Bokeh

A Personal Insight into the Economics and Accounting Department Honors Program

During the fall semester of my junior year I was looking to apply myself in a way I have not done yet in a traditional classroom setting here at Holy Cross. After some discernment, I decided to apply for the Economics and Accounting Honors Program. Fortunately, I was given the opportunity to interview and was accepted into the department honors program. To say the least, it was one of the best decisions I have ever made in my 4 years as a student at this college. It provided me the opportunity to practice a higher form of thinking and feel like one of our Economics professors residing on the 5th floor of Stein.

Even though I knew there was an opportunity to gain valuable experience from this program, I was not entirely sure what it even consisted of. I am hoping this article will give you enough information about the program if you are on the fence or even slightly interested as a Economics or Accounting major. Most people know you walk into this program with an interest in Economics and you walk out with a full-blown thesis project that you present in April. I am here to explain the inbetweens.

Fortunately, I was given the opportunity to interview and was accepted into the department honors program.

You are first placed in a “Research Methods” class that introduces and involves you in economic research thought. You learn valuable skills such as being able to create empirical, theoretical, and experimental economic research models. This alone is something to brag about and leverage. Simultaneously, you are also told to begin thinking about topics you like and reading research papers about them to better understand the landscape. We were even taught how to dissect these research papers and understand the contents that range from the “Literature Review” to the “Methodology” section. Since I am also a Political Science major, I knew I wanted my research idea to pertain to politics. Eventually, after reading paper after paper, I narrowed my idea down to immigration policy.

But do not worry if you think this academic path is one you take alone. I was constantly on the 5th floor talking with professors about possible ideas and avenues my project could take. I actually came up with my idea sitting in Professor Svec’s office, when I was looking to overcome a major roadblock in my work. With his help, I came up with the research question and was ready to keep trailblazing forward. Some time after, I was ready to ask a professor to be my adviser and help me develop my economic model to be tested.

By the end of the semester, I had completed writing my own Economics research paper.

By the end of the Spring semester, each of the research methods students had developed their own research question, practiced economic modeling, learned how to code, and delved into the literature they are interested in. For the fall semester of senior year, honors students begin testing out their research questions. This process includes collecting data and running a form of regression tests to provide an answer. This is where you will work closely with your adviser to properly execute this process. I was meeting with my adviser once a week to refine my idea, data, and regression into a story I can tell at the Academic Conference this April. By the end of the semester, I had completed writing my own Economics research paper.

Currently, I am beginning to prepare for my presentation in April. For those of you who are wondering, my thesis question is “Did Donald Trump’s presidency have an effect on Asylum rejection rates in the United States?” If you find this research question interesting, I am sure you will also find some of my other peers’ research questions in the same light. April will be a great opportunity to see the possibilities of the department honors program. The hard skills you gain from this program are also something that will differentiate you from other students. While interviewing for jobs, almost every single employer asked me about my experience in the program. Not to say this is the only factor involved in being offered a job, but it is helpful to show employers you have skills that go beyond the classroom. As I begin to conclude the process, I want to make sure that others in the major at least consider applying to the program. It is one of the best academic experiences you can get at Holy Cross and will not let you walk away empty handed.

By Rudy Antonios