economics master's thesis examples

134 Economics Thesis Topics: Ideas for Outstanding Writing

Writing a thesis is not an easy task. For most of the students, it can be even intimidating, especially when you do not know where to start your research.

Here, we have provided an economics thesis topics list. After all, everyone knows that choosing the right idea is crucial when writing an academic paper. In economics, it can combine history, math, social studies, politics, and numerous other subjects. You should also have solid foundations and a sound factual basis for a thesis. Without these elements, you won’t be able to master your research paper.

The issue is:

It is not always clear what could be seen as an excellent economics thesis topic. Our experts can assist you with this challenge. This list contains some outstanding examples to get you started.

• ⭐ Thesis in Economics
• 🔥 Supreme Thesis Topics
• 👍 Bachelor’s Thesis
• 😲 Master’s Thesis

📊 Microeconomics

📈 macroeconomics.

• 🤔 Developmental
• 👨‍💼 Behavioral
• 💼 Financial
• 🌱 Agricultural
• 🤝‍ Sociology
• 📚 Ph.D. Topics
• 📝 How to Pick a Topic

⭐ What Does a Thesis in Economics Look Like?

A good thesis in economics is a blend between an empirical paper and a theoretical one. One of the essential steps in choosing a topic in economics is to decide which one you will write.

You may write, research, analyze statistical data and other information. Or build and study a specific economic model.

Or why not both!

Here are some questions you can ask when deciding what topic to choose:

• What has already been written on this topic?
• What economic variables will my paper study?
• Where should I look for the data?
• What econometrics techniques should I use?
• What type of model will I study?

The best way to understand what type of research you have to do is to write a thesis proposal. You will most probably be required to submit it anyway. Your thesis supervisor will examine your ideas, methods, list of secondary and primary sources. At some universities, the proposal will be graded.

After you get the initial feedback, you will have a clear idea of what to adjust before writing your thesis. Only then, you’ll be able to start.

🔥 Supreme Economics Thesis Topics List

• Fast fashion in India.
• The UK housing prices.
• Brexit and European trade.
• Behavioral economics.
• Healthcare macroeconomics.
• COVID-19’s economic impact.
• Global gender wage gap.
• Commodity dependence in Africa.
• International trade – developing countries.
• Climate change and business development.

👍 Economics Bachelor’s Thesis Topics

At the U.S. Universities, an undergraduate thesis is very uncommon. However, it depends on the Department Policy.

The biggest challenge with the Bachelor’s Thesis in economics concerns its originality. Even though you are not required to conduct entirely unique research, you have to lack redundant ideas.

You can easily avoid making this mistake by simply choosing one of these topics. Also, consider visiting IvyPanda essays database. It’s a perfect palce to conduct a brainstorming session and come up with fresh ideas for a paper, as well as get tons of inspiration.

• The impact of the oil industry on the economic development of Nigeria. The oil industry is vital for the economic development of Nigeria. In this thesis, students can discuss the notion of the resource curse. Analyze the reasons why general people are not benefiting from the oil industry. Why did it produce very little change in the social and economic growth of the country?
• Sports Marketing and Advertising: the impact it has on the consumers.
• Economic opportunities and challenges of investing in Kenya .
• Economic Development in the Tourism Industry in Africa. Since the early 1990s, tourism significantly contributed to the economic growth of African countries. In this thesis, students can talk about the characteristics of the tourist sector in Africa. Or elaborate on specific countries and how their national development plans look like.
• Globalization and its significance to business worldwide .
• Economic risks connected to investing in Turkey .
• The decline in employment rates as the biggest American economy challenge .
• The economics of alcohol abuse problems. In this thesis, students can develop several essential issues. First, they can examine how poverty is connected to alcohol abuse. Second, they can see the link between alcohol consumption and productivity. To sum up, students can elaborate on the economic costs of alcohol abuse.
• Causes and solutions for unemployment in Great Britain.
• Parallel perspective on Global Economic Order: China and America. This thesis can bring a comparative analysis of the economies to a new level. China and The US are the world’s two largest economies. These two countries have a significant impact on the global economic order. So, looking at the set of institutions, policies, rules can be constructive.
• The new international economic order after COVID-19
• Financial stability of the banking sector in China.
• New Electronic Payment Services in Russia.
• The influence of culture on different entrepreneurial behaviors.
• The impact of natural cultural practices on entrepreneurial activity.
• The relationships between national culture and individual behavior.
• The main reasons for salary inequalities in different parts of the U.S.

😲 Economics Master’s Thesis Topics

Student life can be fascinating, but it comes with its challenges. One of which is selecting your Master’s thesis topic.

Here is a list of topics for a Master’s thesis in economics. Are you pursuing MPhil in Economics and writing a thesis? Use the following ideas as an inspiration for that. They can also be helpful if you are working on a Master’s thesis in financial economics.

• The impact of visual aid in teaching home economics.
• The effect of income changes in consumer behaviors in America.
• Forces behind socio-economic inequalities in the United States. This thesis can explore three critical factors for socio-economic differences in the United States. In the past 30 years, social disparities increased in the United States. Some of the main reasons are technology, trade, and institutions.
• The relationships between economic growth and international development.
• Technological innovations and their influence on green and environmental products.
• The economics of non-solar renewable energy .

• The economic consequences of terrorism . Terrorism not only takes away lives and destroys property but also widely affects the economy. It creates uncertainty in the market, increases insurance claims, slows down investment projects, and tourism. This thesis can address all of the ways in which terrorism can affect economies.
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) implementation in the Oil and Gas Industry in Africa.
• Use of incentives in behavioral economics.
• Economic opportunities and challenges of sustainable communities .
• Economics of nuclear power plants.
• Aid and financial help for emerging markets. This topic is very versatile. Students can look at both the positive and the adverse effects that funding has on the development. There are plenty of excellent examples. Besides, some theories call international help a form of neocolonialism.
• Multinational firms impact on economic growth in America .
• The effect of natural disasters on economic development in Asia.
• The influence of globalization on emerging markets and economic development.

📑 More Economics Thesis Topics: Theme

For some students, it makes more sense to center their search around a certain subject. Sometimes you have an econ area that interests you. You may have an idea about what you want to write, but you did not decide what it will be.

If that’s the case with you, then these economics thesis topics ideas are for you.

• An analysis of the energy market in Russia.
• The impact of game theory on economic development.
• The connection between minimum wage and market equilibrium.
• Gender differences in the labor market in the United States. This topic can shed light on gender differences in the labor market in the United States. In the past years, the overall inequality in labor in the markets decreased. However, there is still a lot of work that can be done.
• Economic reasons that influence the prices of oil .
• Relationship between the Lorenz curve and the Gini coefficient.
• Challenges of small businesses in the market economy.
• The changes in oil prices: causes and solutions . Universal economic principles do not always apply to the sale and purchase of the oil. The same happens with its cost. In the thesis, talk about what affects the prices. What are the solutions that can be implemented?
• The economic analysis of the impact of immigration on the American economy.

• Economic inequality as a result of globalization . Economic inequality becomes even more apparent on the global level. There is a common belief that globalization is the cause of that. Discuss what can be the solutions to these problems. This topic is vital to minimize the gap between the rich and the poor.
• The economic explanation of political dishonesty .
• Effect of Increasing Interest rates costs in Africa .
• The connection between game theory and microeconomics.
• Marketing uses in microeconomics.
• Financial liability in human-made environmental disasters.
• Banks and their role in the economy. Banks are crucial elements of any economy, and this topic covers why. You can explain how banks allow the goods and services to be exchanged. Talk about why banks are so essential for economic growth and stability.
• Inflation in the US and ways to reduce its impact.
• The connection between politics and economics.
• Income Dynamics and demographic economics.
• US Market Liquidity and macroeconomics.
• Macroeconomics and self-correction of the economy .
• The American economy, monetary policy, and monopolies .
• The importance of control in macroeconomics. One of the central topics in macroeconomics is grouped around the issue of control. It is quite reasonable that control over money and resources should become a topic of discussion.
• Analysis of Africa’s macroeconomics and its performance.
• Economics of education in developing markets.
• Problems and possible solutions for Japan macroeconomics .
• Comparative analysis of British macroeconomics concerning the US .
• Public policies and socio-economic disparities.
• The world problems through macroeconomic analysis. Indeed, macroeconomics is very complicated. There are many influences, details, and intricacies in it. However, it allows economists to use this complex set of tools to examine the world’s leading problems today.

• The connection between employment interest and money.

🤔 Development Economics

• Economics of development . This topic is very rich in content. First, explain what it is. Then pay particular attention to domestic and international policies that affect development, income distribution, and economic growth.
• The relation between development and incentive for migration.
• The impact of natural disasters on the economy and political stability of emerging markets.
• The economic consequences of population growth in developing countries.
• The role of industrialization in developing countries . The industrialization has been connected with the development. It promotes capital formation and catalyzes economic growth in emerging markets. In this thesis, you can talk about this correlation.
• Latin American economic development.
• Gender inequality and socio-economic development .
• Problems of tax and taxation in connection with economic growth.
• The economic impact of terrorism on developing markets.
• Religious decline as a key to economic development. Not everyone knows, but a lot of research has been done in the past years on the topic. It argues that decreased religious activity is connected with increased economic growth. This topic is quite controversial. Students who decide to write about it should be extra careful and polite.

👨‍💼 Behavioral Economics

• Risk Preferences in Rural South Africa.
• Behavioral Economics and Finance .
• Applied behavioral economics in marketing strategies. If you want to focus your attention on marketing, this topic is for you. Behavioral economics provides a peculiar lens to look at marketing strategies. It allows marketers to identify common behaviors and adapt their marketing strategies.
• The impact of behavioral finance on investment decisions.
• Behavioral Economics in Child Nutrition Programs in North Texas.
• Guidelines for Behavioral Economics in Healthcare Sector.
• Cognitive and behavioral theories in economics .
• Cross-cultural consumer behavior and marketing communication. Consumers are not only affected by personal characteristics, but also by the culture they are living in. This topic focuses on the extent it should determine marketing strategy and communication.
• Behavior implications of wealth and inequality.

• Optimism and pessimism for future behavior.

💼 Financial Economics

• Financial Economics for Infrastructure and Fiscal Policy .
• The use of the economic concept of human capital. Students can focus on the dichotomy between human and nonhuman capital. Many economists believe that human capital is the most crucial of all. Some approach this issue differently. Therefore, students should do their research and find where they stand on this issue.
• The analysis of the global financial crisis of 2020s. Share your thoughts, predictions, ideas. Analyze the economic situation that affects almost everyone in the world. This thesis topic will be fresh and original. It can help to start a good and fruitful conversation.
• The big data economic challenges for Volvo car.
• The connection between finance, economics, and accounting.
• Financial economics: Banks competition in the UK .
• Risk-Taking by mutual funds as a response to incentives.
• Managerial economics and financial accounting as a basis for business decisions.
• Stock market overreaction.

🌱 Agricultural Economics

• Agricultural economics and agribusiness.
• The vulnerability of agricultural business in African countries.
• Agricultural economics and environmental considerations of biofuels .
• Farmer’s contribution to agricultural social capital.
• Agricultural and resource economics. Agricultural and resource economics plays a huge role in development. They are subdivided into four main characteristics which in this topic, students can talk about: – mineral and energy resources; – soil resources, water resources; – biological resources. One or even all of them can be a focus of the thesis.
• Water as an economic good in irrigated agriculture.
• Agriculture in the economic development of Iran.
• The US Agricultural Food Policy and Production .
• Pesticides usage on agricultural products in California.

• An analysis of economic efficiency in agriculture. A lot of research has been done on the question of economic efficiency in agriculture. However, it does not mean there is no place for your study. You have to read a lot of secondary sources to see where your arguments can fit.

🤝‍Economic Sociology

• Theory, approach, and method in economics sociology.
• Economic sociology of capitalism. While economists believe in the positive effect capitalism has on the economy, the social effect is quite different. The “economic” part of the issue has been studied a lot. However, the sociology of it has been not. This thesis can be very intriguing to read.
• Political Economy and Economic Sociology.
• Gender and economic sociology .
• Progress, sociology, and economics.
• Data analysis in economics, sociology, environment .
• Economic sociology as a way to understand the human mind.
• Economic sociology of money.
• Economics, sociology, and psychology of security.
• Major principles of economic sociology. In the past decade, economic sociology became an increasingly popular field. Mainly due to it giving a new view on economics, human mind, and behavior. Besides, it explores relationships between politics, law, culture, and gender.

