Our wonderful Economic student champions participated in the Discover Economics event – an initiative for the young people of the North West hosted at the University of Liverpool.

This event was organised in conjunction with Discover Economics, Manchester Metropolitan University, and the Academy of Social Sciences.

The event aimed to give young people a better understanding of economics by presenting illustrative applications of economics in various contexts and introducing the careers of professional economists.

A panel session had also been held, where the student champions shared their own experiences in the economics discipline, discussing studying economics, and answering questions from the audience.

Event Highlights:

  • Engaging Sessions: The event featured presentations that showcased the practical applications of economics, helping young attendees grasp its relevance in different contexts.
  • Panel Discussions: Our panel session was a hit, with student champions outlining our experiences and addressing audience queries, making the subject more approachable and relatable.
  • Networking Opportunities: The event facilitated conversations with local colleges present on the day, leading to discussions about organising further visits to their educational institutions and MMU.

The session covered the topic below:

Economics and economists often face an image problem. Are we perceived as money-obsessed, cold-hearted rationalists? Do we worship data and models at the expense of understanding the messy, unpredictable nature of humans and our social relations? It’s complicated, but we certainly need a better marketing team.

Student Champions:

The most important members of our team were the student champions. Satveer, Rida, and Marcus engaged in one-to-one chats and group activities, sharing their genuine experiences. Satveer and a champion from Liverpool sat on a panel and discussed their motivation for studying economics and their university experiences, easing students’ apprehensions about committing to economics and life as a student.

Looking Ahead:

We now hope to speak to more students from these and other schools to show that we are a diverse bunch interested in people and data.

Acknowledgements:

Thanks to Sam and Anesha from RES for their organisation and Yontem and Yigit, the Economics course leaders at Liverpool, for hosting the event. It was truly fun and enlightening.