News and Events

ODE Awards 2016

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

5–6 p.m., Needham Conference Room, Olin Hall​​

The 2016 Omicron Delta Epsilon (ODE) induction ceremony had 23 outstanding students this year. The event was well attended with awardees and their families from as far as Riyahd and Hong Kong. The Class 2016- ODE new members are shown below with faculty from the division (Not in photo are Young Leun Kim, Mary Donahue, Eric Lee, Jonah Adkins, Shivam Bajaj, Kriti Jain, Paulette Yidi, Alexander Youngwall, Ke Ou, Rajya Sonthalia, Anant Seksaria and Graham Quisenberry). Anant and Graham eventually made it to the reception after the group photo.

ODE is one of the world’s largest academic honor societies. One of the objectives of ODE is recognition of scholastic attainment and the honoring of outstanding achievements in economics. ODE has 690 chapters located in the US, Canada, Australia, UK, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Africa Egypt France, Kazakhstan and the United Arab Emirates. Babson College is part of the TAU chapter.

Front row L-R: Farah Aldabbagh, Josephine Osei, Adrienne Tibbetts, Vanshika Agarwal, Jovanna Yoksirimanee, Venkatarun Rao, Raul de las Fuentes, Daniela Pierre-Toussaint, Prof. Megan Way and Prof. Robert McAuliffe. Back row, L-R: Prof. Joe Ricciardi, Prof. Barbara Alexander, Anthony Parisi, Prof. Josh Staveley-O’Carroll, Prof. Mahdi Majbouri, Jay Jung and Alex Jeong.

Carpenter Lecture, 2016

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

4:30–6 p.m., Winn Auditorium, Olin Hall​​

"How Machine Intelligence can Produce Smarter Policies"

Abstract:

Machine intelligence is permeating everyday life. It’s already in our phones, airplanes and cameras, and soon it will be in our cars, schools and houses. In this talk, Sendhil Mullainathan will argue that this same intelligence can help us make better policies. "Better" means not only more efficient but also fairer. Professor Mullainathan will illustrate these ideas in two areas: crime and health care. In both cases, he argues that we can cut costs, and improve quality of outcomes (less crime or better health) and be more fair. His prediction is that machine intelligence will serve as a decision aid and not as a substitute for human decision making.

Carpenter Lecture, 2016 Recipient

Sendhil Mullainathan is one of the most renowned behavioral economists of our time. He is a recipient of the prestigious MacArthur "Genius" Award and is the Robert C. Waggoner Professor of Economics at Harvard University. He was designated a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, labeled a Top 100 Global Thinker by Foreign Policy Magazine, and named by Wired (UK) the Smart List: 50 people who will change the world.

Professor Mullainathan’s work runs a wide gamut: the impact of poverty on mental bandwidth; whether CEO pay is excessive; using fictitious resumes to measure discrimination; showing that higher cigarette taxes make smokers happier; and modeling how competition affects media bias. His latest research focuses on using machine learning and data mining techniques to better understand human behavior.

Carpenter Lecture 2016 Video

​Professor Se​ndhil Mullainathan, Winn Auditorium, Babson College

"A Career in Economics ... it’s so much mo​re than you think."

A video from the American Economic Association— A Career in Economics​

Recommended Economics Graduate Electives for Spring 2016

ECN7555 Health Economics (Professor Yunwei Gai)

With health care approaching 20% of U.S. DP, health care sector provides unparalled job and entrepreneur opportunities. Between 2010 and 2020, jobs in the healthcare sector will gorw by 30 percent- twice as fast as the general economy, Entrepreneurs with foresight to lower cost while delivering quality health care services are sure to benefit immensely. This course will examnie majore players in this industry including pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, insurance companies, physicians, patients and the government. You will use big data techniques to analyze problems and opportunities facing each player.

ECN7550 Business Strategy and Game Theory (Professor Kankana Mukherjee)

This course makes extensive use of Game Theory to analyze strategy in a competitive context. The emphasis is not only on how to play a given ’business game’ well but undertanding the strategies behind how to shape the ’business game’. It will enable you to give expert decisions, entry deterrence, mergers, product positioning, diversification, make or buy decisions, negotiating, and bidding. The framework will help you better assess business oppotunities and make strategic decision as a business startup in diverse situations. This course is extremely valuable for career paths such as General Management, Strategy Consulting, Entrepreneurship, Business Development, and Strategic Planning.