📚 The List of Ph.D. Topics in Economics

If you decide to go to grad school to do your Masters, you will likely end up getting a Ph.D. as well. So, with this plan in mind, think about a field that interests you enough during your Masters. Working with the same topic for both graduate degrees is easier and more effective.

This list of Ph.D. Topics in Economics can help you identify the areas you can work on.

• Occupational injuries in Pakistan and its effect on the economy. Injuries are the leading cause of the global burden of disability. Globally, Pakistan was ranked 9th populated country with a large number of unskilled workers. In this dissertation, consider the link between occupational injuries and their effects on the economy.
• The study of the Philippines’ economic development.

• Financial derivatives and climate change .
• Econometric Analysis of Financial Markets.
• Islamic Banking and Financial Markets .
• Health economics and policy in the UK.
• Health insurance: rationale and economic justification. In this dissertation, students can find different ways to explain and justify health insurance. Starting to philosophical to purely economic grounds. In the past years, there was a lot of discussion regarding the healthcare system for all. What are some of the economic benefits of that?
• Colombian economy, economic growth, and inequality.
• Benefits of mergers and acquisitions in agribusiness.
• Methods to measure financial risks when investing in Africa.
• The significance of financial economics in understanding the relationship between a country’s GDP and NDP.
• Network effects in cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrencies are not new anymore. However, it is still an original subject for a dissertation. Students can decide to choose several crypto coins and evaluate the importance of the network effect. This effect is particularly significant for Bitcoin. Explain why.
• The comparison of the Chinese growth model with the American growth model.
• An economic justification versus political expediency.
• Pollution Externalities Role in Management Economics .

📝 How to Select an Economics Thesis Topic

As your academic journey is coming to an end, it’s time to pick the right topic for your thesis. The whole academic life you were preparing to undertake this challenge.

Here is the list of six points that will help you to select an economics thesis topic:

• Make sure it is something you are genuinely interested in. It is incredibly challenging to write something engaging if you are not interested in the topic. So, choose wisely and chose what excites you.
• Draw inspiration from the previous student’s projects. A great place to start is by looking at what the previous students wrote. You can find some fresh ideas and a general direction.
• Ask your thesis advisor for his feedback. Most probably, your thesis advisor supervised many students before. They can be a great help too because they know how to assess papers. Before meeting with your professor, do some basic research, and understand what topic is about.
• Be original, but not too much. You do not want to spend your time writing about a project that many people wrote about. Your readers will not be interested in reading it, but your professors as well. However, make sure you do not pick anything too obscure. It will leave you with no secondary sources.
• Choose a narrow and specific topic. Not only will it allow you to be more original, but also to master a topic. When the issue is too broad, there is just too much information to cover in one thesis.
• Go interdisciplinary. If you find yourself interested in history, philosophy, or any other related topic, it can help you write an exceptional thesis in economics. Most of your peers may work on pure economics. Then, the interdisciplinary approach can help you to stand out among them.

Thank you for reading the article to the end! We hope this list of economics thesis topics ideas could help you to gather your thoughts and get inspired. Share it with those who may find it useful. Let us know what you think about it in the comment section below.

🔗 References

• Economics Thesis Topics List: Seminars Only
• How To Pick A Topic For Your Economics Research Project Or Master’s Thesis: INOMICS, The Site for Economists
• What Do Theses and Dissertations Look Like: KU Writing Center, the University of Kansas
• Writing Economics: Robert Neugeboren with Mireille Jacobson, University of Harvard
• Economics Ph.D. Theses: Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School, IDEAS_RePEc
• World Economic Situation and Prospects 2018: United Nations
• Undergraduate Honors Theses: Department of Economics, University of California, Berkeley
• Economics Department Dissertations Collection: Economics Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst
• Topics for Master Theses: Department of Economics, NHH, Norwegian School of Economics
• Share via Facebook
• Share via X
• Share via LinkedIn
• Share via email

By clicking "Post Comment" you agree to IvyPanda’s Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions . Your posts, along with your name, can be seen by all users.

The dilemma I faced in getting Thesis proposal for my M Phil programme is taken away. Your article would be a useful guide to many more students.Thank you for your guidance.

Thanks for the feedback, John! Your opinion is very important for us!

I wants it for msc thesis

These are very helpful and concise research topics which I have spent days surfing the internet to get all this while. Thanks for making research life experience easier for me. Keep this good work up.

Thank you, Idris!

Glad to hear that! Thank you for your feedback, Idris!

Excellent research

For research

A very well written, clear and easy-to-read article. It was highly helpful. Thank you!

Thanks for your kind words! We look forward to seeing you again!

Home > Academics > Master's Programmes > Master in Economics > The Best Master Thesis in Economics

The Best Master Thesis in Economics

Academic year 2022-2023, academic year 2021-2022, academic year 2020-2021, academic year 2019-2020, academic year 2018-2019, academic year 2017-2018.

• Academic Year 2016-2017

Academic Year 2015-2016

Academic year 2014-2015.

Impact of conflicts on the underground drug economy in Aghanistan (PDF, 764 Ko) Antoine POL under the direction of Golvine de Rochambeau , Assistant Professor  of Economics at Sciences Po.

The case of win-win bilateral slot swapping between ECAC area competing airlines (PDF, 951 Ko)  Hugo BARRAS under the direction of   Marleen Marra , Assistant Professor of Economics at Sciences Po.

Do Banks Help Build? Evidence from the 19th century US (PDF, 2,7 Mo) Martin BERNSTEIN under the direction of Moritz Schularick , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po & Clement de Chaisemartin , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po, ERC Project REALLYCREDIBLE, NBER Faculty Research Fellow, J-PAL Affiliated Professor.

Heterogeneous firms and Sudden Stops: insights from Chile (PDF, 835 Ko) Natalia CARDENAS FRIAS under the direction of Xavier Ragot , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po et President of the OFCE.

Structural cost and network effects in a decentralized network: The case of Mastodon platform (PDF, 290 Ko) Mathias DACHERT under the direction of Michele Fioretti ,  Assistant Professor of Economics at Sciences Po.

Age-Earnings Profiles in China (PDF, 1,4 Mo) Fangqi DING under the direction of Moshe Buchinsky , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po.

Natural and Financial Crises: Do Natural Disasters Increase The Risk Of Financial Crises? (PDF, 701 Ko) Daniel FICHMANN under the direction of Moritz Schularick , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po.

Intergenerational mobility in Mauritius (PDF, 889 Ko) Jeteesha FOOLLEE under the direction of Roberto Galbiati , Professor (CNRS), CEPR Research Fellow, ANR Project SOSELF.

The merits of boarding (PDF, 2,3 Mo) Alexandre GRELLET under the direction of Clement de Chaisemartin , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po, ERC Project REALLYCREDIBLE, NBER Faculty Research Fellow , J-PAL Affiliated Professor.

Causal Effect of Studying Ancient Languages on Overall School Performance: Evidence from French Data (PDF, 2,1 Mo) Anthony KUYU under the direction of Clement de Chaisemartin , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po, ERC Project REALLYCREDIBLE, NBER Faculty Research Fellow , J-PAL Affiliated Professor.

Holes in the ceiling! Dividend elasticities and tax avoidance in light of the ceiling mechanism of the French wealth tax (PDF, 1,9 Mo) Elvin LE POUHAËR under the direction of Lucas Chancel , Associate Professor at Sciences Po.

Consequences of Colonial Rule on Health Outcomes in India (PDF, 1,2 Mo) Kunal PANDA under the direction of Emeric Henry , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po, ANR Project SOSELF, CEPR Research Fellow.

A good year to bury bad loans? Uncovering liquidity in the market for non-performing loans (PDF, 1.12 Mo) Nathaniel Butler Blondel under the direction of Guillaume Plantin , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po &  Maximilian Fandl of the Macroprudential Division at the European Central Bank

Mobility of French teachers in secondary education: modelisation and estimation of a dynamic centralised matching market (PDF, 1.37 Mo) Antoine Chapel under the direction of Jean-Marc Robin , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po & Alfred Galichon , Professor of Economics at New York University

The Drivers of Social and Individual Environmental Behaviour (PDF, 1.82 Mo) Sidonie Commarmond under the direction of Emeric Henry , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po & Roberto Galbiati , CNRS Professor (DR) at Sciences Po

Weighted Dynamic Latent Block Model and its Applications in Sorting Estimation (PDF, 1.55 Mo) Xinyu Dai under the direction of Jean-Marc Robin , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po & Junnan He, Assistant Professor of Economics at Sciences Po

Does school choice increase social segregation? Evidence from private schools opening in France between 2005 and 2019 (PDF, 2.95 Mo) Constance Frohly under the direction of Pierre Cahuc , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po & Denis Fougère , Directeur de recherche CNRS-CRIS

Cost and benefit of green R&D: evidence from French firms (PDF, 1.10 Mo) Axel Meunier under the direction of Jean-Marc Robin , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po & Agnès Benassy-Quéré , Professor of Economics at Paris School of Economics

Campaign Finance Quotas and Female Political Representation: Evidence from 2018 Brazilian Reform  (PDF, 2.42 Mo) Olympia Tsoutsoplidi under the direction of Julia Cagé , Associate Professor & Benjamin Marx , Assistant Professor of Economics at Sciences Po

International inequality transmission in a two-country HANK model (PDF, 43 Mo) Naomi Cohen  under the direction of Xavier Ragot , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po

Job seeker's strategic attention allocation : Evidence from a Field Experiment (PDF, 315 ko) Mattis Gilbert  under the direction of Pierre Cahuc , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po

Women Empowerment through Public Employment Programmes: Evidence from Ethiopia (PDF, 2 Mo) Till Kadereit   under the direction of Benjamin Marx , Assistant Professor  of Economics at Sciences Po

Price discrimination with endogenous participation in two-sided platforms (PDF, 536 ko) Aurélien Salas under the direction of Eduardo Perez-Richet , Assistant Professor  of Economics at Sciences Po

The landscapes of transition: Identifying economic geography in the emergence of capitalist markets in Central and Eastern Europe (PDF, 2 Mo) Karolina Wilczyńska under the direction of Thierry Mayer , Professor of Economics at Sciences Po

Inequality and Current Account - Imbalances in a Monetary Union. Heterogeneous heterogeneities in the Eurozone (PDF, 11Mo) Danell Benguigui sous la direction de Xavier Ragot , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

Paris Terrorist Attacks and Hotel Word‐of‐Mouth (PDF, 497 ko) Yulin Hao sous la direction de Michèle Fioretti , Assistant Professor  au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po

Political Trust, Political Participation and Conflict. A case study of the Boko Haram conflict in Nigeria (PDF, 2.71 Mo) Simeon Lauterbach sous la direction de Benjamin Marx , Assistant Professor  au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po

Public debt and safety trap in open economies (PDF, 440 ko) Valentin Marchal sous la direction de  Nicolas Coeurdacier , Associate Professor of Economics at  Sciences Po

Global Migration and the Skill Premium (PDF, 346 ko) Alberto Nasi sous la direction de Thierry Mayer , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

Information design against petty corruption (PDF, 341ko) Grégory Dannay , sous la direction d' Eduardo Perez-Richet , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

What drives the French discontent? (PDF, 453 ko) Eva Davoine , sous la direction de Benjamin Marx , Assistant Professor  au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po

Overtime Hours and Bonuses: A Story of Fiscal Optimization (PDF, 700ko) Nicolas Ghio , sous la direction de Pierre Cahuc , Professeur à Sciences Po &   Denis Fougère , Directeur de recherche CNRS - OSC-LIEPP

Knocking on closed doors? Identifying the determinants of employer call-backs for unskilled youth (PDF, 1.20Mo) Lorenzo Kaaks, sous la direction de Pierre Cahuc , Professeur à Sciences Po

