Careers in Economics
Overview:
Economics is a social science
that studies how people choose to use their scarce resources in an
attempt to satisfy their unlimited wants. Economists study how society
distributes scarce resources, such as land, labour, raw materials, and
machinery, to produce goods and services. They conduct research, collect
and analyze data, monitor economic trends, and develop forecasts. They
research issues such as energy costs, inflation, interest rates,
exchange rates, business cycles, taxes, or employment levels.
Area of Specialisation:
- Microeconomists study
the supply and demand decisions of individuals and firms, such as how
profits can be maximized and how much of a good or service consumers
will demand at a certain price.
- Industrial/organisational economists study
the market structure of particular industries in terms of the number of
competitors, and market decisions of competitive firms and monopolies.
- Macroeconomists study
historical trends in the whole economy and forecast future trends in
areas such as unemployment, inflation, economic growth, productivity and
investment.
- Monetary/financial economists study the money and banking system and the effects of alternative monetary policy regimes on the economy.
- International economists study international financial markets, exchange rate, and the effects of various trade policies such as tariffs.
- Labour/demographic economists study
the supply and demand for labour and the determination of wages. These
economists also try to explain the reasons for unemployment, and the
effects on labour markets of changing demographic trends.
- Public finance economists
primarily are involved in studying the role of the government in the
economy and the effects of tax policies, budget deficits, and welfare
policies.
- Econometricians are
involved in all areas of economics and use mathematical and statistical
techniques such as calculus and regression analysis to formulate
economic models.
- Others economists
have applied these fundamental areas of economics to more narrow areas
with specific applications such as health, education, agriculture, urban
and regional economics, law, history, energy, and the environment.
Study Route:
Where to Study:
- University of Karachi, Department of Economics, Karachi
- BS in Economics - 4 years
- MA/ MS in Economics– 2 years
- University of Karachi, Applied Economics Research Centre, Karachi
- M Phil in Economics
- Ph D in Economics
- Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology, Karachi
- Ph D in Social Science and Economics
- Institute of Business Administration, Karachi
- Institute of Business Management, Karachi
- BS in Economics and Finance – 4 years
- University of Sindh, Jamshoro
- BS in Economics – 4years
- MA in Economics - 2 years
- Lahore University of Management Science, Lahore
- BSc (Hons) in Economics - 4 years
- MSc in Economics - 2 years
a. Development Economics
b. Public Policy and Regulation
c. Finance, Money and Banking
- Lahore School of Economics, Lahore
- BSc (Hons) in Economics - 4 years
- MSc in Economics - 2 years
- MS majors in Economics and Finance/Economics and Marketing -2 years
- M Phil and Ph D in Economics
- Quaid-e-Azam University, Department of Economics, Islamabad
- MSc in Economics– 2 Years
- M Phil / Ph D in Economics
- Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi
- Bachelors in Economics – 4 years
- Master in Economics— 2 Years
- National College of Business Administration and Economics, Lahore
- MSc in Applied Economics—2 years
- M Phil in Applied Economics—2 years
- University of the Punjab, Lahore
- Master in Economics - 2 years
- Master in Business Economics - 2 years
- Ph D in Economics - 4 years
- Diploma (PGD) Applied Economics –1 year
- University of Peshawar, Peshawar
- BS in Economics - 4 years
- MSc in Economics (Industrial Economic)- 2 years
- Diploma (PGD) Applied Economics –1 year
- Certificate Course– 3 months
a. Industrialization, Trade and Economic Policy
b. Applied Econometrics
c. Project Planning and Evaluation
d. Operational Research
- Government College University, Lahore
- BSc (Hons) in Economics- 4 years
- MS in Entrepreneurship and SME Management - 2 years
- MS Banking and Financial -2 years
- M Phil and Ph D in Economics
Required Attributes:
- Economist must develop logical, analytical, critical thinking and problem solving skills.
- Economists should possess strong
communication and computational skills as they conduct research, collect
and analyze data, monitor economic trends, and develop forecasts.
- Economists learn to make
connections between concepts and applications. Learn statistical tools
(and computer software that implement them) to analyze data and
interpret it
Career Prospects:
Government Economists
- Main employer of economists is
government. In Pakistan economists get opportunity to work with ministry
of finance, central board of revenue, the state bank of Pakistan,
Securities and Exchange Commission, and various other public companies.
Economists in the federal government administer most of the surveys and
collect economic data.
- Economists who work for government
agencies also assess economic conditions in Pakistan or abroad in order
to estimate the economic effects of specific changes in monetary,
fiscal, or public policy.
- Economists also advise policy
makers in areas such as deregulation and privatization, the effects of
alternative tools to finance budget deficit, and the effectiveness of
tariff etc.
Business Economists/Consultants
- Economists working for business
corporations are involved primarily in microeconomic issues, such as
forecasting consumer demand and sales of the firm's products. They
analyze their competitors' growth and market share and advise their
company on how to handle the competition. Economists in consulting firms
also perform the macroeconomic analysis and forecasting. They collect
data on various indicators, maintain databases, analyze historical
trends, and develop models to forecast growth, inflation, unemployment,
or interest rates.
Development/Policy Economists
- In Pakistan, a lot of economists
work for the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and conduct research
on a variety of issues, such as poverty alleviation and income
distribution, agriculture sector, social sector reforms like health and
education, and environment.
Academic Economists
- There are some economists that
work as academic economists in public and private colleges and
universities as a professor or Lecturer. Other responsibility of an
academic economist is to conduct academic research on various economic
issues and publish their results and innovative policy prescriptions in
academic journals or newspaper.
|