word, I had a impressive trip and learned more than I expected.
- Jiaxu Han (Fourth Year Ph.D.)
I had a great experience at the 2023 ASSA annual meeting. I really appreciate our Department Chair Professor Benitez-Silva and the department for supporting our trip. I also want to thank our department recruiter, Lynette Sieger-Kamimura for organizing this trip and the wonderful dinner that she arranged. The 2023 ASSA annual meeting is the first ASSA meeting I have attended since beginning in the Ph.D. program. It was such a wonderful experience to attend sessions in person, to talk with researchers in my research field and to extend my professional network. I also met Professor David Wiczer during one session in which he gave a fantastic talk. Overall, I enjoyed my experience in the 2023 ASSA annual meeting. Hopefully going forward, we could have more opportunities like this and more people will join us!
- Rong Wang (Fourth Year Ph.D.)
New Orleans was amazing, sunshine, food, music. Everything was so fantastic, I am sure I will miss it soon. For the ASSA 2023, I enjoyed attending the sessions there, and the discussions back and forth between researchers during sessions. It was a great opportunity to know what other economists are doing and it was great to talk with other people there. I made new friends and we discussed topics that we have mutual interest in. I found new papers in my areas of interest and I would like to read them carefully after coming back. In short, it was an amazing experience being to ASSA 2023. I hope I would have an opportunity to present my paper and discuss with other researchers next time!
- Lei Li (Fourth Year Ph.D.)
"I attended the ASSA 2023 conference, as a 2nd year Ph.D. candidate, in order to further expose myself to research in the environmental and macroeconomic-climate fields. As the ASSA conference was my first ever conference, I found the process of deciding which sessions to attend at each time slot comparable to being a kid in a candy shop; there were so many intriguing paper sessions to choose from. Overwhelmed by these choices and the overall magnitude of the conference, I reached out to David Wiczer, one of my SBU professors, the night before the first day of the conference, as I had found out he was attending. Unbeknownst that he was also presenting, I asked which sessions he suggested I should attend. He encouraged me to stop by his session on 'The Marginal Propensity to Repay Debt' using stimulus checks, which was allotted for the first session of the conference at 8am on Friday. The comfortability of seeing a familiar face in an unfamiliar setting settled my nerves and allowed me to confidently navigate my way through the rest of the conference and learn more ideas than I had anticipated. I'm incredibly happy I got to visit a historic city and better prepare myself for my PhD career!"
-Brett Indelicato, (Second Year, Ph.D.)
ANNOUNCING the ROBERT ROTH Scholarship for Undergrads!
The Economics Department will offer the Robert S. Roth Scholarship in Economics to
promising students in the field of Economics who are active, full-time majors at Stony
Brook University. Go HEREfor more information.
Apply by May 15th.
Are you UNDECIDED?!
Join us for our "Major" Event!
On Wednesday, APRIL 6, 2022
1:00-2:15 PM during campus lifetime
SBS Building, 6th Floor Lobby
Free Pizza!
For more information on the Economics Major click here
STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY GIVING DAY
On April 27, 2022, Stony Brook University will host its fourth-annual Giving Day. We encourage everyone to support Economics to help promote undergraduate research! Visit our secure online giving page. Thank you to everyone for their generous donations!
2022 CONVOCATION CEREMONY!
Join us in person, on Friday, May 20th at 8:30 AM at Main Stage of Staller Center, as we celebrate the academic achievements of the Class of 2022! Click here for more info
Endowed Economics Department Chair Search!
Stony Brook University seeks nominations and confidential expressions of interest
in the search for the inaugural Endowed Economics Chair. A transformational gift of $25 million from one of the Department’s esteemed graduates
will give the Chair the opportunity to strengthen the national and global relevance
of the Department’s research mission. Apply here!
Congratulations to our recently promoted faculty!
We are proud to announce the recent promotion of Prof. Mihai Manea to full Professor. Congratulations on your well deserved promotion!
Welcome to our Visiting Assistant Professor Kyeongah Lee!
The Department of Economics is happy to announce that Kyeongah Lee will be joining our department as a Visiting Assistant Professor for the Spring 2022
semester. Prof. Lee recently received her Ph.D. in International Economics & Finance
from Brandeis University.
Research Interests Primary Field:Labor Economics and Applied Microeconomics and Secondary field: International Economics and Development Economics
Celebrating 20+ Years of Service!
The Department of Economics is proud to recognize Hugo Benitez-Silva, Associate Professor and Chair of Economics for 21 years of service (2020) and for Eva Carceles-Poveda , Professor and MA Director of Economics for 20 years of service (2021). We thank you both for your hard work and dedication to the Department and Stony Brook University throughout the years!
NSF Awards Nearly $3 Million for Graduate Research Training in Data Science and AI
Now, a new National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) award of nearly $3 million will enable Stony Brook University to provide interdisciplinary
cross-training to PhD students in the data sciences alongside PhD students in the
human-centered sciences to detect and address biases in data, models, people and institutions.
This innovative five-year training project spans eight departments in Stony Brook’s
College of Arts and Sciences (Departments of Psychology, Linguistics, Economics, Sociology, Political Science, and Neurobiology and Behavior) and the College of
Engineering and Applied Sciences (Departments of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics
and Statistics).
Announcing New Department Chair!
The Department of Economics is pleased to announce that Hugo Benitez-Silva , will be serving as the next Chair of our Department beginning September 2021. Hugo recently
served as interim Chair of the Department. We are thankful for his leadership and
guidance!
Lecturer Position - College of Arts and Sciences Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and
Access (IDEA) Fellow!
Stony Brook University invites applications for the College of Arts and Sciences’
Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Access (IDEA) Fellows Program (2022/2023), a full-time,
12 month, non tenure-track faculty position at the lecturer level at the annual salary
of $ 70,000 including full benefits to commence Fall 2022. The fellow will be a
part of a mentored research environment and, with a successful and demonstrated contribution
to inclusion, diversity, and equity, will be invited to join the tenure-track faculty
at Stony Brook University after two years. Apply on Interfolio
Newest Publication!
Congratulations to Samuele Centorrino on his latest publication, "Model calibration and validation via confidence sets," in Econometrics & Statistics!
Presidential Completion Award recipients announced!
Congratulations to Sunghun Cho, PhD candidate in Economics, who is the recipient of the Spring 2021 Presidential Completion Awards. Thanks to a critical investment by President McInnis, the Presidential Dissertation Completion Fellowships will enable students to advance their dissertation
research and hasten their progress toward degree completion.
Welcome to our Visiting Professor, Serguei Maliar!
Professor Maliar joins us from the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University.
His specialization is in macroeconomics, economic theory, game theory, numerical methods,
economies in transition, and economic growth and development. His scholarship has
appeared in numerous top journals such as Econometrica, Quantitative Economics, Review
of Economic Dynamics, Journal of Economic Dynamic and Control, and Journal of Business
and Economic Statistics; he contributed a chapter to Handbook of Computational Economics;
and is currently advising Canadian Central Bank on the model for the optimal monetary
choice. He is an associate editor of Journal of Economic Dynamic and Control and a
recipient of NSF grant for 2016-2019 academic years.
Professor Maliar earned his B.S in Physics and Applied Mathematics from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology; his M.A. in Economics from Central European University (Czech Republic); his Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from Zaporozhye State University (Ukraine); and his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pompeu Fabra (Spain).
Welcome to this year's Fellows for the Graduate Fellowship to Promote Diversity in
Economics!