Cracks in the boards: the opportunity cost of homogeneous boards of directors (PDF, 5.37Mo) Hélène Maghin , sous la direction de Ghazala Azmat , Professeur à Sciences Po

Does Dark Trading Alter Liquidity? Evidence from European Regulation (PDF, 504ko) Victor Saint-Jean , sous la direction de Stéphane Guibaud , Assistant Professor  au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po

The Relationship Between Housing Vouchers and Educational Attainment in Atlanta, GA (PDF, 396ko) Rebecca Smith , sous la direction de Ghazala Azmat , Professeur à Sciences Po

Reading about Flood Risk in the News - Evidence from the Housing Market (PDF, 19Mo) Jeanne Sorin , sous la direction de Julia Cagé ,  Assistant Professor  au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po &  Florian Oswald ,  Assistant Professor  au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po 

Gravity in paradise - How do tax havens shape multinational production (PDF) Samuel Delpeuch sous la direction de Zsofia Barany , Assistant Professor au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po et Thomas Chaney , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

Chasing the Flapper Vote Women Enfranchisement and Electoral Outcomes at the 1929 British General Election (PDF) Edgard Dewitte sous la direction de Julia Cagé , Assistant Professor au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po

Savings in a 3 Period-Model with a Behavioral Agent - Rational inattention with a Sparse Dynamic Approach (PDF) Galo Egas G. sous la direction de Xavier Ragot , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

Quality of life in French cities (PDF) Mylène Feuillade sous la direction de Pierre-Philippe Combes , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po et Laurent Gobillon , Professeur d'économie à Paris School of Economics

Non-Cognitive Skills Training and Educational Outcomes: New Evidence from French Middle Schools (PDF) Laura Green sous la direction de GREEN, Yann Algan , Doyen de l’École d’Affaires Publiques (EAP) et Professeur d’économie à Sciences Po & Denis Fougère , Directeur de recherche CNRS - OSC-LIEPP

Dynamics of local employment in Europe: Is the impact of agglomeration economies time inconsistent?  (PDF) Magdalena Kizior sous la direction de Pierre-Henri Bono , Chef de projet au LIEPP & Département d'économie de Sciences Po, Jean Imbs , Directeur de recherche CNRS, Paris School of Economics

Learning under Coarse Thinking (PDF) Daniel M. de A. Barreto sous la direction de Eduardo Perez-Richet , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po et Jeanne Hagenbach, Associate Professor d'économie à Sciences Po

Estimating employment effects of the German minimum wage (PDF) Johannes Seebauer sous la direction de Florian Oswald , Assistant Professor à Sciences Po & Denis Fougère , Directeur de recherche CNRS - OSC-LIEPP

Present-Bias and Salience in Discounting Acros Short Durations: a Proposed Experimental Approach (PDF) Zydney Wong sous la direction de Jeanne Hagenbach, Associate Professor au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po & Emeric Henry, Associate Professor au Département d'Économie, Sciences Po

Academic year 2016-2017

Does training pay? Estimating the wage returns to vocational training in France (PDF)

Olivier Cassagneau-Francis sous la direction de Jean-Marc Robin , Professeur à Sciences Po et  Robert Gary-Bobo , Professeur à l'ENSAE

Competing Information Designers (PDF)

Théo Durandard  sous la direction d' Eduardo Perez-Richet , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

What's new in the new? Media coverage about the ECB and market participants'inflation expectations   (PDF)

Mikael Eskenazi  sous la direction de  Christine Graeff , directrice générale de la communication de la Banque centrale européenne et Benoit Coeuré , Membre du Directoire de la Banque centrale européenne

Impact of Trade on the Characteristics of the Digital Newspaper Market (PDF)

Anaïs Galdin  sous la direction de  Julia Cagé , Associate Professor of Economics à Sciences Po et Thomas Chaney , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

Intergenerational Income Mobility in France : National and Territorial Estimates (PDF)

Gustave Kenedi sous la direction de Pierre-Philippe Combes , Professeur d'économie à Sciences Po

Intergenerational transfert without commitment: a macroeconomic framework (PDF)

Hugo Lhuillier  sous la direction de  Nicolas Coeurdacier , Associate Professor of Economics at Sciences Po

Evaluation of the impact computer-aided instruction on student performence  (PDF)

Clémence Lobut  sous la direction de  Denis Fougère , Directeur de recherche CNRS - OSC-LIEPP

Colonial Administrators and Public Educational - Investments in French West Africa   (PDF)

Christine Cai sous la direction de Quoc Anh DO , Associate Professor of Economics 

  Incumbency Effect and Partisanship in development: Evidence from close elections in India  (PDF)

Ragini Chaurasia, sous la direction de  Sergei Guriev , Professor of Economics

Were Administrators the "Rulers of the Empire"? An Empirical Investigation of the Determinants of Colonial Public Investments in French West Africa (PDF)

Par Sacha Dray, sous la direction d' Elise Huillery , Assistant Professor of Economics et Quoc-Anh Do,  Associate Professor of Economics 

Aspirations, Family Background and Educational Outcomes: Evidence of a Poverty Trap in Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam (PDF)

Ava Guez, sous la direction d' Elise Huillery , Assistant Professor of Economics

  Present and Future Costs of Education and International Students - Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Germany  (PDF)

Par Benoit Rauturier, sous la direction d' Etienne Wasmer , Full Professor of Economics

  The Consequences of Managerial Short-termism on the Firm : Theory and Empirics  (PDF)

Bilal Tabti, sous la direction de  Guillaume Plantin , Professor of Economics

Measuring the impact of the CICE on Firms' investments (PDF)

Camille Urvoy, sous la direction de Denis Fougère , Directeur de recherche CNRS - OSC-LIEPP

Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail? Immigration, Local Public Spending and Voting: Evidence from a Natural Experiment (PDF)

Max Viskanic, sous la direction d' Emeric Henry , Directeur des études doctorales en Economie, Professeur associé au Département d'Economie, Sciences Po

Heterogeneous Preferences and General Equilibrium in Financial Markets  (PDF) Tyler ABBOT, sous la direction de Nicolas COEURDACIER , Associate Professor of Economics

Returns to College on the Marriage Market: a Simple Roy Model with Perfect Foresight  (PDF)

Edoardo CISCATO, sous la direction de Jean-Marc ROBIN , Professor of Economics 

Social-Democracy. Homophily and polarisation in politics, the Italian Twitter network   (PDF) Mario LUCA, sous la direction de  Ruben DURANTE ,  Associate Professor of Economics

Population's fear and hostility and the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa  (PDF) Norbert RUGAMBAGE, sous la direction d' Elise HUILERY , Associate Professor of Economics

Le Marché du Logement et l'Emploi des Jeunes  (PDF) Jean-Benoît Eymeoud, sous la direction d' Etienne WASMER , Full Professor of Economics

CANDIDATES NEWSLETTER

International Admissions

Admissions report

Application Guide

Tuition Fees & Scholarships Guide

Careers Services Guide

Applicants guide

Address / phone

27, rue Saint Guillaume - 75337 Paris Cedex 07

Phone: +33 (0)1 45 49 50 50 | +33 (0)1 42 22 31 26

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTERS

A to Z Index

Legal terms

Quick links

Student account

Faculty account

Manage my password

Sciences Po App

© 2024 SCIENCES PO

Edinburgh Research Archive

•   ERA Home
• Economics, School of

Economics thesis and dissertation collection

By Issue Date Authors Titles Subjects Publication Type Sponsor Supervisors

Search within this Collection:

Recent Submissions

Religious differentials in the labour market: the impact of the good friday agreement 25 years on , stuck behind the lines: how does redlining affect educational attainment and occupational structure in chicago , essays in applied micro-econometrics , migration and the implications for the sending country , macroeconomics , essays on human capital, sorting, and wages , essays on behavioral and experimental economics , climate change, innovation, and inequality , three essays on social institutions and individual behavior , essays in development economics , essays on applied microeconomics , macroeconomics & inequality , essays on wage determinants in the long and the short run , two models of institutional design in crime and education , labour market extremes: a study of the high and low wage ends of the labour market , essays on corruption and inequality , essays on resource allocation, land investment and climate change in smallholder agriculture , essays on family economics and labour economics , essays on inequality in human capital development .

• Study With Us

Dissertation Examples

• Undergraduate Research Opportunities
• Student Voice
• Peer-to-Peer Support
• The Econverse Podcast
• Events and Seminars
• China School Website
• Malaysia School Website
• Email this Page

Students in the School of Economics at the University of Nottingham consistently produce work of a very high standard in the form of coursework essays, dissertations, research work and policy articles.

Below are some examples of the excellent work produced by some of our students. The authors have agreed for their work to be made available as examples of good practice.

Undergraduate dissertations

• The Causal Impact of Education on Crime Rates: A Recent US Analysis . Emily Taylor, BSc Hons Economics, 2022
• Does a joint income taxation system for married couples disincentivise the female labour supply? Jodie Gollop, BA Hons Economics with German, 2022
• Conditional cooperation between the young and old and the influence of work experience, charitable giving, and social identity . Rachel Moffat, BSc Hons Economics, 2021
• An Extended Literature Review on the Contribution of Economic Institutions to the Great Divergence in the 19th Century . Jessica Richens, BSc Hons Economics, 2021
• Does difference help make a difference? Examining whether young trustees and female trustees affect charities’ financial performance. Chris Hyland, BSc Hons Economics, 2021

Postgraduate dissertations

• The impact of Covid-19 on the public and health expenditure gradient in mortality in England . Alexander Waller, MSc Economic Development & Policy Analysis, 2022
• Impact of the Child Support Grant on Nutritional Outcomes in South Africa: Is there a ‘pregnancy support’ effect? . Claire Lynam, MSc Development Economics, 2022
• An Empirical Analysis of the Volatility Spillovers between Commodity Markets, Exchange Rates, and the Sovereign CDS Spreads of Commodity Exporters . Alfie Fox-Heaton, MSc Financial Economics, 2022
• The 2005 Atlantic Hurricane Season and Labour Market Transitions . Edward Allenby, MSc Economics, 2022
• The scope of international agreements . Sophia Vaaßen, MSc International Economics, 2022

Thank you to all those students who have agreed to have their work showcased in this way.

School of Economics

Sir Clive Granger Building University of Nottingham University Park Nottingham, NG7 2RD

Legal information

• Terms and conditions
• Posting rules
• Accessibility
• Freedom of information
• Charity gateway
• Cookie policy

Connect with the University of Nottingham through social media and our blogs .

Master's Thesis

The master's thesis is a major research project that is conducted under the supervision of a member of the department. The completed thesis must be presented and successfully defended in an oral examination administered by a formal thesis committee. Thesis credit is awarded when a final draft is approved by the thesis committee. It is important to note that a master's thesis must contain original work and cannot be submitted as a paper in other courses.

Learn more about the master's thesis

2024 Master's Theses

Ziyi Cai: "Determinants of Economic Policy Uncertainty" Advisor: Enrico Spolaore

Jiajia Hao: "The Impact of the US-China Trade War on Chinese Food Security: The Case of Soybean" Advisor: Enrico Spolaore

Ke Jiang: "High-Speed Railway and Tourism Growth: Evidence from China" Advisor: Adam Storeygard

Hongwei Li: "Carbon ETS and Trade Comparative Advantage of China's High-Emission Industries“ Advisors: Federico Esposito, Ujjayant Chakravorty

Yuxuan Li: "How Does Birth Order Affect the Occupation“ Advisor: Yannis Ioannides

Mitesha S. Shakya: "Towards Universal Rental Assistance: An Empirical Study of Housing Choice Voucher Holders' Relocation Patterns, Neighborhood Quality, and Household Characteristics in Massachusetts" Advisors: Jeff Zabel, Shomon Shamsuddin

Taige Wang: “Exploring the Effect of Environmental Regulation on City-Level Exports in China" Advisor: Federico Esposito

Shuaibo Yin*: “Urban Growth Shadows in Mainland China" Advisor: Yannis Ioannides

* Linda Datcher Loury Award Recipient

Topics for master's theses

Topics for master's theses.

