Katherine Ellison

What’ve you enjoyed most about your area of study? Was there a particular discovery, new skill or way of thinking, or insight that you found especially valuable? Please share an example from your favorite class or experience.

Within economics, I have most enjoyed learning about how discrimination and biases interact with the labor market. I really like the way economics uses mathematics to solve complex social problems. One of my favorite examples of this was in my behavioral economics class, when we learned that men and women report different levels of career ambition when they’re worried that their ambition might hurt their dating market prospects.

How does the knowledge from this field, or your interest in it, combine with your other major or minor studies at MIT?

As an economics major and French minor, I am deeply embedded in HASS at MIT. I think that learning a new language always broadens your horizons and teaches you more about the world. I can then use that knowledge to ask interesting and relevant research questions in economics.

An MIT education includes study in the scientific, technical, social science, arts, and humanities fields. How do you think that wide range of knowledge and perspectives will be valuable to you – for your career success and for your enjoyment of life?

Coming from a technical school, but with a degree in social science and a minor in a humanities subject gives me a unique perspective on the world. Like most MIT students, I have taken many STEM classes in math and computer science to help build up my technical skill set. However, it is my classes in SHASS that have taught me how I can put these skills to use solving real-world problems.

What are your plans for the future?

I will be pursuing a PhD in Economics next year.