Congratulations and welcome to Dana Golden and Shafira Widjaja!
Dana Golden is a first-year economics PhD student whose research interests focus mainly on the intersection between game theoretical analysis of multi-agent systems, applied data analysis, and the tech sector within economics. Dana originated in Georgia, went to Georgia Tech for undergrad and an MS in economics. During college, Dana worked as an accountant for the Defense Department, as an athletic tutor for numerous mathematical and social scientific subjects, and as a graduate teaching assistant for a philosophy class. Following her MS in economics, she moved to Kansas City where she worked for the US Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service as an economist and published the oil crops outlook report and associated data product as well as the season average price data product, and state exports trade data product. While at the USDA, she also taught courses on programming and data analysis using SQL, R, and Python and wrote and presented papers and posters on price forecasting using agricultural futures and the usage of natural language processing to generate outlook reports and research papers in economics. During her free time, she enjoys writing, reading, standup comedy, programming, and playing and designing board games. She happily reports that that last year she hit the milestone of 120+ books in a single year.
Shafira Widjaja was born in Columbia, South Carolina but grew up in Jakarta, Indonesia. Although she holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, she has always been interested in studying Economics. Shafira took her MA in Economics at UT Austin where she decided to study further and pursue a PhD at SBU. She is interested in deepening her knowledge and doing research in Game Theory and Industrial Organization.
For more information on the fellowship, go here: GRADUATE FELLOWSHIPS TO PROMOTE DIVERSTY IN ECONOMICS
Econometrics Publication!
Congratulations to Hugo Benitez-Silva (with Yuanyuan Deng) on their recent publication
entitled, "An Empirical Model of Medicare Costs: The Role of Health Insurance, Employment, and
Delays in Medicare Enrollment" in Econometrics, as part of the Special Issue Health Econometrics edited by Kajal
Lahiri.
New Publication!
Congratulations to Marina Azzimonti for her recent publication! "Partisan Conflict, News, and Investors' Expectations" has been published in the Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking!
FORTHCOMING PUBLICATION!
Congratulations to Alexis Anagnostopoulos, Eva Carceles-Poveda and Yair Tauman on
their newly accepted publication in the International Economic Review, “Value Preserving Welfare Weights for Social Optimization Problems.”
2021 CONVOCATION CEREMONY!
Join us in person Wednesday, May 19th, as we celebrate the academic achievements of the Class of 2021. There will be 10
ceremonies, all held outdoors at LaValle Stadium rain or shine. More
STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY ANNOUNCES GIVING DAY
On April 21, Stony Brook University will host its third annual “ Giving Day,” a 24-hour fundraising campaign. We encourage everyone to support Economics to
help promote undergraduate research! Visit our secure online giving page. Thank you to everyone for their generous donations!
Ballet Dancer 'On Pointe' for a Promising Business Career!
Diana Atoian ’23 is majoring in economics and is a member of the Stony Brook Dance Team. Had it
not been for a simple twist of fate and a change of heart, Diana might be starring
in The Nutcracker in her native Russia rather than having aspirations to be an economist — or even the
next Janet Yellen — in the United States. More
Hispanic Heritage Month at SBU!
The Hispanic Heritage Month Latino Faculty Recognition Award was presented to our Chair, Hugo Benitez-Silva on November 2, 2020 at the annual SBU Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration. This award honors faculty members of Hispanic/Latino descent who have truly served
this academic institution, as well as to honor their contributions to the university
and the students. Congratulations and thank you for contributions!
Giving Day a success!
Over $10,000 raised and more than 50 donors participated!
SBU Giving Day fundraising campaign for Economics to promote undergraduate research has been successful thanks to the generous donations by our graduate and undergraduate alumni. We couldn't have done it without them. We appreciate their spirit of giving and encourage
everyone to give. Again, thank you all for your generosity and thoughtfulness.
Welcome to our newest faculty member!
We are happy to announce that Eran Shmaya will be joining the Department of Economics in Fall 2020. Eran is a game theorist
who graduated from Tel Aviv University and worked at Kellogg School of Management
before joining Stony Brook University. We look forward to working with him.
Congratulations to our recently promoted faculty
We are proud to announce the recent promotions of Prof. Eva Carceles-Poveda to full Professor and Prof. Yiyi Zhou to Associate Professor. Congratulations on your well deserved promotions!
Introducing our first Fellow for the Graduate Fellowship to Promote Diversity in Economics!
Congratulations and welcome to Maryam Masoud Ahmed our first Fellowship recipient! Maryam will be a PhD candidate in Economics at SBU
beginning Fall 2020. She graduated from The University of Grenoble Alps, France in
2019 with a Bachelor’s in Economic Engineering and Management. Maryam worked in entry
level positions in accounting, finance and banking. She ended up being obsessed with
Economics, which made her decide that she wanted a career in academia. Maryam received
her Master’s degree in Economics in 2020 from New Mexico State University, her Master’s
thesis was about socio-economic factors that affect happiness in southwestern counties
of the US. In her spare time, Maryam loves playing tennis because it’s a great sport!
For more information on the fellowship, go here: GRADUATE FELLOWSHIPS TO PROMOTE DIVERSTY IN ECONOMICS
The 31st annual international conference of The Stony Brook Center for Game Theory
This year (for obvious reasons ) the conferences will be done online on July 20-24, 2020.
We have attracted the very best economists scholars including three Nobel Laureates:
Robert Aumann, Oliver Hart and Jean Tirole !!!
Please visit the Game Theory website for more details!
Congratulations to the graduating Class of 2020!
This year's ceremony will be done virtually. Click here for CONVOCATION information.
ANNOUNCING GRADUATE FELLOWSHIPS TO PROMOTE DIVERSTY IN ECONOMICS
Thanks to the generosity of one of our alumnae, the Department of Economics has started a Graduate Fellowship Program for qualified underrepresented students whose immediate academic plans include obtaining a doctoral degree in Economics.
Congrats to ESTEFANIA VERGARA COBOS, PhD Candidate on her publication!
We are very proud of our PhD candidate, Estefania Vergara Cobos, who recently published,
Pricing Schemes and Seller Fraud: Evidence from New York City Taxi Rides, with Professors Yiyi Zhou and Ting Liu, in the Journal of Industrial Economics,67(1):56-90, 2019. Estefania's main areas of research are Industrial Organization and Applied Microeconomics. We wish
her continued success!
Researcher of the Month, September 2019, GISELLE MARONILLA, Economics major, University Scholars program!
Congratulations to Giselle Maronilla (Economics major, University Scholars program; Class of 2020) for being named URECA Researcher of the Month for her work on “Intergenerational Mobility within New York State – Comparisons at
the Tract Levels.”
Upcoming book by Warren Sanderson!
Congratulations to Warren Sanderson on his recent book, Prospective Longevity: A New Vision of Population Aging. In this pathbreaking book, Warren Sanderson and Sergei Scherbov provide a new way
to measure individual and population aging. Instead of counting how many years we’ve
lived, we should think about the number of years we have left, our “prospective age.”
Two people who share the same chronological age probably have different prospective
ages, because one will outlive the other. Combining their forward-thinking measure
of our remaining years with other health metrics, Sanderson and Scherbov show how
we can generate better demographic estimates, which inform better policies. Measuring
prospective age helps make sense of observed patterns of survival, reorients understanding
of health in old age, and clarifies the burden of old-age dependency. The metric also
brings valuable data to debates over equitable intergenerational pensions.