ODE Awardees, 2015

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

The induction ceremony for the 2015 ODE awards was held on Tuesday, May 5, 2015 at the Wellesley Room, Olin Hall. The new members received their ODE Certificates and membership documents from Professors Robert McAuliffe and Frederic Chartier. These outstanding seniors have consistently performed at a high level in their economics courses as well as in their overall Babson curriculum. There were given the Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society awards in Economics.​

Standing in back row: L-R Prof.Frederic Chartier, Prof. Neal Harris, Arjun Murthy, Joshua Blond, Justin Laurenzo, Alexander Goldman, Daniel Shaffer, Soundarya Shanthappa, Prof. Mahdi Majbouri, and Prof. Robert McAuliffe. Kneeling in front row: Prof. Megan Way, Isabella Giraldo, Stephanie Malek, Federico Mendy. Not in photo: Joseph Lorusso, Anushka Doshi, Kyle Tagen, Hendry Susanto, Deniz Uyan, Lorenzo Salazar and April Goya.

EDUNIVERSAL ranks Babson #15 for Best Masters Ranking in Economics

EDUNIVERSAL is a global ranking and rating agency specializing in higher education. The company has established strong expertise in evaluating academic institutions and programs in France since 1994, and internationally since 2007. ​With headquarters in Paris, they ranked Babson #15: a regional ranking for the top 200 North America MBA programs with Managerial Economics courses within 8 geographic zones.

Best Masters Ranking in Econ.pdf

College Federal Challenge Competition, 2014

Friday, November 7, 2014

Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Boston, MA

According to Professor Chartier "19 colleges and universities competed in the regional challenge including Harvard, Dartmouth, BU, BC, Bently, Bryant, Tufts and Middlebury". He added, "the students thoroughly enjoyed the experience."​

Babson College Team competing in the 2014 Fed Challenge from left to Right: Matt Hayes (Senior), Roy Murdock (Senior), Professor Frederic Chartier (Advisor), Shaan Shah (Junior), Hsing-Han (“Hank”) Huang (Sophomore). Not in photo are Felipe Mellao (Senior), and Professor Nestor Azcona (Advisor).

William L. Casey, Jr. Retires

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

William L. Casey, Jr., Professor of Economics, retires from Babson College after 50 years of service (1964-2014). A "Thank You" celebration honoring Professor Casey was held at the Glavin Chapel in campus where many of his Babson friends and family were present. Economics Division Chair, Lidija Polutnik started the tribute followed by his colleagues (John Marthinsen, Kent Jones, Joe Ricciardi, Brian Barefoot, and Robert McAuliffe).

Professor Polutnik spoke of Bill Casey’s 5 Research Lessons:

1. A research career is a marathon, not a sprint.
2. Focus is great, but do not hesitate to take a detour (if interesting and productive).
3. In marketing the products of your research, do not ignore the demand side of the market.
4. "Milking" a particular line of research can be productive and rewarding.
5. Develop synergies with your teaching and research but do not hesitate to lead a two-track professional life. Babson will reward both and one may be more exportable than the other.

ODE Awardees, 2014

Tuesday, May 6. 2014

The induction ceremony for the 2014 ODE awards was held on Tuesday, May 6, 2014 at the Wellesley Room, Olin Hall. The new members received their ODE Certificates and membership documents from Professors Robert McAuliffe and Frederic Chartier.These outstanding seniors have consistently performed at a high level in their economics courses as well as in their overall Babson curriculum. There were given the Omicron Delta EpsilonInternational Honor Society awards in Economics.

Left to right front: Professor Robert McAuliffe (Faculty Advisor). Niklas Skattum, Mauricio Bastos-Moreira. Rodrigo Costa, Sara Wojda, Leen Sheraiff, Omar Almajali, Maria Leal, and Paul Kim. Back Row, left to right: Professor Frederic Chartier (Faculty Advisor), Andrew Gendron, Joshua Street, Nemish Kuvadia and Professor Neal Harris. Not in photo: Sewoong Ang, Mehmet Bogut, Felix Castillo, Angelina Hendri, Felix Kraft, Jeffrey Stout, Mirella Tadic, Matthew Vacarro and Sue Zimmerman.

Nan Langowitz Women Who Make a Difference Award, 2014

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Megan Way, Awardee, Nan Langowitz Women Who Make a Difference Award, Knight Auditorium, Babson College

Sponsored by the Center for Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership, this annual award honors women whose work has had a significant, positive impact on the Babson Community in the last year. Megan Way, Economics Division faculty, was nominated this year and was honored at a reception held at the Knight Auditorium on Tuesday, March 4, 2014. (Picture shows Professor Way and her daughter, Helen)

ODE Awardees, 2013

Tuesday, May 7. 2013

Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society, 2013

The outstanding undergraduate students who have consistently performed at a high level in their economics courses as well as in their overall Babson curriculum were given the Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society awards in Economics. The induction of the 2013 members was held on Tuesday, May 7, 2013 at the Reynolds Dining Hall where they received their ODE Certificates and membership documents.