The Department of Economics would like to present the following ideas for topics:

• Department of Economics
• MSC in Economics and Business Administration
• Master's thesis
• Apply for master's thesis supervisor

Behavioural Economics

Do you feel lucky, punk.

Background:

High-achieving persons often attribute part of their success to luck – that is, exogenous events outside their own control. Random events have been shown to play a decisive role in shaping people’s life trajectories. However, people may also differ in what they infer from the same objective outcome, which could have repercussions for their long-term financial success. In this master thesis, students will get the chance to conduct an economic experiment to shed light out on why some people feel lucky: is it because they are overly optimistic about the frequency of lucky events, or because they neglect unlucky events? The thesis will then explore how these personal traits correlate with basic economic preferences, personal characteristics, and real investment behavior.

Key references: 

Kaufman (2018), “The Role of Luck in Life Success Is Far Greater Than We Realized”, Scientific American

Profile: ECN, ECO, BUS, FIN, STR

Supervisor: Mathias Ekström

Paying with money or paying with personal data

During the last years concerns have been raised regarding the business model of several tech companies, which base their revenues on advertisements from third parties in exchange of customers’ personal data. From a consumers’ perspective, an important question behind this growing debate is how to quantify a price on personal data. Do consumers attach the same value to their personal data as they do to money? Is it even possible to put a price on your personal data? Previous literature has found a mismatch between willingness to pay (WTP) and willingness to accept (WTA) the sharing of personal information, but understanding behind this gap has not been fully explored. This master thesis project should conduct experiments to study a trade-off between paying with money and paying with personal data. In particular, it should explore potential explanations that could explain the mismatch between WTP and WTA of privacy.

Key references:

Acquisti, Alessandro, Leslie K. John, and George Loewenstein (2013). “What is privacy worth?.” The Journal of Legal Studies 42.2, 249-274.

Winegar, A. G. and C. R. Sunstein (2019). “How much is data privacy worth? A preliminary investigation.” Journal of Consumer Policy 42(3), 425–440.

Brynjolfsson, E. and Collis, A. (2019). “How Should We Measure the Digital Economy?”

Harvard Business Review, 97(6): 140-48. doi: 10.1257/aer.20170491

Collect your own data either by conducting an experiment on the online labor market Amazon Mechanical Turk or by doing a survey experiment.

Supervisors: Researchers from FAIR and Telenor Research.

UNDERSTANDING PATERNALISM

The extent to which it is acceptable to restrict the freedom of individuals in order to promote their own best interest is at the core of much political debate about the relationship between the state and its citizens: Should the state institute mandatory retirement savings, require motorcyclists to wear helmets or refuse to enforce certain types of contracts? Questions about the legitimate role of paternalism are also important in many interpersonal relationships, in particular between parents and their children, and people’s views on these matters may be of great importance for understanding their willingness to accept inequality in society. The master thesis project should conduct experiments to study a person’s willingness to reduce another individual’s freedom in order to promote that individual’s best interests. For example by studying how the willingness to act paternalistically depends on the characteristics of the individuals whose freedom is being restricted, such as how well informed they are, their competence, and their age.

Julian Le Grand & Bill New (2015): Government Paternalism: Nanny State or Helpful Friend? Princeton University Press, 2015

Suitable for profiles:   ECO, ECN, STR, INB, ENE

Supervisor: Alexander W. Cappelen

THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL PREFERENCES: EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE FROM INTERNATIONAL PILOTS

We are seeking master students who would like to write their master thesis as part of a project on the development of fairness preferences. The project is a collaboration between FAIR professors Alexander W. Cappelen and Bertil Tungodden.

We have recruited children from kindergartens and schools in Bergen to take part in a lab experiment we are implementing in September 2018. We have also collected comparable data for adults from Norway and Shanghai as well as for children from kindergartens and schools in Shanghai.

Almås, Cappelen, Sørensen and Tungodden (2010): “Fairness and the Development of Inequality Acceptance”, Science 328(5982): 1176–1178. (2) Almås, Cappelen, Salvanes, Sørensen and Tungodden (2017): “Fairness and family background”, Philosophy, Politics and Economics 16(2) 117-131. (3) Cappelen, List, Samek and Tungodden (2016): “The Effect of Early Education on Social Preferences”, NBER Working Paper No. 22898.

Suitable for:

NHH master students who are interested in helping to implement pilot experiments internationally during the fall and in writing their master thesis as part of the project are welcome to send an e-mail to Adriana Condarco-Quesada. It should include your name, your CV and a short note on why you would like to write your master thesis on this subject. Please also send any questions you might have regarding the project to Adriana.

Supervisor:   Bertil Tungodden

The role of the telco industry towards screen addiction

In the context of conducting fair business practices, a relevant question in the telecommunication industry is whether telco companies should allow and push for unlimited internet data usage. The particular issue at stake is whether providing unlimited data package would push consumers into increasing their social media use and their phone in general, and consequently increasing screen addiction. Telco companies obviously gain by costumers using more their phones. However, this issue raises ethical considerations regarding overdose and potential addiction consequences, which may eventually backfire on the companies’ long term profitability. The master thesis project should conduct experiments or surveys to gather information about people’s perspective on the role of telco companies towards screen use. In particular, it should focus on understanding the view on companies’ interventions when the consumer lacks the will power and/or intrinsic motivation to reduce his/her data consumption.

Alter, A. (2017). “Irresistible: The rise of addictive technology and the business of keeping us hooked”. Penguin.

Supervisors:  Researchers from  FAIR and Telenor Research.

WHAT DRIVES CONSUMERS TO CHANGE ELECTRICITY PROVIDER?

In markets characterized by subscription services, such as electricity, banking and telecommunications, we often find that consumers change providers or plans to a very low extent despite considerable price differences between seemingly similar (or even homogenous) products. There are many potential explanations for this phenomenon, e.g., lack of information, costs of switching, and strong preferences for particular providers. Understanding the sources of passive consumer behavior is important for both regulation, business planning, government policy and market design. We find clear signs of consumer passivity also in the Norwegian electricity retail market, and data sources available to this supervisor can allow a talented student to shed light on some of the potential channels.

von der Fehr and Hansen (2010): "Electricity Retailing in Norway", The Energy Journal 31: 25-45 (Basic reference); Hortacsu et al (2015): "Power to Choose? An Analysis of Consumer Inertia in the Residential Electricity Market", NBER Working Paper No. 20988 (Advanced reference)

Data:  Monthly data on number of subscriptions and sales (kWh) for the largest retailers within local areas will be provided by the supervisor, as well as weekly contract prices and monthly visitor statistics for the contract comparison website of the Competition Authority. Wholesale electricity prices and other useful market statistics can be gathered from Nordpool.

Suitable for profiles:  ECO, ECN, ENE, BUS, FIE, INB

Supervisor:   Morten Sæthre

Energy efficiency and electricity consumption: Drivers of green technology adoption

(Note: Theses under this topic can be eligible for an  Equinor scholarship for master theses .)

Description:

Assessments of potential savings from energy efficiency investments have suggested the existence of an "Energy Efficiency Gap"; that consumers do not undertake energy efficiency investments with even large positive returns. Though the conclusion has been hotly debated in the academic literature, we still lack a solid understanding of drivers and barriers to energy efficiency adoption, which is necessary for designing appropriate policies. Currently, most countries employ some combination of regulation and subsidies to increase energy efficiency, e.g., 100-300 mNOK in yearly Enova subsidies for households in Norway.

Under this topic, you will contribute to our understanding of green technology adoption under the supervision of one or more experienced researchers with competences targeted to different approaches and research questions. Examples of specific projects are "Inattention and green technology: Do temporary shocks to electricity prices spur adoption?", "Does increased electricity demand lead to energy efficiency investment: Evidence from electric vehicle take-up", and "Are green technology subsidies regressive?", "Constrained wallets or constrained minds: The role of mental budgeting and relative thinking in green technology investment", or "Green loans vs investment subsidies: The optimal mix". The examples are far from an exhaustive list, and we encourage you to contact us if you could see yourself writing your master thesis within this topic and want to learn more.

Hunt Allcott and Michael Greenstone (2012) "Is There an Energy Efficiency Gap", Journal of Economic Perspectives 26, pp. 3-28

Hunt Allcott (2016) "Paternalism and Energy Efficiency: An Overview", Annual Review of Economics 8, pp. 145-176

Anna Sahari (2019) "Electricity prices and consumers' long-term technology choices: Evidence from heating investments", European Economic Review 114, pp. 19-53

Electricity prices and consumption data from Nordpool and Statistics Norway, Enova subsidies, statistics on sales of efficient heating systems. It might be possible to gain access to household data given availability and project needs.

Suitable for profiles:  BUS, ECN, ECO, ENE, FIN

(Tentative) supervisor:  Samuel D. Hirshman , Eirik G. Kristiansen ,  Mateusz Mysliwski  and/or  Morten Sæthre

Development Economics

Bulk buying and poverty.

Buying in bulk is a common way that consumers use to obtain lower prices on their purchases. There is now some evidence that low income consumers are not exploiting this strategy well, despite the large potential gains. The thesis will review the issue, and use an innovative detailed dataset from India to investigate it in a new setting.

Key References:

Brian Dillon, Joachim De Weerdt, Ted O’Donoghue, Paying More for Less: Why Don’t Households in Tanzania Take Advantage of Bulk Discounts?, The World Bank Economic Review , Volume 35, Issue 1, February 2021, Pages 148–179.

Suitable for profiles:  ECN, ECO

Supervisor:  Vincent Somville

High Frequency Poverty

Poverty is typically measured at annual level. High frequency data reveals that potentially many households cross the poverty line for significant periods even if they are not poor on average on an annual basis. The thesis will investigate transitory poverty using weekly financial diaries from India.

Jonathan Morduch. Rethinking Poverty, Household Finance, and Microfinance. Forthcoming in Handbook of Microfinance, Financial Inclusion, and Development, edited by Robert Cull and Valentina Hartarska. Forthcoming.

Supervisor: Bertil Tungodden

What effect daugthers have, globally?

There is some evidence from western countries that fathering daughters changes men’s attitudes towards women in general, and can also affect the household structure.

The students will use a global data base covering dozens of countries to investigate the global effects of daughters, and how they affect the economics of families.

Washington, Ebonya L. 2008. "Female Socialization: How Daughters Affect Their Legislator Fathers." American Economic Review , 98 (1): 311-32 .

Jan Kabátek, David C Ribar, Daughters and Divorce, The Economic Journal , Volume 131, Issue 637, July 2021, Pages 2144–2170.

Economic History

Bergen as a maritime capital.

The Norwegian consultancy group Menon publishes an annual list of “The leading maritime capitals of the world”. Bergen is not included in the list of 15 cities evaluated in the report, but has been included in a longlist of 30 nominated cities that are benchmarked according to a set of 24 indicators. The aim of the thesis would be to analyze a) the basis for the ranking; and b) measures that would make Bergen a leading maritime capital.

Key literature: Menon report

Data: developed together with the supervisor

Suitable for profiles: STR, INB, BUS

Supervisor: Stig Tenold

BERGEN AS A MARITIME SERVICE PROVIDER

Bergen plays a key role as one of the leading maritime cities internationally. Bergen shipping companies have dominant positions in several markets (chemical tanker transport, open hatch bulk shipping), and there are also world-class companies in auxiliary services (in particular ship finance, insurance, ship registry). Combining historical perspectives and economic theory, the aim of the thesis would be to analyze to which extent the success of these auxiliary services is based on linkages to the local industry, and to which extent it is a result of the international orientation of the service providers themselves.

Data: Veritas, surveys developed together with the supervisor

Innovation and the patent system

Intellectual property rights are usually associated with the patent system – patents and patent laws. The relationship between patents and innovations has been studied extensively, for example how patent laws create incentives to invent, promote innovation and encourage economic growth. Historical or modern data analysis do, however, give no clear answers, and there is a potential for research that addresses several questions: Does the existence of strong patent laws encourage innovation?  What proportion of innovations is patented? Is this share constant across industries? How does patenting and licensing affect the diffusion of knowledge? Such questions have only to a limited extent been studied in a Norwegian context.