Recent publication in Theoretical Economics by Mihai Manea
Prof. Mihai Manea's work on Efficient partnership formation in networks was published in Theoretical Economics! He analyzes the formation of partnerships in social networks. Players need favors
at random times and ask their neighbors in the network to form exclusive long-term
partnerships that guarantee reciprocal favor exchange.
Stony Brook’s Economics Department welcomes its second female Department Chair in more than three decades!
Effective September 1, 2019, Marina Azzimonti will become the second female department chair since Estelle James in 1986. Professor Azzimonti is a Professor of Economics at Stony Brook University and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Professor Azzimonti is an applied macroeconomist who has worked on public policy, international finance, and political economy. Her work has been published at the American Economic Review, the Journal of Economic Theory, the Journal of Monetary Economics, the International Economic Review, and the Review of Economic Dynamics, among others. She developed the “Partisan Conflict Index,” that tracks political disagreement among US politicians and it is currently published and updated monthly by the Real-Time Data Research Center at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
Azzimonti is an Associate Editor of the Journal of the European Economic Association and serves as an officer of the Society for Economic Dynamics. She is a founding member of the Women in Macro group, and was an organizer of the Second Women in Macro Conference in the University of Chicago earlier this year.
Professor Azzimonti received her PhD in Economics from the University of Rochester. Before joining SBU, she worked as an Economic Advisor and Economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, and an assistant professor at the University of Texas-Austin. She was granted the title of Full Professor at Stony Brook University in 2018.
2019 SUMMER FESTIVAL on Game Theory
The 30th Annual Stony Brook International Conference on Game Theory held on JULY 15-19, 2019.
The organisation of the conference has been entrusted to:
Mihai Manea (Stony Brook University)
Eric Maskin (Harvard University)
Alvin Roth (Stanford University)
(photo left to right)
T.E.S. Raghavan, Shmuel Zamir, Abraham Neyman, Steven Brams, Al Roth, Elon Kohlberg,
Yair Tauman
(photo left to right)
Yair Tauman, Sandro Brusco, Abraham Neyman, Marina Azzimonti, Pradeep Dubey, Mihai
Manea
(photo left to right)
T.E.S. Raghavan, Elon Kohlberg, Pradeep Dubey, Yair Tauman, P, Y, Sergiu Hart, Shmuel
Zamir
IN MEMORIAM
Thomas J. Muench
Professor Emeritus
July 6, 1938 - April 18, 2019
Tom was an esteemed member of the Department of Economics for 42 years. He was an
intellectual giant and a caring person to his family, friends, students and colleagues.
His memory will live on in those who were touched by his knowledge and passion.
Recent publication on MarketWatch by David Wiczer
David Wiczer, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, recent article published on MarketWatch
on April 25, 2019. The article, "Out of a job after age 50? Here's what to do" discusses how older workers can stay in the game after getting laid off.
Economics Department Convocation
Congratulations to the graduating class of 2019! Please join us on Friday, May 24, 2019, at 1:30 PM at Javits Lecture Hall 100 to celebrate the Class of 2019. All graduating students, family, and friends are invited. Tickets are not required.
Events co-sponsored by Department of Economics and the Center for Game Theory
Tuesday, April 16, 2019
4:00 - 6:00 pm
Charles B. Wang Center - Lecture Hall 1
Come and hear a talk on this New Globalization and what it means for public policy, industry structures and global business models.
Dr. Arindam Bhattacharya, Senior Partner and Managing Director, Boston Consulting Group, New Delhi
Dr. Bhattacharya has been researching and writing about Globalization for over a decade now. In 2008 he co-authored a book on the subject focusing on the rise of emerging markets and how that is changing the very notion of globalization. Today, when many sceptics are raising questions whether one of the most powerful forces that has shaped recent human history is on the decline, if not dead, he takes a very different view - Globalization is NOT Dead. In fact, it is accelerating, but it is very different!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"MOVING INDIA TO A NEW GROWTH TRAJECTORY: NEED FOR A COMPREHENSIVE BIG PUSH"
Thursday, MAY 9, 2019
4:00 - 6:00 pm
Charles B. Wang Center - Lecture Hall 1
Dr. Rakesh Mohan, a Senior Fellow at Yale’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, and Distinguished
Fellow at Brookings India, is one of India’s senior-most economic policymakers and
an expert on central banking, monetary policy, infrastructure and urban affairs. Most recently
he was executive director at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, D.C.,
representing India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Bhutan, and chairman, National Transport
Development Policy Committee, Government of India, in the rank of a Minister of State.
He is also a former deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India. As deputy governor
he was in charge of monetary policy, financial markets, economic research and statistics.
In addition to serving in various posts for the Indian government, including representing
India in a variety of international forums such as Basel and G20, Mohan has worked
for the World Bank and headed prestigious research institutes. He is also Senior Advisor
to the McKinsey Global Institute and Distinguished Fellow of Brookings India. Mohan
has written extensively on urban economics, urban development, Indian economic policy
reforms, monetary policy and central banking. Dr. Mohan’s book, “Growth with Financial
Stability: Central Banking in an Emerging Market,” focused on issues relating to the
evolution of banking and finance, the conduct of monetary policy, the management of
the financial sector, and the role of central banking in the Global Financial Crisis.
His most recent edited book is “India Transformed: 25 Years of Economic Reforms”.
Co-sponsored with Stony Brook's Center for Game Theory
Latest publication by Prof. Marina Azzimonti
Professor Marina Azzimonti recently published in the Journal of Monetary Economics on The Optimal Public and Private Provision of Safe Assets, on January 16, 2019. Prof. Azzimonti, with Pierre Yared, developed a theory of optimal government debt in which publicly-issued and privately-issued safe assets are substitutes. While government bonds are backed by future tax revenues, privately-issued safe assets are backed by the future repayment of pools of defaultable private loans. They found that a higher supply of public debt crowds out privately-issued safe assets less than one for one and reduces the interest spread between borrowing and deposit rates. Their main result is that the optimal level of public debt does not fully crowd out private lending and maintains a positive interest spread. Moreover, the optimal level of public debt is higher the more severe are financial frictions.
Recent publication in WSJ by David Wiczer
David Wiczer, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, recent article published in the Wall
Street Journal on Dec. 20, 2018.
The article, ‘Just Unbearable.’ Booming Job Market Can’t Fill the Retirement Shortfall," discusses how nearly eight million older Americans are out of work or stuck in low-quality
jobs, denying them a crucial time to accumulate savings.
Article published by Prof. Sanderson's latest research
"Is Norway the Best Place to Live?" recent publication by Prof. Sanderson, Sergei Scherbov and Simone Ghislandi. This article was published on Nov. 7, 2018.
Every year, the United Nations releases the Human Development Index. The HDI is like a country's report card. In a single number, it tells policymakers
and citizens how well a country is doing. This year, Norway was at the top of the class, while Niger finished last.
Welcome new Faculty to Stony Brook!
Mihai Manea joins the Economics Department in July 2018. Mihai is a game theorist focusing on
social and economic networks. He graduated from Princeton University in 2005 and received
his PhD in economics from Harvard University in 2009. He has previously taught at
MIT, Yale, and Stanford.
Juan Pantano and Bora Yunn will join the Department in Fall 2018!!