Left to right, Professor Frederic Chartier. Rob Chapruet, Max Oston, Jonas Ramm, Conor Lynch, Jake Williams, Joseph Blundo, David Yoon, Kathleen Lynch, Professor Robert McAuliffe, Professor Neal Harris. Not in photo: Dean Chaffee, Akash Dave, Thomas Duquette, , Kate Greco, Alex Kaumeyer, Daniel Mettler and Steven Schwartz.

Carpenter Lecture, 2013

February 28, 2013

4–5:30 p.m., Sorenson Center for the Arts

Professor Juliet Schor

"The Emergence of a New Economy: How scale, connection and time are the keys to a sustainable future"

Abstract:

In recent years a "new economy" has been emerging out of the stagnation of the "Business-as-Usual" economy. The new economy focuses on ecological sustainability, with renewable energy and closed loop principles at its core. But it has other, less recognized aspects. These include a new economics of scale, in which smaller networked units can achieve high productivity; the economic value of social connection; and the new patterns of time use which can rebalance the labor market and reduce carbon and eco-footprints. Using the concept of "plenitude," a low footprint, time-affluent, high-satisfaction alternative to BAU, Professor Schor will outline her vision for shifting from the current ecologically destructive and increasingly dysfunctional economy to one that meets human needs in a sustainable way.

Julier Schor is a Professor of Sociology at Boston College. She is also a member of the MacArthur Foundation Connected Learning Research Network. Before joining Boston College, she taught at Harvard University for 17 years, in the Department of Economics and the Committee on Degrees in Women’s Studies. A graduate of Wesleyan University, Schor received her Ph.D. in economics at the University of Massachusetts.

Her most recent book is True Wealth: How and Why millions of Americans are Creating a Time-Rich, Ecologically Light, Small-Scale, High-Satisfaction Economy. Previous books include national best-seller The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure. This book appeared on the best-seller lists of The New York Times, Publisher’s Weekly, The Chicago Tribune, The Village Voice, The Boston Globe as well as the annual best books list for the The New York Times, Business Week, and other publications. The book is widely credited for influencing the national debate on work and family.

Schor is currently working on issues on environmental sustainability and their relation to Americans’ lifestyle and the economy and the emergence of a conscious consumption movement. She is co-founder of the Board of the Center for a New American Dream (newdream.org), a national sustainability organization.

Lecture Video

"The IMF and Global Financial Crisis" with Joseph Joyce

February 5, 2013

Olin 120

Abstract:

The IMF’s response to the global crisis of 2008-9 marked a significant change from its past policies. The Fund provided relatively large amounts of credit quickly with limited conditions and accepted the use of capital controls. Professor Joyce’s book traces the evolution of the IMF’s actions to promote international financial stability from the Bretton Woods era through the most recent crisis. The analysis includes an examination of the IMF’s crisis management activities during the debt crisis of the 1980s, the upheavals in emerging markets in the 1990s and early 2000s, and the ongoing European crisis.

Joseph P. Joyce is a Professor Economics at Wellesley College and the Faculty Director of the Madeleine Korbel Albright Institute for Global Affairs. Professor Joyce’s research deals with issues in financial globalization. His book, The IMF and Global Financial Crises: Phoenix Rising?, has been published by Cambridge University Press.

College Federal Challenge Competition, 2012

November 9, 2012

Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Boston, MA

Babson College Team competing in the 2012 Fed Challenge (Regionals)

Left to right: Federal Reserve Director of Economic Education, Professor Nestor Azcona (faculty advisor), Gabriel Breitenstein, Brendan Metcalf, Gerald Lee, Sanjay Zimmerman, Professor Frederic Chartier (Faculty Advisor)

Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society, 2012

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

The outstanding undergraduate students who have consistently performed at a high level in their economics courses as well as in their overall Babson curriculum were given the Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society awards in Economics. The induction of the 2012 members was held on Wednesday, May 9, 2012 at the Reynolds Hall where they received their ODE Certificates and membership documents.

Left to right, Row 1: Sofia Schuster, Anneliese Kenney, Verena Diniz, Emma Jacobs, Lavina Daswani. Not in photo: Chanel Andre, Tanvi Bhutani, Sharon D’Souza, Umang Golechha, Ryan Khan, Andrei Komlev, Marko Nikcevic, and Steven Schwartz.