Key reference:

P. Moser, ‘Patents and Innovation: Evidence from Economic History’, Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 27 (1), 2013.

Patent and innovation statistics from the Norwegian Research Council (NFR) and Patentstyret. Norwegian policy documents, company annual reports.

Suitable for profiles: ECO, ECN, STR, INB, BUS

Supervisor: Bjørn L. Basberg

The gender wage gap

How large is the gender wage gap and why do we observe a gender wage gap. These are important questions that occupy economists, business operations and politicians. Students can address this question empirically by documenting the gender wage gap with international data (e.g. OECD, Eurostat, ILO) or national data sets. An interesting focus is to look at young adults or young adults in the NEET (not in education and employment) group.  It could be interesting to compare the measure across data sources and discuss differences and explanations.

There is also a new data source made available for research for young adults in developing countries which could be explored in this thesis (see Bandiera et al. (2022). Other macro-data sources that could be explored and compared across countries, demographic groups and time are found on the webpages of the OECD, Eurostat and ILO. Students could also use historical data for a thesis on this topic.

Key References: 

Bandiera, Oriana, Ahmed Elsayed, Andrea Smurra, and Céline Zipfel. 2022. "Young Adults and Labor Markets in Africa."  Journal of Economic Perspectives , 36 (1): 81-100.

Kunze, A. (2018). The gender wage gap in developed countries.  The Oxford handbook of women and the economy , 369-394.

Fields: economics, labour markets, developing countries, developed countries, empirical, econometrics

Profile: ECON

Supervisor: Astrid Kunze

Environmental & Resource Economics

Climate change in the arctic and economic activities.

The climate change is evident in the Arctic in the way of increased temperatures, decreasing ice and consequently increased accessibility. Maritime transport, fisheries and resource exploitation (mineral oil in particular) are industries that already are pushing the frontiers further north. Since the Arctic Ocean is surrounded by several national states (Canada, the United States, Russia, Norway and Denmark / Greenland), the political tension in the region has increased in a classic ‘race for property rights’ that has historic parallels. Other non-Arctic nations, China in particular, shows increased interest in the region.

There are many potential issues and questions that could be analyzed in an economic framework. What have been the recent trends, and how do businesses and stakeholders view the future? How does the government-business interaction play out in different countries involved? The climate change involves changes in both costs and benefits. How could this be modelled and analyzed?

A.S. Crépin et.al., ‘Arctic Climate Change, Economy and Society (ACCESS): Integrated Perspectives’, Ambio, Dec. (46) 2017, 341-354 and G. Eskeland and L.S. Flottorp, ‘Climate Change in the Arctic: A Discussion of the Impact on Economic Activity’, in Glomsrød et.al. (eds.), The Economy of the North, SSB, 2006.

Data: Climate change reports, government papers and statistics, business prospects.

Suitable for profiles: ECN, STR, INB, BUS.

COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES IN THE ANTARCTIC REGION

The Antarctic region has a long history of resource exploitation (sealing, whaling). Today, human activity in the region is dominated by science, but there are also industries like fisheries, tourism and bio-prospecting. Such industries have to a small extent been analyzed in an economic context and several questions are interesting to pursue. What is the economic scale of these operations? What is the economic and financial importance for the companies involved? Are management and regulatory systems sufficient?

B.L. Basberg, ‘Perspectives on the Economic History of the Antarctic Region’, International Journal of Maritime History, VO. XVIII (2), 2006,

Data: Economics and business statistics on tourism from the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO) and on fisheries from the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR).

ECONOMIC PERSPECTIVES ON TOURISM IN THE POLAR REGIONS

Polar tourism, especially ship born cruise tourism both in the Arctic and in the Antarctic has increased for many years. Business prospects and plans seem to indicate that this will continue.

There are, however, serious challenges ahead. The climate change involves increased accessibility, but also alters the unique experience that constitutes the rationale for the industry. Concerns about long travels is also a factor that creates uncertainties about future demand for such travels.

Several questions could be analyzed about this industry in an economic context. Is it possible, within a traditional business model, to create an environmental and social sustainable industry? There seems to be large future uncertainties connected both to the supply and the demand side in this market. How could that be modelled and analyzed?

M. Lamers and B. Amelung, ‘Climate Change and its Impact for Cruise Tourism’ in M. Lück et. al. (eds), Cruise Tourism in Polar Regions. Promoting Environmental and Social Sustainability? London 2010, p. 147-165.

Data:  Climate change reports, statistics and reports from the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO), tour operator plans and annual reports.

Suitable for profiles: ECN, STR, INB, BUS

Reflections of climate change: suffering and regret

With increasing consumption and production of many goods and services, the humanmade effects on climate change are getting bigger and bigger. For some activities the potential effects are well-known, such as plastic taking at least 400 years to dissolve completely in the nature. For some other activities the effects can be ambiguous and unknown to the consumers, such as the impact of an e-mail box size on the environment. When there is ambiguity about the consequences of their actions, people may suffer from both the direct effects of climate change and the regret from contributing this. The master thesis project should investigate regret and regret aversion when making decisions have potential consequences for the climate. Treatment variation could be driven by using manipulated regret lotteries for consumption (or digital) decisions.

Imas, A., Lam´e, D., Wilson, A. J. (2020). Reversals between one-shot and repeated decisions in incentive design: the case of regret. Mimeo

Robinson, P. J., Botzen, W. J. (2018). The impact of regret and worry on the threshold level of concern for flood insurance demand: Evidence from Dutch homeowners. Judgment and Decision Making , 13(3), 237-245.

Volpp, K. G., John, L. K., Troxel, A. B., Norton, L., Fassbender, J., Loewenstein, G.

(2008). Financial incentive–based approaches for weight loss: a randomized trial. Jama , 300(22), 2631-2637.

Zeelenberg, M., Pieters, R. (2007). A theory of regret regulation 1.0. Journal of Consumer Psychology , 17(1), 3-18.

Collect your own data either through a survey experiment or by conducting an online experiment on a crowdsourcing platform.

(Tentative) supervisor:  Samuel D. Hirshman , Harim Kim,  Eirik G. Kristiansen ,  Mateusz Mysliwski  and/or  Morten Sæthre

Firms & Ethics

Diversity in firms, top leadership, financial and technology sector.

Societies and firms increasingly become diverse in terms of gender, sexual orientation, ethnic background, language background, age. Gender imbalances are particularly pronounced when we look at top leadership, but also sectors such as the financial and technology sector. But the goal of firms of increasing diversity is not restricted to gender balance, but also other demographic characteristics such as age, ethnic background etc.

Equality is high on the political agenda and more and more firms acknowledge that in order to recruit the best workers they need to make diversity and inclusive worklife part of their strategic goals. Firms increasingly integrate gender equality and business ethics as part of their corporate management strategy.

A masterthesis in this area can be an empirical thesis where students assemble or collect novel data that allow to measure diversity in firms and policies that firms design to increase diversity. Students could measure corporate social responsibility along various dimensions and investigate whether such policies do lead to improved firm performance. Students could also study in their thesis more conceptually why firms care about diversity.

Depending on the study profile of the student this thesis can focus on financial outcomes, socio-economic outcomes, careers or theory and empirical methods.

SNF database merged with other data (for Norway)

Orbis database (for international study)

Suitable for profiles: ECON, STR, BUS, FIN

Do business organisations in Europe use diversity and inclusive worklife policies?

I am looking for master's students who collect data from business organisations in Europe, a sample or as many as possible,  to measure whether business organisations D&I policies (e.g. a webpage) and what policies they have. This thesis can take different forms depending on the interests and skills of the students. The thesis could take a focus on the discussion what D&I are, how to categorize those and then how to measure the outcomes of interest. The collection of the data demands a plan how to collect these data (manually from webpages, scaping, or other methods). The thesis may have the design of the data collection as the main part, hand-collection of data or developing an algorithm. Students may also use the plan if there is time to collect a small sample. The most ambitious plan is to collect a large sample that may be merged with other data. If the latter part is the main part, the literature overview of D&I and the more conceptual discussion may be shorter. Instead there could be some empirical descriptive analysis part of the thesis. This thesis leaves a lot of space for the students to find their own focus matching with their interests.

References:

Hospido, L., Laeven, L., & Lamo, A. (2019). The gender promotion gap: evidence from central banking.  The Review of Economics and Statistics , 1-45.

Kalev, A., Dobbin, F., & Kelly, E. (2006). Best practices or best guesses? Assessing the efficacy of corporate affirmative action and diversity policies.  American sociological review ,  71 (4), 589-617.

Fields: organisations, labour markets, equality, diversity in firms, empirical

Profiles: ECON, STR, FOR

Do universities in Europe have diversity and inclusive worklife policies

I am looking for master's students who collect data from universities in Europe, a sample or as many as possible,  to measure whether universities and economic faculties in Europe have D&I policies (e.g. a webpage) and what policies they have. This thesis can take different forms depending on the interests and skills of the students. The thesis could take a focus on the discussion what D&I are, how to categorize those and then how to measure the outcomes of interest. The collection of the data demands a plan how to collect these data (manually from webpages, scaping, or other methods). The thesis may have the design of the data collection as the main part. Students may also use the plan if there is time to collect a small sample. The most ambitious plan is to collect a large sample  that may be merged with other data on representation of women among Professors in Economics. If the latter part is the main part, the literature overview of D&I and the more conceptual discussion may be shorter. Students could collect data on universities overall, or focus on departments of Economics, or Engineering or other fields. This thesis leaves a lot of space for the students to find their own focus matching with their interests.

Auriol, E., Friebel, G., Weinberger, A., & Wilhelm, S. (2022). Underrepresentation of women in the economics profession more pronounced in the United States compared to heterogeneous Europe.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ,  119 (16), e2118853119.

Profiles : ECON, STR, FOR

Supervisor : Astrid Kunze

Firm behaviour, recruitment and personnel policies

I am looking for masterstudents who are interested to work together with a firm and evaluate certain firm policies and personnel data. The thesis may require designing a survey, preparing confidential data, analysing data collected by the firm. Topics may be on performance evaluation, recruitment, careers, firm performance, accounting. The students could also come with their own ideas.

If students have interest or an idea please get in touch early in the process of planning the masterthesis.

Data: They will be prepared together with the supervisor.

Suitable for profiles:  ECON, BUS, ECN, FIN, STR

Supervisor:   Astrid Kunze

Who should get internet?

Background: 

Access to broadband internet has been found to increase employment and wages, labour productivity, financial technology and banking, education, among other things. A question that still needs to be answered is how to evaluate the expansion of broadband internet in developed countries, where penetration rates are already very high. For example, in Norway 11% of the population does still not have access to internet broadband. A recent public debate has raised the issue on whether the Norwegian government should step in and extend the coverage to the entire population. The master thesis project should investigate people’s perspectives on broadband expansion in Norway. It should, for example, elicit the willingness to pay for (fast) broadband and evaluate different scenarios in a cost and benefit analysis of a potential public investment. Moreover, based on previous evidence that connectivity can enable higher economic productivity, the project could explore whether resources for the broadband expansion should be allocated to all the uncovered areas or whether they should only focus on the most productive areas with more growth potential.

Akerman, Anders, Ingvil Gaarder, and Magne Mogstad (2015). ”The skill complementarity of broadband internet.” The Quarterly Journal of Economics 130.4 : 1781-1824.

M. Bhuller, T. Havnes, E. Leuven and M. Mogstad (2013). “Broadband Internet: An Information Superhighway to Sex Crime?” Review of Economic Studies , 80, 1237-1266.

International Trade & Globalization

How are global value chains affected by the pandemic and recent geopolitical events.

An important aspect of the trends towards more globalisation since the turn of the century, has been the increasing importance of ever more complex (global) supply chains in many industries. The unprecedented technological development in information and communication technology (ICT), combined with more integrated markets and reduced transportation and transaction costs, have made it both technically feasible and economically profitable to split the production process and produce parts and components in various parts of the world. This is often called global value chains (GVC).

From the beginning of the corona pandemic, spring 2020, it became clear that many of these supply chains are very vulnerable to market disruptions, be it in production in various regions or in transportation and international infrastructure. Supply shortages and long delivery times for key components and products have had a significant negative impact on firms and industries in all parts of the world, and many firms have had to reconsider their global value chains.