Juan's research focuses on empirically oriented applied microeconomist with wide research interests
in labor economics, health economics and family economics. He received his Ph.D. in Economics from UCLA. Juan Pantano joins the Department of Economics. Juan is an empirically oriented applied microeconomist
with wide research interests in labor economics, health economics and family economics. He
received a B.A. in Economics from Universidad Torcuato Di Tella and a Ph.D. in Economics
from UCLA.
Bora's research focuses on Macroeconomics and International Economics. She is interested
in how policies or globalization affect the economy in terms of development and welfare.
She received her PhD from the University of Minnesota.
We are very excited to have Mihai, Juan and Bora join our department!
Latest publication by David Wiczer
David Wiczer, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, latest article at WalletHub on Labor Day Facts
What are the biggest threats facing working people today? The biggest threat to working
people is stasis. I mean this in at least one, and potentially two senses: at the
individual level workers who are not changing employers or changing position at their
current employer are seeing very little wage growth. At the macro-level we see a gradual,
long-term decline in the rate at which workers are changing employers. It's potentially
something to worry about, but not yet clear that this trend is a threat to workers
in general.
Economics Department Convocation
Congratulations to the graduating class of 2018! Please join us on Friday, May 18, 2018, at 1:30 PM at Javits Lecture Hall 100 to celebrate the graduating Class of 2018! All graduating students, family, and friends are invited. Tickets are not required.
Recipient of Stony Brook's 2018 President's Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student
Congratulations to Camilo Rubbini, a PhD candidate in the Department of Economics.
His fields of concentration are Industrial Organization, Game theory, and teaching
Economics. Camilo's research focuses on innovation and patent licensing. He received
his MA in from Pennsylvania State University and his Licentiate degree from Universidad
Nacional de La Plata (Argentina).
Latest Publication for Professor Azzimonti in the NY Times!
Prof. Sanderson's latest research on World Population Ageing, highlighted in UN Report
On October 6, 2017, Warren Sanderson, Professor in the Department of Economics, latest research has made it into the Highlights
of the UN report, World Population Ageing 2017.
2017 Economics Graduate Orientation
Join us for the 2017 Economics Graduate Orientation held on Thursday, August 24, 2017 at 10:00 AM at the Social & Behavioral Sciences Building, 6th Floor. For additional
information please contact Maryann Calvacca at: graduate_economics@stonybrook.edu.
Economics Professor Azzimonti in the NY Times!
Congratulations on another article by Professor Marina Azzimonti in the New York Times on "Partisan Conflict Is High, but the Market Doesn't Care" published on July 21, 2017.
Welcome Professor Basak Horowitz to our department!
We are happy to welcome Prof. Basak Horowitz, who will join the Economics Department in Fall 2017, as a new Lecturer. Prof. Horowitz's
research interests are microeconomic theory, economics of networks and matching theory,
industrial organization and game theory. She is currently working on network formation
games with endogenous link strength.
David Wiczer, Assistant Professor, will be joining the Department of Economics in
Fall 2017
Professor Wiczer studies macro and labor economics, generally from a quantitative perspective. Recently he has studied how workers match with their occupations, how they use social networks to search for jobs and how economic motives interact with Social Security Disability Insurance. Prior to Stony Brook, David was an Economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis. He received his PhD. from the University of Minnesota, MS from the University of Illinois and BA from Carleton College.
The 28th Stony Brook International Conference on Game Theory
2017 SUMMER FESTIVAL: IN HONOR OF PRADEEP DUBEY AND YAIR TAUMAN. This is the 28th Stony Brook International Conference on Game Theory. It will be held on JULY 17-21, 2017 at Stony Brook University's Wang Center.
Economics Department Convocation
Congratulations to the graduating class of 2017! The Department convocation will be held on Friday, May 19, 2017 in Javits 100 at 1:30 pm. Everyone is invited to attend, no tickets are needed for this event.
Keynote Speaker and Alumnus, Vincent J. Cassidy (BA '81) along with Guest Speaker and Alumnus, Anand George (BA ‘02) address the graduating Economics Class of 2017!
Sang-ha Yoon, Ph.D. student in Economics receives 2017 Korean Studies Graduate Scholarship
Sang-ha Yoon's research agenda is “Size-Dependent Firm Regulations and Their Implications on Aggregate Productivity in South Korea.” In 2012, South Korean government approved a regulation to force large retailers to close one or two days a month or cut operating hours as part of efforts to protect smaller businesses and traditional markets. By giving small firms exemptions from some regulations, policy makers expect that their costs become lower relative to their sales, and it will help their survival in a competitive market. On the other hand, as firms grow they face more regulations such as stricter hygiene and safety rules, mandatory elections of employee representatives, higher tax rates, and other regulatory burdens. However, there could be a distortion in the distribution of sizes of firms, and therefore, this firm size distortion from size-dependent policies leads to a misallocation of resources in the economy. My objective is to quantitatively evaluate the size of misallocations resulting from this type of regulations and try to find an optimal way of implementing size-dependent regulations by minimizing productivity losses using dynamic general equilibrium modeling. Congratulations to Sang-Ha!
Prof. Azzimonti’s research is in the news!
The “Partisan Conflict Index,” which tracks the degree of political disagreement among
U.S. lawmakers, has reached its highest level in 37 years this March. Prof. Azzimonti,
who developed the index, explains that private investment tends to stall when the
index is elevated. Her work is featured on USA Today’s article “Index that tracks political conflict hits high” (April 18) and on Bloomberg News’ The Daily Prophet: Red Flags Keep Popping Up in the Stock Market (April 12). She was interviewed by The Philadelphia Inquirer, in “U.S. political conflict is at an all-time high since at least the 1970s, signaling
trouble for stocks” (April 17). To find more about the index, visit here. To find out more about Prof. Azzimonti visit her webpage here.
Prof. Benitez-Silva's latest article in Newsday
Prof. Benitez-Silva's latest article in Newsday! Donald Trump is a businessman. Will that matter for the economy?
Meta Brown, Associate Professor, will be joining the Department of Economics in Spring 2017.
Prof. Brown is an applied microeconomist studying households’ consumption, investment,
and labor market experiences. Recent topics include the “graying” of American consumer
debt, the evolution of young Americans’ financial sophistication, the contributions
of debt, jobs, and housing to the surge in living with parents, the role of job market
referrals in shaping careers, and parents’ interdependent time investments in their
children in the shadow of family law. Her work has appeared in the American Economic
Review, the Review of Economic Studies, and the Review of Financial Studies, among
other outlets, and has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the National
Institutes of Health. Meta has worked as a Senior Economist at the Federal Reserve
Bank of New York and an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
She holds a Ph.D. from NYU. New Graduate Student Orientation in the Department of Economics
This is a Mandatory Orientation for ALL new GRADUATE Students which will take place on Friday, August 26, 2016, at 10:00 AM, Social & Behavioral Sciences Building, 6th Floor, Room N-603. All incoming students (both in the PhD.and MA programs) are expected to take part in this Orientation. We are eagerly looking
forward to meet you all.
Lunch will be provided at 12:00 PM in the Economics Department LOBBY. For additional information, please contact Maryann Calvacca, Graduate Program Coordinator.
Prof. Azzimonti's latest publication in Journal of Public Economics
In April, 2016, Marina Azzimonti, Associate Professor in the Department of Economics, published her latest paper in
the Journal of Public Economics on the costs and benefits of balanced budget rules: Lessons from a political economy
model of fiscal policy. This paper analyzes the impact of a balanced budget rule that
requires that legislators do not run deficits in the political economy model of Battaglini
and Coate (2008). The main finding is that the rule leads to a gradual reduction in
the level of public debt.