“On Moral Inconsistencies: Dishonest Altruists, Honest Egoists and Reciprocating Cheaters”

by Professor Gizem Saka

Visiting Professor of Economics, Wellesley College

Monday, November 28, 2011

3–4:30 p.m., Olin 120

Abstract:

Behavioral economics is a new field that draws on economics and psychology. Whereas traditional economic models portray individuals as rational, self-interested, self-controlled human beings, behaviorists know that people are deficient when it comes to these desirable characteristics. We are far less rational than we think (and hope) we are. Yet, our situation is not hopeless, because we are irrational in specific, systematic ways. That makes behavior, even in its irrationality, predictable. In this presentation, we will touch on three specific issues. We will discover why people procrastinate even when it is not in their long run best interest to do so. We will discuss ways of overcoming procrastination. Last but not least, we will analyze experimental results that show altruists to be cheaters and egoists to be truth-tellers.

College Fed Challenge Competition, 2011

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

7:45 a.m.–12:45 p.m., Federal Reserve of Boston

On November 9th a team of six Babson students participated in the Fed Challenge Competition. This is an academic competition for college undergraduates that promotes in depth analysis of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decisions in relationship to the US Macro economy. Babson’s visiting Professor Alexei Orlov helped the Babson crew, consisting of Joseph Blundo, Kirsten Daley, Andreas Hwang, Pierre Keusseyan, Bashar Lazaar and Mark Maclay, prepare for their presentation. While the Babson team didn’t qualify for one of the top four spots, Professor Orlov felt that our students represented the College with the flying colors and did a terrific job on their analysis of current economic conditions and in their recommendation for for Fed monetary policy. By all accounts students really enjoyed the experience of competing with teams from the best colleges in the New England. According to Babson senior Mark Maclay, “We all worked hard and pushed ourselves to learn more, think more, and push the limits of our knowledge and understanding of the most complicated concepts in economics.”

"India’s Business Cycles: Evidence and Theory"

by: Rucha Bhate, Part-Time Lecturer

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

3–4 p.m., Horn 159

Abstract

India is one of the fastest growing emerging economies in the world today with an average quarterly GDP growth of 8.1 percent between 2004-2010. We use annual time series data and filtering methods to document the key statistics of India’s business cycle. Output, consumption and investment are more volatile in India as compared to the developed economies. Like in the developed countries, consumption is less volatile and investment is more volatile than output in the Indian data. Unlike in the former, investment is not highly correlated with output. We test whether a standard real business cycle model subject to technology and fiscal shocks, with parameters calibrated for the Indian economy can replicate the key features of India’s business cycle

“The European Debt Crisis and the New Economic Architecture in the EU: The Need for New Institutions and Structural Change”

By: Dr. Kostas Axarloglou

Monday, October 3, 2011

4–5 p.m., Olin Auditorium

Dr. Kostas Axarloglou is a professor of International Business and Strategy at Democritus University of Thrace, Greece. From 1994 to 2002, he was a Professor of Economics at Babson College, holding the Michael Gerrits Term Chair. Earlier, he taught at the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University and at the University of Michigan. Dr. Axarloglou earned his Bachelors Degree from the Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, Greece and his Masters and Doctorate Degrees in Economics from the University of Michigan. He is currently doing research and consulting work in the areas of International Business (Foreign Direct Investments), Strategy (Options Theory), and Pricing. Dr. Axarloglou will provide an insider’s view of the Public Debt Crisis in the E.U. and a blueprint for needed policy reform and institutional change.

Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society, 2011

Tuesday, May 3. 2011

Each year the Economics Faculty elects a number of outstanding undergraduate students to the Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society in Economics. This award is given to students who have consistently performed at a high level in their economics courses as well as in their overall Babson curriculum. It was our pleasure to induct 20 members of the ODE class of 2011 on Tuesday, May 3, 2011. They received their ODE Certificates and membership documents. We hope that their interest in the field of economics continues.

Faculty News

Nestor Azcona’s paper "Self-Fulfilling Currency Crises with Borrowing Constraints and Domestic Currency Debt" was accepted for publication in Open Economies Review.

Bill Casey:

“The Success of Ireland’s Foreign Direct Investment Strategy: A Reconsideration”, was accepted for publication by The Journal of International Business Research, publication date forthcoming.

“Inward Foreign Direct Investment in the U.S.: An Empirical Analysis of their Impact on State Economies”, accepted for publication by The Eastern Economic Journal, co-authored by Kostas Axarloglou and Hsiang-Ling Han, publication date forthcoming.

“FDI Spillovers in Member Countries of Integrated Markets”, completed but unpublished conference paper to be delivered in the spring of 2011.