The present geopolitical situation adds to the pressure on supply chains and exposes the vulnerability of relying on certain sources of raw material and key parts and components in various industries.

Possible approaches:

Given the general picture above, several master thesis topics are possible, depending on the interests of the students. Here are some suggestions:

• Choose an industry (or a firm) and study how the global supply chains in that industry developed before the pandemic and how they have changed recently.  Assess how the pandemic and the geopolitical situation have affected the situation and what the future development might be.
• Choose several industries and compare their development over time both before and during the pandemic.  
• There could also be room for a more theoretical thesis, perhaps with examples from various industries, in which the basis for growing GVC-trade over a long period is analysed, followed by a discussion of why and how the recent events have had such a negative impact in GVCs, and what the future development may be. 

Possible majors:   ECN, ECO, BUS, STR (depending on the focus of the thesis)

Possible supervisors:   Linda Orvedal , Jan I. Haaland or other faculty members from the Department of Economics

How will BREXIT and the new trade agreements affect Norway and Norwegian industry?

The UK decision to leave the EU (BREXIT) will have implications not only for the UK and the EU, but also for other countries.  After a long period of debate and negotiations, the UK and the EU agreed on the new “Trade and Cooperation Agreement” on the 24 th December 2020.  The agreement has been in place since 1 st January 2021, although parts of it is still debated.  In June 2021 Norway, together with the other EEA countries (Iceland and Liechtenstein), agreed on a free-trade agreement with the UK.

Both the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the UK and the EU and the new free-trade agreement between the UK and the EEA countries will have profound implications for trade between the UK and Norway, for many reasons.  First, the UK is an important trading partner for Norway, for goods and services, as well as when it comes to investments and mobility of labour.  All of this have been affected by Brexit, even if new agreements are in place. Secondly, through the European Economic Area (EEA) Norway is part of the EU single market, but not part of the EU Customs Union. Hence, the UK’s departure from the EU customs union will have implications for Norway’s trade both with the EU and the UK.  And thirdly, Brexit has initiated a new discussion about the EEA (EØS) agreement in Norway; hence the implications may be even more serious. 

Approach:  

There could be many interesting ways of approaching the question of how BREXIT may affect Norway and Norwegian industry. One approach could be to take a general national view and discuss possible implications of BREXIT and the new trade agreements for overall trade and economic interactions between the UK and Norway. Another approach could be to select a particular industry and study the possible implications for that industry. And a third option could be to focus on the implications of a possible future change in the trade relations between the EU and Norway. All three approaches would need a good combination of theoretical understanding of trade agreements and possible future trade regimes, and empirical observations and analysis of the actual trade relations between the two countries.

Standard international economics textbooks for the understanding of trade policies and trade agreements.  www.wto.org for more specific information about the multilateral trade system and regional trade agreements. For BREXIT the literature is evolving constantly.  A good source is UK Trade Policy Observatory ( https://blogs.sussex.ac.uk/uktpo/ ) with many blogs and reports on recent developments.  When it comes to the new trade agreement between Norway and the UK, there are so far few independent analyses of possible consequences, but official information about the agreement is given on the governments’ webpages: Norwegian Government: https://www.regjeringen.no/no/aktuelt/inngar-historisk-frihandelsavtale-med-storbritannia/id2857147/   UK Government’s: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/united-kingdom-signs-free-trade-deal-with-norway-iceland-and-liechtenstein

Data: Industrial characteristics and trade data.

Possible majors: ECN, INB

Possible supervisors: Jan I. Haaland and Linda Orvedal

Sustainability and global value chains

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) cover a number of areas of great importance for both national and multinational companies, and many companies use the SDGs both in their strategies and in marketing as something they will contribute to.  Areas like decent work and economic growth (SDG8), industry, innovation and infrastructure (SDG9), responsible consumption and production (SDG12), climate action (SDG13) all have direct links to companies, but the same is true for most of the SDGs. For some key areas, like human rights and labour conditions, there are also more specific international agreements and rules that companies are obliged to adhere to.

A key feature of international business today, is the reliance on global value chains (GVC for short, also called global supply chains), where the final products are made up of parts and components produced by a number of suppliers and sub-suppliers in different parts of the world.  Some of these GVCs are very complex, and it is not easy for the companies to keep track of the whole supply chain.  Yet, the companies’ responsibility to adhere to national and international rules, as well as their commitment to contribute to the SDGs, cover not only their own parts of the production process, but the whole supply chain.

How do multinationals go about to keep track of their GVC and to ensure that their obligations and commitments to e.g. human rights, labour conditions and/or environment issues are fulfilled throughout the supply chain?

There could be several approaches to this research question, depending on the students’ interest.  One possibility is to choose an industry or a firm and try to map the situation for that industry/firm.   Another possibility could be to start out with international rules and regulations in one or a few areas (e.g. human rights, or climate emissions) and to study how various industries relate to the regulations and how this affects their global value chains.   

Possible majors:   ECN, ENE, BUS, STR (depending on approach)

The war in Ukraine – implications for key markets in Europe and globally

The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has affected the European and world economy in many ways. Energy and food markets have been disrupted with huge implications for both Europe and the rest of the world, but other markets have also seen significant changes due to the war. The market implications follow directly from the fact that the war prevents Ukraine from producing and exporting many products, as well as from the economic sanctions towards Russia and the Russian reactions.  Although the immediate and short-term effects have been huge, it is still too early to say what the longer-term effects may be.

Two possible approaches: 

• Choose an industry/product, study how the war has affected the international markets for that industry so far, and try to assess how the future development may be.
• Look at the broader picture and assess how various international markets have been affected and what the future development may by. 

Possible majors:   ECN, ECO, ENE (depending on approach)

Labour Economics

Do flexible pay schemes explain the rise of wage inequality.

In most developed countries, wage inequality has increased in the last decades. A popular explanation is that it is increasingly common to have pay set at the worker rather than at the sectoral level. This leaves more room for wage negotiations, potentially driving labor market inequality. This master thesis aims to assess the role of flexible pay setting in developing wage inequality using unique data on workers’ pay components (e.g., overtime, bonuses). You will have access to microdata for 25 European countries (SES data) to implement your analysis. 

Lemieux, Thomas, MacLeod, W Bentley and Parent, Daniel. 2009. "Performance Pay and Wage Inequality" The Quarterly Journal of Economics , 124 (1): 1-49.

Profile:  ECON

Supervisor: Antoine Bertheau

GENDER DIFFERENCES IN LABOUR MARKETS

Despite the fact that great gender convergence in employment is observed in labour markets, large gender differences remain. Women earn 16 per cent on average less in terms of hourly wages than men in the EU. Women also work in very different occupation and industries than men. True, if we compare men and women in the same job and in the same firm, we find very small wage differences; however, very few men and women work in the same job in the same firm. There are many more differences in labour markets between men and women which invites to important research questions suitable for a masterthesis. You could look for questions related to graduates in economics and business administration (use data from NHH. e.g.). You could study questions at the national level for Norway or another country, or internationally. International evidence is very important to learn and valuable to your career if you work, for example, in a company that does trade with EU and the world. Germany is a country important to learn about, since it is one of the main trading partners of Norway, followed by the UK etc.

•   SIAB (German register data, employer-employee matched panel, 1975-2015

•   SOEP (Socio Economic Panel for Germany, 1984-2016)

• Mikrodata.no at NSD provides access to the Norwegian register data

•    NHH annual graduate survey

Suitable for profiles:  ECN, FIN, STR

HOW DID THE INTERNET CHANGE THE CHANNELS OF JOB SEARCH?

People that search for a job have several options to find it: read newspapers, go to employment agencies, browse the web and mobilize their local networks of friends and relatives. Networking has increasingly become important for job search. Social networks are an important source of information in the labor market and many workers find jobs through friends and relatives. On the other hand, an increasing number of people use the Internet to look for new jobs. One reason online job search has become so popular is that it has changed the search process considerably. Employment websites allow job seekers to access thousands of job offers and use intelligent filter mechanisms to find suitable vacancies.

Key references: Kuhn, P. J. and M. Skuterud (2004): “Internet Job Search and Unemployment Durations," The American Economic Review, 94, 218-232.

Data: Norwegian Labor Force Survey

Suitable for profiles:   ECO, ECN, STR, INB, BUS

Supervisor: Aline Bütikofer

Human capital, apprenticeship training, aspirations to success, early career, youth unemployment and youth labour markets

Some research has debunked the argument that job-hopping can propel a person onward and upward more rapidly than would be possible by staying in one place. In this thesis students can study and quantify mobility during the early career after first entry into the labaour market and after completion of education.  How do high achievers perform during the early career who eventually will fill top positions. Students could also analyse how women versus men’s early career looks like. Is it important to be mobile, or how long is it optimal to stay in the first job?

The thesis can focus more on firms and careers and strategic human capital or take a more labour economics and empirical methods direction.

See an example of a paper here:

Bonet, R., Cappeli, P.,  Hamori, M.  (2020). “Gender differences in speed of advancement: an empirical examination of top executives in the fortune 100 firms”.  Strategic Management Journal , Vol. 41 (4): 708-737

This project requires individual panel data on employment and wage histories.

•  SIAB (German register data, employer-employee matched panel, 1975-2015)

•  SOEP (Socio Economic Panel for Germany, 1984-2016)

•  Mikrodata.no at NSD provides access to the Norwegian register data

Suitable for profiles: ECON, BUS, ECN, FIN, STR

Labour markets, gender differences and family policy

Despite the fact that great gender convergence in employment is observed in labour markets, large gender differences remain. Women earn 16 per cent on average less in terms of hourly wages than men in the EU. Women also work in very different occupation and industries than men. True, if we compare men and women in the same job and in the same firm, we find very small wage differences; however, very few men and women work in the same job in the same firm. In addition, differentials build up over careers and these may not be reflected in cross-sectional differentials.

There is a great need for studies focusing on occupations, industries, and selected groups. Students could look for questions related to graduates in economics and business administration using data from NHH surveys.). Students could study questions on labour markets and policies fighting unfair differences at the national level for Norway or another country, or internationally (EIGE database).

International evidence on labour markets is very important to learn and valuable to your career if you work, for example, in a company that does trade with EU and the world. Labour is the main input factor to the firm. Germany is a country important to learn about, since it is one of the main trading partners of Norway, followed by the UK etc.

• EIGE database, ILO
• SIAB (German register data, employer-employee matched panel, 1975-2015
• SOEP (Socio Economic Panel for Germany, 1984-2016)
• NHH annual graduate survey

Macroeconomics

Assessing the norwegian macroeconomic policy framework.

The design of monetary and fiscal policy has moved towards a rule based framework, exemplified by the so-called Taylor rule or the “Handlingsreglene” governing the management of the oil fund in Norway. How does monetary and/or fiscal policy respond  to shocks affecting the Norwegian economy? Are the responses of macroeconomic policy stable over time. How did the economy and financial markets respond to the introduction of these rules?

Clarida, R., J. Gali and M. Gertler. (1999). The Science of Monetary Policy: A New Keynesian Perspective, Journal of Economic Literature 37(4): 1661-1707. J. Taylor (2000). Reassessing Discretionary Fiscal Policy. Journal of Economic Perspectives 14(3): 21-36.

Suitable for profiles:   ECN, ECO, FIE

Supervisor: Gernot Doppelhofer

Business Cycles and Gender

Men and women work in different sectors, which are differently susceptible to business cycle fluctuations. In the US, the stereotype is that men work in the construction sector, which is highly business cycle sensitive, while women work in the education sector, in which hours worked do not fluctuate much over the business cycle. There are also differences in the aggregate behavior of hours worked in the group of people living in one-person households and those living in couple households. Are the same patterns true in Norway as well? What could the reason be for why / why not?

Albanesi, S. and A. Şahin (2018). The Gender Unemployment Gap. Review of Economic Dynamics 30, 47–67. Olsson, J. Singles, Couples, and Their Labor Supply: Long-run Trends and Short-run Fluctuations. Working paper.