Yuanyuan Deng, one of our graduate students has been awarded one of the prestigious Dissertation Fellowships, by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. This center, funded by
the Social Security Administration to foster policy relevant work on retirement and
social insurance programs, has historically supported the most promising young researchers
in this area. Yuanyuan’s supported work focuses on Medicare enrollment delays and
labor supply of older Americans.
“This is yet another success for Yuanyuan, and our graduate program,” says Yuanyuan's advisor, professor Hugo Benitez-Silva, who was also the advisor of two other graduate students who received this grant in the last decade: Na Yin, who received this honor in 2007 and who is now an associate professor at Baruch-College, and Zhe Li who received the grant in 2009 and is now an assistant professor in Framingham State University. “This kind of grants has traditionally been reserved for students coming from departments at top institutions or those directly affiliated with the Center. The fact that three of our students have gotten this very prestigious honor in the last decade is impressive. There is little doubt Yuanyuan's work will prove useful in many dimensions for practitioners and policy makers.” Professor Benitez-Silva also argued that “This again comes to show that our graduate students are competitive at the highest level, and that this is a great department for students looking to be exposed to the latest research and the best opportunities our country has to offer.”
Prof. Steven Stern joins the Department of Economics!
Prof. Steven Stern will join the Department of Economics at Stony Brook University, effective July 2016.
Prof. Stern has a wide range of interests in labor economics, health economics, the
economics of aging, the economics of the family, industrial organization, and econometrics.
Almost all of his research involves increasing our understanding of some phenomenon
in the real world by using innovative econometric methods. He also advises graduate
students on the same wide range of topics and undergraduate students who are prepared
and excited about getting involved in research.
Prof. Azzimonti's latest article published in WSJ
On May 5, 2016, Marina Azzimonti, Associate Professor in the Department of Economics, who helped develop the Partisan Conflict Index, and is used in the latest article, Tallying the Economic Toll of Political Upheaval, published in the Wall Street Journal. It discusses how evidence piles up showing how uncertainty about the U.S. presidential election rattles businesses and consumers.
Economics Department Convocation
Congratulations to the graduating class of 2016! The Department convocation will be held on Friday, May 20, 2016 in Javits 100 at 1:30 pm. Everyone is invited to attend, no tickets are needed for this event.
Prof. Sanderson's latest article on Aging in the 21st Century
On April 8, 2016, Warren Sanderson, Professor in the Department of Economics, has an article written by the LA Times
on his work on aging population, Watch the U.S. age before your eyes in this amazing animated graphic. The aging of the U.S. population is, well, a fact of life that gets mentioned often
in political and economic discussions but seldom is communicated in an understandable
way.
On March 4, 2016, Warren Sanderson, Professor in the Department of Economics, released his latest article, It’s time to measure 21st century aging with 21st century tools, published in The Conversation. This article examines the aging of populations of most countries in the world,
prompting a deluge of news stories about slower economic growth, reduced labor force
participation, looming pension crises, exploding health care costs and the reduced
productivity and cognitive functioning of the elderly.
Professor Emeritus Estelle James' Obituary
Estelle James, Professor Emeritus, State University of New York at Stony Brook and Consultant to
the World Bank, USAID and other organizations passed away on October 13, 2015. Our
most sincere condolences to her family. Here is the Obituary.
Prof. Benitez-Silva discusses Chinese economic slowdown's impact on students at Stony Brook
Jimin Kim, Freelance reporter for Newsday and President of Society of Professional Journalists, Stony Brook University Chapter, interviewed Hugo Benitez-Silva about the Chinese economic slowdown's impact on Chinese international students at Stony
Brook and the challenges the students face.
Watch Video: Hard to slow down Chinese international students
Jenille Johnson receives Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in the Classified Service
On October 6, 2015, President Stanley paid tribute to faculty and staff from across the university who were this year's recipients of excellence awards from the SUNY System. Those that were recognized have achieved the highest honors in their disciplines for research, have contributed to teaching and mentoring of our students, and have provided service and support to their units, the College, the University, and the community. We would like to Congratulate Jenille Johnson, the Undergraduate Program Coordinator in the Economics Department for being selected to receive The Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in the Classified Service. The Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in the Classified Service is a System-level award established by the University to give System-wide recognition for superior performance and extraordinary achievement by employees in the Classified Service. These awards demonstrate the University’s commitment to individuals who provide superior service to its students and the community at large. The department nominated Ms. Johnson for this award in recognition of her outstanding work and dedication to our faculty and students for the past 10 years. We are extremely proud and fortunate to have Ms. Johnson in the Economics Department.
Prof. Benitez-Silva quoted in Newsday
On October 1, 2015, Hugo Benitez-Silva was quoted in Newsday on the latest worries of some Long Island hotel owners and their concerns over short-term rental services of Airbnb.
Prof. Azzimonti's latest article published in Society for Economic Dynamics
In July 2015, Marina Azzimonti, Associate Professor in the Department of Economics, had her latest article, The dynamics of public investment under persistent electoral advantage, published in the Society for Economic Dynamics. This paper studies the effects of asymmetries in re-election probabilities across parties on public policy and their subsequent propagation to the economy.
Gregg Seibert (Stony Brook Alumn, BA '78 - Economics) presents the Keynote Address at 2015 Convocation
Gregg Seibert serves as Vice Chairman of Cablevision Systems Corporation, working on the company's overall long-term strategic and financial initiatives. As a senior member of Cablevision's leadership team, he provides strategic and financial counsel to the company. In 2015, The Madison Square Garden Company and AMC Networks Inc. also appointed Mr. Seibert vice chairman of their respective companies. In addition to his role as vice chairman, Mr. Seibert also previously served as Cablevision's chief financial officer where he oversaw the company's finance and accounting matters as well as its taxation and risk management functions. He was also responsible for all treasury, investor relations and business development activities for the company. Since joining Cablevision in 2009, Mr. Seibert has played an instrumental role in a number of the company's key strategic initiatives including the spin-offs of The Madison Square Garden Company and AMC Networks Inc., and the acquisition of and subsequent sale of Bresnan Communications. He also has overseen a number of financing transactions that have significantly improved the company's financial profile. Furthermore, he handled capital and cash management as well as the communication of the company's operational and financial objectives to individual and institutional shareholders, financial analysts and investment managers. Before joining Cablevision, Mr. Seibert held several senior leadership positions at Merrill Lynch including vice chairman, head of corporate finance and head of the global media practice. Mr. Seibert received his MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
2015 Department of Economics Convocation Ceremony
Congratulations to the Graduating Class of 2015!
Students, Family and Friends are invited to attend the Department of Economics Convocation Ceremony on Friday, May 22, 2015 at 1:30 PM at 100 Javits Lecture Center. Light refreshments will be served. TICKETS ARE NOT REQUIRED
Prof. Montgomery guest speaker at the United Nation's 48th Session of the Commission on Population and Development
On Wednesday, April 15, 2015, Mark Montgomery spoke at a plenary of the UN's Commission on Population and Development annual meeting. Prof. Montgomery's was part of a panel discussion on Integrating Population Issues into Sustainable Development.
To watch the session, follow this link:
http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/watch/4th-meeting-commission-on-population-and-development-forty-eighth-session/4175531158001
Prof. Warren Sanderson's latest research on human life expectancy in the news!
Professor Sanderson's latest research compared the proportion of the population that was categorized as "old" using the
conventional measure that assumes that people become "old" at age 65 and the proportion
based on their new measure of age, which incorporates changes in life expectancy.
Prof. Sanderson explains, "The onset of old age is important because it is often used as
an indicator of increased disability and dependence, and decreased labor force participation.
Adjusting what we consider to be the onset of old age when we study different countries
and time periods is crucial both for the scientific understanding of population aging
for the formulation of policies consistent with our current demographic situation."
The article: http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0121922
The Conversation Website: http://theconversation.com/research-shows-old-age-is-getting-younger-all-the-time-38556
Links to the press coverage:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-04/iifa-apa041315.php
http://medicalxpress.com/news/2015-04-populations-aging-slowly.html
http://science.orf.at/stories/1757099/
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/realtime/international/20150416/53638871
Links to the press coverage:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-04/iifa-apa041315.php
http://medicalxpress.com/news/2015-04-populations-aging-slowly.html
http://science.orf.at/stories/1757099/
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/realtime/international/20150416/53638871
The Today Show NBC: http://www.today.com/health/60-new-middle-age-heres-why-its-awesome-t15331
The work of our faculty member Marina Azzimonti featured prominently in the news!
Associate Professor Marina Azzimonti's work on a measure of Political Discord has been prominently featured by several
news outlets including bloomberg.com, the Wall Street Journal, and Business Week.
The Partisan Conflict Index gathers information from the major US Newspapers to capture
the level of political discord. The monthly index which has been computed back to
January of 1981, is currently nearly at the same level as four years ago. [Read the article in bloomberg.com, which interviewed her last week ] [Follow the Index here]
A growing department in all the key research areas in economics. SBEconomics is in the midst of a multi-year recruitment effort
Three new faculty members have recently joined he department of economics, and very likely another one will do so in the Fall of 2015. The department of economics is growing at the fastest pace in almost three decades. On top of strenghtening an already impressive group of macroeconomists with the hiring of Marina Azzimonti, who was previously an Economic Advisor and Economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, this year's successful hiring season included an assistant professor in financial economics, Jake Zhao, who obtained his PhD in Economics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, as well as the hiring of an econometrician, Samuele Centorrino who obtained his PhD last year from the University of Toulouse and was later visiting Brown University, to strenghten the applied econometrics group. Next year we expect to also be able to hire in applied econometrics, and probably also game theory. For more information on our expansion plans do not hesitate to contact our chair, Sandro Brusco or any faculty member in your areas of research interest.
The applicaiton deadline for our Masters Program in Economics is April 1, 2015. Applications for Fall 2015 are now accepted
This is a new kind of M.A. in Economics, quite different from what is offered by other institutions. No prior background in Economics required: our first year classes teach the fundamentals of Economics, although lots of hard work should be expected. However, a strong mathematical background is required: linear algebra, real analysis, multivariate calculus, and if possible differential equations. The students will be taking PhD level courses with our PhD students, and have access to the same advising as our PhD students. Students who successfully complete the (four semester version of the) program can continue into our PhD program (assuming they have passed the comprehensive exams offered after the first year of study and other requirements) without taking additional course work, and be considered for funding for the following two years in the program. This research oriented program prepares students for careers in academia, research institutes, government, international institutions, and the private sector. Graduates from this program will be well prepared to continue their studies in top PhD programs in Economics and Finance, as well as the best MBA programs in the world. This is a full-time program during the first year, and it can be taken part-time starting in the second year. For more information you can[Follow this link] and then [Apply Here] For more information please e-mail Maryann Calvacca at Graduate_Economics@stonybrook.edu.
The Application Deadline for our PhD Program in Economics for the Fall 2015 is January 15, 2015, and you can already start your application. You can read about the program below preparing for Fall 2015
The department encourages outstanding students from all nationalities and regions to apply to its PhD program in economics of the next admission cycle. This research oriented program prepares students for careers in academia, research institutes, government, international institutions, and the private sector. We offer scholarships which cover the tuition, plus provide a generous stipend, guaranteed for 4 years.[Download Information Package Here] and then [Apply Here]Qualified US Nationals can also apply to W. Burghardt Turner Fellowship Program which can provide a generous additional financial support for the student. For more information please see [Turner Fellowship Information Here]
New Center for Finance receives funding from Stony Brook's Provostial Interdisciplinary Faculty Cluster Initiative. Job Openings in Financial Economics and Econometrics can now receive applications
A new Center for Finance has been established thanks to the support of SBU's Interdisciplinary Faculty Cluster Hiring Initiative run by the Provost. Thanks to this initiative the Department of Economics will hire two new faculty members specialized in Finance in the next three years. One position in Financial Economics has already been filled with Jake Zhao, and the other one in Financial Econometrics will be recruited with the idea of starting in the Fall of 2016. The CF will also hire four more positions to be distributed between the other departments (units) involved: the College of Business, the Applied Math and Statistics Department, and the Math Department. The department will also participate in the creation of a PhD in Finance, and will foster the development of a strong field in Finance within our PhD in Economics and our MA in Economics.
The collaboration between the Economics Department and the Department of Computer Science kicks off with the cross-listing of a class in Computational Game Theory
With the cross-listing of the class CSE691/ECO606, Computational Game Theory, taught by CS assistant professor Jing Chen this Spring 2014 semester, the departments kick-off a collaboration that promises to redefine the interactions between economic theory and computational methods. The Department of Computer Science is one of the most prominent in the world and Dr. Chen is an outstanding researcher who is also affiliated with the Center for Game Theory in Economics as well as the Department of Economics. As this exciting collaboration progresses in the semesters and years ahead, our PhD and MA students will be able to specialize in computational game theory and other areas of intersection between Computer Science and Economics, making SB Economics one of the first departments in the country to explicitly foster this exciting collaboration.
New Faculty member joins the Department of Economics this 2013-2014 Academic Year
Associate Professor Juan Carlos Conesa has joined our department starting this Fall 2013 semester. Dr. Conesa comes from the Universitat Autonoma of Barcelona, and he obtained his PhD in Economics from the University of Minnesota in 1999. Dr. Conesa is a prominent macroeconomist and will be teaching undergraduate and graduate classes in our department. The department is slowly but surely growing, and in the last two years it has hired three new faculty members, and this year we plan to hire at least two more faculty members.
Xin Tang, graduate student in the Department of Economics wins important research paper award from the Department of Labor through their 2012 ETA Research Paper Program
Xin Tang, a fifth year student in our PhD program, has recently received the honor of being selected as one of the winners of the best research paper award by the Department of Labor through their ETA Program. His work on the dynamics of wages and unemployment during the great recession promises to prove influential in our understanding of what has happened in the labor market in the last few years. [read more about these awards]
Congratulations to Professor Lloyd Shapley who has won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economics
Congratulations to UCLA Economics and Mathematics Professor Emeritus Lloyd S. Shapley for being awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economics. Shapley has been affiliated with the Center for Game Theory in Economics at Stony Brook from its inception, and he has been an active participant through the years in the Summer Festival in Game Theory. Shapley is considered by many of his peers the most brilliant game theorist of his generation, a generation that includes other Nobel Prize winners like our own Robert Aumann, and other Nobel Prize winners and affiliated members of the Game Theory Center like John Nash and Eric Maskin. He shares the prize with Alvin E. Roth of Harvard University, who will be a Professor at Stanford University starting in 2013. [Read what Professors Pradeep Dubey and Professor Yair Tauman, who know Professor Shapley well, have to say about Shapley's Nobel Prize]
Two of our faculty members named to the Editorial Boards of important journals in Economics.