Suitable for profiles:   ECN, ECO

Supervisor: Jonna Olsson

Economic growth and the input factor labor

How much does the input factor labor account for in the national product in Norway? A Norwegian minister once said in public: Women are more worth than oil in Norway. Is that true and how can we measure the contribution over time? In this thesis students can conceptionally think about a growth model and how to measure the contribution of labour to growth and the level of production in an economy. This could include a literature survey and an overview of estimates for different countries and time periods. Then they can take the model to Norwegian data or other data to estimate the contribution. For the empirical estimations the students could explore Norwegian register data accessible on microdata at NHH. This is a sketch of the idea and the students can develop their own ideas.

Fields: macro-economics, labour economics, empirical, econometrics

Profiles: ECON

Supervisors: Astrid Kunze

How Prevalent is Downward Rigidity in Nominal Wages in Norway?

Since Keynes, macroeconomists typically assume that wages are rigid, i.e., cannot be adjusted downward. However, the empirical evidence is still scant. In Norway, we now have good data to test this assumption empirically. The master thesis would aim to assess the degree of wage rigidity using rich Norwegian administrative datasets (on firms and their employees). 

Elsby, Michael W. L, Solon, Gary (2019) How Prevalent is Downward Rigidity in Nominal Wages? International Evidence from Payroll Records and Pay Slips, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 185-201.

Suitable for profiles: ECN

Is there a Beveridge curve in the Norwegian housing market?

Originally, the Beveridge curve measures the relationship between the number of vacant positions and the number of unemployed people in the labour market. It gives expression to the existence of search frictions in this market. But the housing market is also characterised by such frictions: it takes time for a buyer to find a suitable house and for a seller to get in touch with a buyer. 

This project would consist in (i) collecting monthly data about the number of buyers searching for a house, e.g., based on data about visits during house showings, (ii) collecting data about the number of houses for sale, and (iii) estimating the relationship between both variables during the business cycle. Focus can be on the housing market for one of the larger cities in Norway.

Genvose and Han (2012) Search and matching in the housing market. Journal of Urban Economics.

Gabrovski and Ortego-Marti (2019) The cyclical behavior of the Beveridge curve in the housing market.

Gabrovski and Ortego-Marti (2022) On the slope of the Beveridge curve in the housing market.

Data: Data from eiendomnorge.no, real estate agencies

Suitable for profiles: ECN, ECO, FIN, BAN

Supervisor: Fred Schroyen

NOWCASTING AND PREDICTING THE NORWEGIAN ECONOMY

A large number of indicators have been proposed to predict the current and future state of the economy. Many macroeconomic or financial data are being reported at different points in time and some are subject to revisions. The measurement of current and future economic conditions is essential for the conduct  of macroeconomic policy, dating of business cycles and household or financial decision making . What are important factors predicting current and future economic activity and financial variables, such as exchange rates, stock prices, …?

Stock, J. and M. Watson. (1999). Forecasting Inflation. Journal of Monetary Economics v44(2): 293-335

Price changes among manufacturing firms

To understand how prices are adjusted, and why, is very important, for both consumers, firm-owners and -managers, regulators and macro economists. The typical IO question; How does a firm set the price or quantity in relation to other market participants? Macro economists: Monetary policy has only a real effect if prices (and wages) are sticky (think of the IS-LM or AD-AS models). Price adjustment costs and their nature are central for industrial organization and the macro economy. What do we know empirically about the micro behaviour of firms? Do we see some patterns in firms’ price setting? Do we observe immediate responses to demand-, technology-, and cost-shocks?

Based on survey information from Statistics Norway about product prices in the manufacturing industry, merged with register data on firms’ revenues, costs, investments, and labour demand there are several topics for empirical master theses on pricing behaviour, either seen through the lenses of an IO scholar, or a macro economist.

Data: 

As the data include highly sensitive information, it is necessary to apply for access to the data.

Suitable for profiles:  ECN

Supervisor:  Prof. Øivind A. Nilsen

The price development on the real estate market in a non-Scandinavian country

In many European countries, the housing market is characterized by soaring prices.  Is this price evolution reflecting a development in the underlying fundamentals for this market, or are actual prices and fundamentals little connected, thereby possibly indicating a price bubble?  Using quarterly data on real estate prices, this project would estimate a model for the housing market allowing for both fundamentals and error-corrections mechanisms.

Bergman and Sørensen (2021) The interaction of actual and fundamental house prices: a general model with an application to Sweden, Journal of Housing Economics 54 .

Data:  Real estate price statistics, housing stock statistics, national account data

Suitable for profiles:  ECN, ECO,FIN.

Supervisor:  Fred Schroyen

Corporate sustainability, firm performance and economic growth

Firms, consumers, investors and stakeholders more generally are increasingly informing their decisions based on  environmental, social and governance (ESG) credentials. 

Policies are put in place fostering ESG reporting. Governments are implementing regulations requiring organisations to increase transparency in areas such as diversity, equal pay, carbon emissions and complying with responsible working conditions. On the 21st of April 2021, the EU commission announced the adoption of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) in line with the commitment made under the European Green Deal. The proposed directive will also entail a dramatic increase in the number of companies subject to the EU sustainability reporting requirements across the EU countries.

The hypothesis or claim is that sustainable growth is the only way to build a successful business and have a lasting impact on our environment and society. More empirical research is needed in this area and this topic area offers opportunities for mastertheses in, for example,  macroeconomics, public economics, management, finance, and resource economics.

Examples of research questions for masterthesis:

Collect data on how many firms report on ESG and make reports publicly available in Norway or the EU. Here students can focus on one aspect or a subset.

What is the quality of ESG reporting and are firms pursuing the attempted goals? E.g. what is the quality of firms’ reports on gender equality and gender diversity consistent with national statistics? Students can collect their own data for a subset of Norwegian firms and compare these to Norwegian micro-statistics or indicators based on firm-level data.

Consultancies are providing guidance and software to help firms report on ESG. An interesting thesis could contain collecting data on these and organise an overview of the work of consultancies in this area, e.g. on equality and gender diversity or environment. This material could then be critically assessed comparing it to main indicators and challenges in terms of equality and D&I.

Students interested in macroeconomics could quantify the contribution of human capital to growth and discuss the expected chances coming from ESG reporting and the transition of the economy.

Data sources and methods:

• Firm level data collected by the students (could use hand collection, text analysis, scaping, or other methods)
• Firm level data: SNF database, BoardEx Data
• Regression analysis (programs STATA or R)
• OECD data, EIGE data (on equality, wages, education, job titles)

Gillan, S. L., Koch, A., & Starks, L. T. (2021). Firms and social responsibility: A review of ESG and CSR research in corporate finance.  Journal of Corporate Finance ,  66 , 101889.

Post, C., & Byron, K. (2015). Women on boards and firm financial performance: A meta-analysis.  Academy of management Journal ,  58 (5), 1546-1571.

Miller, A. R. (2018). Women and leadership in Averett, S., & Hoffman, S. D. (Eds.). (2018).  The Oxford handbook of women and the economy . Oxford University Press.

Kunze, A. (2020): Kjønnsmessig mangfold i ledelsen" (Gender diversity in top management), Magma, No. 320, Årgang 23, 3/2020.

Fields: macroeconomics, public economics, management, finance, and resource economics

If you are interested please get in touch with Prof. Astrid Kunze, Assoc. Prof. Krisztina Molnar, or Antoine Bertheau

Microeconomics & Industrial Organization

Competition and pricing in the european airline industry.

The airline industry is comprised of large, capital-intensive firms competing on prices, availability and prices, making decisions over prices, routes to operate and fleet. Important features of competition is price discrimination, use of loyalty programs and entry in or exit from specific routes, in the face of potentially tough competition and volatile demand over the business cycle. The European and Norwegian airline industry has changed dramatically over the years, with changing technologies, travel habits, regulations, taxation and industry structure. The rise of low-cost carriers from the late 90s and early 2000s and the strategic responses of flag carriers, for instance by reducing prices in response to even merely the threat of entry has been important for the development of the industry we see today, in addition to the growing domestic, regional and international policy debates on how to handle the carbon footprint of the sector in later years.

There are many possible directions for a thesis on this topic, for instance:

• What factors determine how an incumbent airline responds to increased threat of entry on a route?
• How would carbon taxation influence fleet choices and competition in the industry?
• What is the effect of loyalty programs on demand and competition?
• Differences in price discrimination across routes and carriers: What are the main drivers?
• Aircraft investment and the business cycle: A recipe for hysteresis?

Key literature:

Goolsbee, A. and Syverson, C. (2008) "How Do Incumbents Respond to the Threat of Entry? Evidence from the Major Airlines", Quarterly Journal of Economics, 123, pp. 1611–1633

Borenstein, S. and Rose, N. L. (1994) "Competition and Price Dispersion in the U.S. Airline Industry", Journal of Political Economy, 102, pp. 653–683

"Aviation Industry Leaders Report 2022: Recovery through Resilience", KPMG, edited by Victoria Tozer-Pennington 

Data: Data on number of passengers and prices for separate routes, airlines and ticket classes can be made available by supervisors.

Suitable for profiles: BAN, BUS, ECN, ECO, ENE, FIN

Possible supervisors: Lars Sørgard , Mateusz Mysliwski , Morten Sæthre

DO ECONOMIC BOOMS AND BUSTS AFFECT SLEEPING PATTERNS AND THE NUMBER OF HOURS OF LEISURE ACTIVITIES?

Although health is usually thought to worsen when the economy weakens, substantial recent research suggests that mortality actually declines during such periods. Could this decline in mortality be explained by people enjoying more free time and more sleep during recession?

Christopher J. Ruhm (2000): “Are Recessions Good for Your Health?” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 115 (2): 617-650.

Data: Norwegian time use survey 1971-2010

DO SMOKING POLICIES AFFECT SMOKING BEHAVIOR AND DO BETTER-EDUCATED INDIVIDUALS REACT FASTER TO POLICY CHANGES?

The strong correlation between education and health, even after controlling for income, has been recognized as a robust empirical observation in the social sciences and economic literature (Deaton and Paxson 2003; Lleras-Muney 2004). The decision to smoke or not to smoke is a conscious choice that directly affects the health status and ultimately the mortality of individuals. It therefore provides an interesting opportunity to investigate how education, by influencing behaviors, affects health outcomes.

Damien de Walque (2010): “Education, Information, and Smoking Decisions: Evidence from Smoking Histories in the United States, 1940–2000” Journal of Human Resources, 45:682-717.

Data: Norwegian smoking habit survey from 1973-2011

Suitable for profiles:   ECO, ECN, (STR, INB, BUS)

(Note: Theses under this topic can be eligible for an Equinor scholarship for master theses .)

Suitable for profiles: BUS, ECN, ECO, ENE, FIN

(Tentative) supervisor:  Samuel D. Hirshman , Harim Kim, Eirik G. Kristiansen , Mateusz Mysliwski and/or Morten Sæthre

HOW CAN WE EXPLAIN CEO PAY?

There is a widespread suspicion that top managers and other key person are overpaid. They are frequently lavishly rewarded when the firm is lucky and not penalized when the firm is unlucky. Some receive discretionary severance pay that the firms are not committed to pay. Pay structure and level seem to depend on the owner structure. There are a large set of observations that are puzzling if you believe that owners should provide cost efficient incentives to managers. The project might examine pay structure in a particular industry or across countries and compare observations with empirical predictions from analytical models.

Bebchuk, L. A. and J. M. Fried (2004) Pay without performance: The unfulfilled promise of executive compensation, Harvard University Press

Suitable for profiles: ECO, ECN, FIN

Supervisor: Eirik Gaard Kristiansen

How should we pay for drugs? Is Netflix a model?

Health plans negotiate rebates on list prices with drug companies. If the net price is sufficiently low, the health plan may decide to include the drug in their plan so that the drug is reimbursed and available for patients. The current model is that health plans pay a uniform net price per unit purchased from the drug company. Recently, there has been proposed a different payment regime – called the Netflix model. Instead of paying a uniform price, proponents of the Netflix model argue that health plans should instead pay a fixed (subscription) fee to the drug company for getting access to the drug at marginal costs (or zero costs). The argument is that two-part tariffs is more efficient given the high innovation costs and low production costs. Opponents argue that the Netflix model will extract more consumer surplus and lead to higher costs for health plans. Some countries and health plans are now testing the Netflix model, which also seems to be relevant for the new covid-19 vaccine.