Eva Carceles-Poveda has been recently named Editor of the B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics (BEJM), one of the flagship journals of the B.E. Press. The BEJM started publication in 2001 and in a decade has reached great visibility and prestige in the profession, and in particular in the field of macroeconomics. We are also happy to report that Hugo Benitez-Silva has recently been named Associate Editor of the European Economic Review (EER), the prestigious general journal, in print since 1969. Benitez-Silva will also serve as Associate Editor for a new open access journal of the British publisher Taylor and Francis called Economics and Finance Research: An Open Access Journal. Join us in congratulating them on these professional recognitions which come with lots more work and...well...that's it, lots more work. Congratulations!
The latest Rankings of Economics Departments in the US for the 1994-2009 period, rank Stony Brook's Economics Department as 49th in the country by quality adjusted research productivity of its faculty, and 32nd by productivity of its PhD alumni measured in published pages per graduate.
In a recently published article in the Southern Economic Journal (July 2012, Vol. 79, Number 1) Michael A. McPherson provides the latest rankings of economics departments in the United States for the 1994-2009 period. Stony Brook comes in 49th in quality and size adjusted research productivity of its faculty measured by publications in top 50 journals, once attention is restricted to the 2002-2009 period. Interestinglly, this study also ranks departments by the productivity of the alumni of their PhD programs in the 1994-2009 period, and our department fairs even better, making it to the 39th place in the nation in terms of total pages published and 32nd if measured by pages per graduate. One reading of these results is that while by this measure we are a top 50 department, we produce top 35 students, which we believe speaks to the quality of the training we offer our graduates.
The Department welcomes two more faculty members this 2012-2013 academic year, Ting Liu and Yiyi Zhou.
The department is very happy to welcome two new faculty members this academic year, Ting Liu and Yiyi Zhou. Dr. Liu obtained her PhD in Economics from Boston University in 2008, and for the last four years she has been an assistant professor at Michigan State University. Her areas of expertise are industrial organization, microeconomic theory, and health economics. Dr. Zhou has recently obtained her PhD in Economics from the University of Virginia, and her areas of specialization are empirical Industrial Organization and applied econometrics. During the 2012-2013 academic year both assistant professors will be teaching in our graduate program, and in the near future they will also teach in the undergraduate program.
Graduate Student Receives Important Grant
Biligbaatar Tumendemberel, one of our advanced graduate students has received a prestigious Grant from the Open Society Foundations for the 2011-2012 academic year These fellowships which target graduate students from certain areas of the world, fall under the Global Supplementary Grant program of this prestigious foundation. [read more about these grants]
Graduate Student awarded major Fellowship
Yun-Shan Chan, one of our advanced graduate students has received a prestigious Fellowship from the American Statistical Association for the 2011-2012 academic year to work on the topic of youth crime and economic incentives. The title of the supported research is "An Empirical Model of Criminal Behavior of Young Workers: An Economic Perspective." These fellowships which encourage researchers to study crime and justice data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics have been recently set up by the ASA, and Yun-Shan is one of the first recipients. "These are exciting news for Yun-Shan and our graduate program," says the Director of Graduate Studies, and member of Yun-Shan's committee, professor Benitez-Silva. "Once again (two years ago one of our students got a grant from the CRR to work on pensions, and four years ago yet another student got a grant from the same CRR to work on disability policy) one of our students is recognized with an external and extremely competitive fellowship, we are very proud and we are sure Yun-Shan will complete an insightful analysis of the determinants of youth crime in the USA," elaborated the smiling Director of Graduate Studies. [read more about these grants]
Two Graduates from our PhD program who are now professors receive prestigious Research Grant
Two graduates from Stony Brook's PhD program in Economics have recently received a prestigious Research Grant from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. Zhe Li who graudated with a PhD in Economics in the Spring of 2010, and Frank Heiland who graduated with a PhD in Economics in the Spring of 2002, have partnered to obtain a Steven H. Sandell Grant on retirement research. This very prestigious grant is given by the CRR every year to assistant professors working on cutting-edge research in the economics of aging. The title of Zhe's and Frank's work is "Changes in Labor Force Participation of Older Americans and their Pension Structures: A Policy Perspective." Zhe Li is an assitant professor at Framingham State University since the Fall of 2010, and Frank Heiland is an assistant professor at CUNY-Baruch College (he is now tenured) since 2009 after starting his career at Florida State University. Professor Benitez-Silva, who was Zhe Li's PhD thesis advisor, and was also a member of Frank Heiland's PhD committee expressed satisfaction at the news "We are extremely happy that our graduates continue their successes well beyond their time in our institution. Frank and Zhe were outstanding graduate students, and they have become outstanding members of the academic community, we could not be happier for them and for what this accomplishment means for our program." Interestingly, professor Benitez-Silva himself received a Sandell Grant when he was a first-year assistant professor at Stony Brook back in 2001. Additionally, in 2000 Deb Dwyer, then assistant professor and now affiliated professor received a Sandell herself. "I am extremely proud that ten years after I got one of these pretigious fellowships, two students I had the luck to advise follow on my footsteps," said a very proud and (again) smiling Benitez-Silva. [See announcement by the CRR]
Economics Professor actively participates in online discussion on population growth in the prestigious Room for Debate at the NYTIMES.COM
Stony Brook's Economics professor, Warren Sanderson, is actively participating in the online discussions on population growth in the reknown Room for Debate at NYTIMES.COM, following the publication of the new population forecasts by the United Nations. See Discussion here. Professor Sanderson's piece focuses on the importance of educating the masses for an uncertain future with challenges coming from population growth and environmental changes linked to it. Professor Sanderson has published in the last decade several influential research pieces in the most prestigious journals in the sciences (Science and Nature) on the evolution of population growth. His work with his co-authors has influenced the way the United Nations computes its forecasts and analyzes its results.
Economics Professor cited in The Economist, the world's most prestigious economics and business magazine
A research piece by Stony Brook's Economics professor, Hugo Benitez-Silva, was cited in the following article published by the world reknown magazine The Economist, in the print edition of March 3, 2011 (in the special report on property, in the section titled "Up, up and away with the fairies"). The article is signed by journalist Andrew Palmer. The article focuses on the housing market, one of the areas of expertise of Professor Benitez-Silva. Notice, that two of professor Benitez-Silva's co-authors in that research paper are graduates from our PhD program: Frank Heiland, graduated from our PhD program in 2002 and after getting tenure at Florida State two years ago, he is now a faculty member at CUNY's Baruch College. Selcuk Eren graduated in 2006, and he is a Research Scholar at the Levy Economic Institute of Bard College. The latest version of the cited research can be found in pdf here
Alumni Donors Storm Classroom for Professor William Dawes
On November 30, 2010 about 20 economics alumni surprised their favorite professor,our own William Dawes, in his classroom, showering and embarrassing him with their love and affection. Check out the photos and also the video of the surprise visit. Two alumni, Sal Trifiletti '76 and Tom Kasulka '83, spearheaded a campaign to endow a fund in honor of Professor Bill Dawes. Over 200 economics alumni contributed more than $50,000 to the the William Dawes Fund for Excellence. The fund is designed to benefit and enhance the Economics Department and serves as a tribute to Professor Bill Dawes and his educational impact on students from 1968 to the present. To help the economics alumni reach their goal of $100,000 for the William Dawes Fund for Excellence please click here.
Newly Published Rankings of Graduate Programs in Economics place the Economics Department at Stony Brook in the top-tier of departments in the country
The recently published rankings of economic departments by the National Research Council, after years of analysis of detailed data provided by members of the academic community show our department ranked among the top programs in the country. The study, probably the most comprehensive and detailed one ever assembled of graduate programs in the United States, provides two summary measures depending on how the weights of different characteristics is computed, and in one Stony Brook appears as the 39th ranked program in the country, and in another one as the 53rd ranked program in the country. Additionally, a more dissagregated analysis shows that in some important dimensions, like the Professional Development of Graduate Students, or the Diversity in the Economic Environment we appear as a top 20 department in the United States. More information about this ranking can be found following the link NRC Ranking Page. And details about the rankings in economics in particular can be found in the followin link PhDs.org interface to analyze the rankings.
Professor Warren Sanderson publishes in the prestigious journal Science a piece on how to adjust aging to account for the changes in longevity, health improvements, and disability status.
Professor Sanderson, who published another piece in Science in 2008, and who has published 4 articles in the journal Nature in the last decade and a half (more than any other economist in the world) has published in Science again. Read about it in our In Depth section.
Economics Professor, Mark Montgomery, participates as one of the panelist in a important discussion on urbanization and climate change in Washington D.C.
Stony Brook's Economics professor, Mark Montgomery, participated as panelist in the important presentation to Congressional Staff members on the effects of Climate Change in an incresingly Urban world, with special emphasis on the effects for poor countries. This is one of the main areas of expertise of Professor Montgomery. See announcement
Economics Professor interviewed by the Population Reference Bureau on Climate Change
Stony Brook's Economics professor, Mark Montgomery, was recently interviewed on the important topic of Climate Change by the Population Reference Bureau. The interview , focused on the effects of climate change on our cities, an area of expertise of professor Montgomery.
Economics Professor quoted in Physician Practice, a professional magazine for MDs
Stony Brook's Economics professor, Hugo Benitez-Silva, was quoted in an article published by the magazine Physician Practice, in the issue for October 2009 (article in pages 61 and 62). The article is signed by journalist Janet Kidd Stewart. The article focuses on the housing market, one of the areas of expertise of Professor Benitez-Silva.
Graduate Student receives prestigious Dissertation Fellowship
Zhe Li, one of our graduate students has received a prestigious Dissertation Fellowship from the Center for Retirement Research for the 2009-2010 academic year. Read more about it in our In Depth news section.
Research by Economics Professor cited and quoted in the U.S. News and World Report, Again
Stony Brook's Economics professor Benitez-Silva was cited in an article published by the U.S. News and World Report in the issue for June 23-June 30, 2008 (article in pages 57 and 58). The article is signed by journalist Emily Brandon. Benitez-Silva's work was also cited in a related article in the same prestigious magazine in early February. The article focuses on retirement and Social Security Benefits, area of expertise of Professor Benitez-Silva.
Undergraduate Students Majoring in Economics will join Duke University and Columbia University to study a PhD in Economics, and a Masters in International Affairs
Ahmad Yusuf will be studying his PhD in Economics at Duke starting in the Fall of 2008 with a full scholarship, and Ataoulaye Bah will join, also with a full scholarship, Columbia's M.A. program in International Affairs at The School of International and Public Affairs. "The successes of our majors continues in the competitive market of graduate education," states professor Benitez-Silva, proud advisor of Ahmad and Ataoulaye, remembering that last year one of our own joined Yale University's Ph.D. program in Economics.
Young macroeconomist from the University of Minnesota to join department in the Fall.
Erem Atesagaoglu, a young macroeconomist who will soon obtain his Ph.D. in Economics form the University of Minnesota will join our department in the Fall of 2008. Erem's work trying to explain the declining volatility of aggregate economic measures in the United States since the mid 1980s with the changes in the tax system, without relying on the traditional explanation using changes in monetary policy, promises to bring a whole new view on the analysis of business cycles and their volatility. [read more about Erem]
Professor Mark Montgomery publishes his new research in the prestigious journal Science.
Professor Montgomery's research on the growing urbanization in the developing world
has been published this month in the journal Science, in their February 8th issue. The paper argues that developing countries in Asia
and Africa are likely to cross a historic threshold, joining Latin America in having
a majority of urban residents. The challenges that this will bring to researchers
and policy makers are discussed. Read more about it in our In Depth news section.
Research work by Economics Professor cited and quoted in the U.S. News and World Report
Stony Brook's Economics professor Benitez-Silva was cited in two articles published
online by U.S. News and World Report on January 9, 2008, and the in print issue of
February 11, 2008, both signed by journalist Emily Brandon. Both articles focus on
retirement and Social Security Benefits, area of expertise of Professor Benitez-Silva. Read
more about it in our In Depth news section.
Professor and Co-Chair Warren Sanderson publishes his new research in the prestigious journal Nature, again.
Professor Sanderson's research on the evolution of the world's population has delivered
yet another fascinating chapter, and again has caught the attention of one of the
most prestigious journals in the world. In Nature's January 20, 2008, advance online publication, Dr. Sanderson and his co-authors
uncover the continue acceleration of the world's ageing population, and force us to
continue to analyze how this phenomenon, which they helped bring to light with their
outstanding research in the last decade (see other articles in Nature in 1997, 2001,
and 2005), will challenge our economies and our lives in an variety of ways. Read
more about it in our In Depth news section.
Graduate Student's research receives support from the United Nations
Graduate student Donghwan Kim is working with Professor Mark Montgomery on studies
of urban poverty and health in developing countries. This research explores whether
urban poverty is concentrated in slums or is distributed more widely across city neighborhoods.
Kim's research is funded by an award from UN-Habitat (Nairobi) for the Fall 2007 period. Read
more about it in our In Depth news section.
Graduate Student receives prestigious Dissertation Fellowship
Na Yin, one of our graduate students has received a prestigious Dissertation Fellowship
from the Center for Retirement Research for the 2007-2008 academic year. Read more
about it in our In Depth news section.
Research Study by Economics Professors cited in the New York Times
A recent research study by Stony Brook's Economics professors Benitez-Silva, Dwyer,
and Sanderson was cited in the New York Times on May 12, in an article on retirement
and Social Security Benefits. Read more about it in our In Depth news section.
Undergraduate Student Majoring in Economics Accepted at Yale University to Study PhD in Economics
Adam Osman will be studying his PhD in Economics at Yale starting in the Fall of 2007 with a full scholarship. Read more about it in our In Depth news section.
Our Student Receives An Outstanding Doctoral Student Paper Award
Graduate student Zhen Liu's paper 'Fair Disclosure and Investor Asymmetric Awareness in Stock Markets' is selected by the 2007 AAA (American Accounting Association) Mid-Atlantic Regional Meeting for an Outstanding Doctoral Student Paper award.
Prof. Aumann Wins the Nobel Prize
Robert J. Aumann, a member of the Stony Brook faculty at the Department of Economics since 1989 has received the 2005 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences shared with Thomas C. Schelling. Read more about it in our In Depth news section.
New Supercomputer Unveiled
The University acquires a new supercomputer 'Seawulf Cluster' to aid research. [read more]
Our Student Receives University Teaching Award
Graduate student Na Yin receives the 2006 USB President's Award for Excellence in
Teaching by a Graduate Instructor. Read more about it in our In Depth news section.