Barros, P. and X. Martinez-Giralt (2012) Health economics: an industrial organization perspective. Routledge. Chapter 17

The Economist (2019): The antibiotic industry is broken. Take inspiration from the entertainment industry. Leader.

Suitable for profiles: ECN, ECO, BUS, STR

Supervisor: Kurt R. Brekke

Data:  Data from eiendomnorge.no, real estate agencies

Suitable for profiles:  ECN, ECO, FIN, BAN

MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND FIRMS

We know very little about the management practices in Norway. International data have shown that great differences exist between family businesses, multinationals and that the public sector has relatively worse management practices. Questions related to measurement and comparison of management practices invite to a great number of research ideas for a master thesis. You can explore  existing data sets, and create extended data by merging additional firm level information.

Corecon. Empirical Project 6: Measuring Management Practices

Data:  World Management Survey

Suitable for profiles:  ECN, FIN, STR.

Maximum likelihood estimation of a demand system

The almost ideal demand (AID) system was developed by Deaton and Muellbauer (1980).  It specifies a household’s set of demand functions for different goods and services.  The AID system combines flexibility and consistency with theoretical properties with a specification for the demand equations that allows for tractable estimation.

However, one of the weaknesses of the AID system is that the crucial property of negativity (that compensated demand functions should always slope downwards—the “law of demand”) cannot be imposed under estimation without giving up the flexibility of the system.

To remedy this weakness, Moschini (1998) suggested incorporating the negativity property “at the mean data point”, i.e., to make sure that if the household has the average income level and faces the average prices in the dataset, then its behavior respects the “law of demand”.  While not solving the problem completely, this is a big step forward.

The purpose of the thesis would be to write a maximum likelihood estimation programme in Stata that incorporates Moschini’s restriction, and use it on household budget survey data for Norway to obtain estimates for income and price elasticities.  

Deaton A and J Muellbauer (1980) An almost ideal demand system, American Economic Review 70 , 312-336.

Moschini (1998) The semi-flexible almost ideal demand system, European Economic Review 42 , 349-364.

Data: Household budget survey data collected by Statistics Norway (SSBs Forbruksundersøkelsen 1999-2012 )

Suitable for profiles : ECO, ECN

Merger remedies: Is the cure effective in restoring competition?

Mergers that restrict competition should be stopped by competition authorities. However companies may propose remedies that reduce or eliminate the competitive harm to get the merger cleared. Such remedies can be structural or behavioral. Structural remedies imply usually that competing activity are divested to a new or existing company in the market. Behavioral remedies are usually commitments to abstain from various forms of anti-competitive behavior for a given period after the merger. Merger remedies can be a win-win in the sense that the harm to competition can be solved and otherwise profitable mergers can be carried out. However recent studies show that this instrument in merger control is inefficient in restoring competition and that mergers that are cleared with remedies tend to result in price increases after the merger. Why is that? Is the problem mainly related to behavioral remedies? Are there inherent incentive or information problems? How can merger control be improved? This project should combine theory and data. Data can be made available upon request.

Kwoka, J. (2015): Mergers, merger control and remedies: a retrospective analysis of US policy. The MIT Press.

Supervisor: Lars Sørgard

The market for gift cards

In Norway, and in many other countries, gift cards have become popular. Both firms, organisations, and private persons buy gift cards as presents during the Christmas season or on occasions like birthdays. Like money, gift cards give the recipient a wider variety of things to choose from.  At the same time, gift cards are more memorable than an envelope with cash. But gift cards come with restrictions. They can only be used in certain stores/chains of stores, and they expire after a well-defined period. For these reasons, a second-hand market for gift cards has developed. You can buy gift cards on finn.no or Ebay at a discount of their nominal value.

Offenberg, Jennifer Pate (2007) "Markets: Gift Cards", Journal of Economic Perspectives, 21, pp. 227-238. 

Data:  Data from Finn.no, "Bygavekort" Bergen

Suitable for profiles: ECN, ECO

Possible supervisors: Fred Schroyen

THE PEAK-END-RULE AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

The peak-end-rule says that the most memorable parts of an experience is the peak (i.e the most enjoyable period) and the end. Daniel Kahneman and co-authors have for example shown that you can make patients better off by simply extending a painful medical treatment with a more joyful period at the end. The idea of this thesis proposal is to test the peak-end theory in a relevant, high-stake, real-world environment. In particular, the aim is to combine data from e.g. the Premier League in England  with regional data on domestic violence and other offensive behavior, and test whether football fans are more upset, and therefore make more criminal acts, when their team lost because of a goal occurring in the final minutes of the game as opposed to the same nominal loss, but were the score was determined earlier in the game. The thesis will also include a replication of the paper by Card and Dahl (2011) on prospect theory and violence

Key reference: 

Card and Dahl (2011), Family Violence and Football: The Effect of Unexpected Emotional Cues on Violent Behavior, Quarterly Journal of Economics

The use of budget survey data to estimate demand functions

In many countries, the statistical office regularly carries out a household budget survey.  Such a survey documents how households allocate their budget over different commodity and service groups.  The same statistical office also constructs price indices for different consumption categories.  Using these two data sources, the project would consist in estimating a system of demand functions that describes the price and income sensitivity of the different consumption categories, and in testing the microeconomic properties of such functions.  Estimation can be carried out with existing user friendly Stata programmes.

Banks J, R Blundell and A Lewbell (1997) Quadratic Engel Curves and Consumer Demand, Review of Economics and Statistics 79 , 527-539

Data:  Household budget survey data and price indices for your country

Suitable for profiles:  ECN, ECO.

Public Economics

Four topics on challenges in the electricity markets.

There is a dramatic transition taking place in energy markets, where renewable energy is about to replace energy based on fossil fuels. In Europe coal, gas and oil is about to be replaced by renewable energy such as solar power and wind power. One challenge, though, is that the renewable energy is intermittent. For example, wind power produces for full capacity in some time periods, and have zero production in other time periods. This irregularity may lead to increased volatility in electricity prices, with very low prices when the wind is blowing and very high prices else.

In the Norwegian electricity market more than 90 % of its production of electricity comes from hydro power. In contrast to renewable energy such a wind power, hydro power is flexible since water can be stored in reservoirs. Such a flexibility is valuable, since one can reallocate production such that it produces when it is most needed. On the other hand, the total supply of energy in a hydro power system during a year is dependent on the weather. In a wet year with a lot of rain, the total production in Norway is approximately 30 % higher than the domestic consumption. However, in a dry year the domestic supply is lower than the domestic demand.

Due to a move from fossil fuels to electricity, the domestic demand is expected to increase the next years in Norway (and other countries). Unless Norway expands production substantially in the coming years, which is unlikely given the (lack of) decisions that have been made concerning new power plants, the next ten years the periods with excess supply in the Norwegian electricity market will be fewer than before.

The present crisis, with gas being decisive for the prices in the electricity market for the whole of Europe, adds to the challenges Europe is facing with the transition to renewable energy. There is at present an ongoing debate in Europe whether there is a need for a structural reform of the market design of the electricity market. Some question the coordinated system of export or imports of electricity, while others question the model where the producer with the highest costs sets the price (the so called merit order system).

• Describe the present market design for electricity, and discuss pros and cons of the system that is used today. In particular, discuss how suitable such a system is for a future situation with much more intermittent electricity production (especially wind and solar power).
• Consider the situation for Norway, with mostly hydro power. Discuss how Norway can gain from trade with the rest of Europe. In particular, what are the pros and cons of building more transmission lines (or scrapping some existing ones) between Norway and surrounding countries.
• In Norway there is a rather high seller concentration in situations with bottlenecks on the transmission lines, and then markets becoming national or even smaller than that. Discuss how a producer with market power can behave in such a system, and whether there are any structural reforms that can curb any potential harmful exploitation of market power.
• There are some large producers in the Norwegian electricity market, with water reservoirs that makes it possible to store water even from one year to another. Discuss how such a player should allocate its sales of water in order to maximize profits, and relate your predictions from theory to what you observe in this market.

Possible majors: ECN, ECO, BUS, STR (depending on the focus of the thesis)

Possible supervisors: Depending on the approach you choose, but Lars Sørgard or other faculty members from the Department of Economics

HOW EFFECTIVE ARE THE NORWEGIAN INCENTIVE SCHEMES FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES?

Several countries, including U.S.A., Canada and Norway, have introduced incentives to encourage the sale of electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles. There is a debate over the effectiveness of these policies in achieving the desired policy goals, such as reductions in CO2 emissions. The Norwegian incentive scheme is notable for high subsidies as well as other extensive benefits, including exemption from the registration tax, free toll roads, free parking, and programs for building charging stations. More detailed knowledge about the effects of specific parts of the incentive scheme would be helpful, both to inform possible improvements of the incentive schemes, but also for planning purposes in businesses and local governments. There are several open questions regarding the effect of the rich incentive scheme. One question regards how much the different policies contribute to increasing electric vehicle sales. A related question is whether they have differential impact on which modes of transportation consumers substitute away from, e.g., whether consumers substitute away from regular cars, public transport and biking, both at the intensive and the extensive margin. A master thesis on this topic could focus on one or several specific policies and subquestions.

Fearnley et al (2015): "E-vehicle policies and incentives - assessment and recommendations", TØI report 1421/2015; Chandra et al (2010): "Green drivers or free riders? An analysis of tax rebates for hybrids vehicles", Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 60: 78-93; Holtsmark (2012): "Elbilpolitikken - virker den etter hensikten?", Samfunnsøkonomen 5: 4-11

Data: Detailed data about car ownership including some usage measures per vehicle can be provided by the supervisor, in addition to data on tollroads and charging stations.

Suitable for profiles: ECO, ECN, ENE, BUS, FIE, INB

Supervisor: Morten Sæthre

REGULATION OF FINANCIAL MARKETS: HOW CAN THE POLITICAL PROCESS PRODUCE VERY DIFFERENT REGULATIONS ACROSS COUNTRIES?

Improved financial market regulation ensure that information is widely spread and investors can trust information and contracts. However, not all parties benefit from better regulation. For example, some established firms dislike that new entrants obtain financing, demand for labour may increase which again will increase wages.  In an influential book, Rajan and Zingales describe how financial regulation across countries can be explained by political forces in favour and against better regulation. A possible project would be to discuss how strong labour unions, industry structure, openness to trade and other institutional characteristics can explain the current regulation in Norway. The project might combine insights from analytical approaches discussed in Tirole with the empirical literature discussed in the book by Rajan and Zingales.

Rajan R. G. and L. Zingales (2003), Saving capitalism from the capitalists Princeton University Press.

Tirole, J (2006) The theory of Corporate Finance, see chapter 16 on Institutions, Public Policy and the Political Economy of Finance, Princeton University Press.

TECHNOLOGY MARKETS: HOW TO (NOT) SELL TECHNOLOGIES?

The best innovators are often not the best producers. Many patented technologies with different owners need to be used together in order to produce a valuable product. Consequently, there should be a vivid market for technology transactions. However, many claim that the market is smaller than expected and not working very well. Knowhow is not easy to sell: None are willing to buy something before they have seen it, and when they have seen it (and can use it) why should they pay for it? Will the patent system solve the problem or can patenting prevent investments in new technologies. You might use Apple (or another firm) as a motivating example for a study of how firms might organize sales and purchases of technologies?

Bessen, J. and M.J. Meurer, (2008) Patent failure: How judges, bureaucrats, and lawyers put innovation at risk, Princeton University Press.

Jaffe, A. B. and J. Lerner (2004): Innovation and its Discontents: How our broken patent system is endangering innovation and progress, and what to do about it, Princeton University Press

Suitable for profiles: ECO, ECN, FIN, STR

The death of Queen Elizabeth II.-a Monetary policy shock

Queen Elizabeth II. died on 8 September 2022. The queen liked to "keep calm, and carry on" whatever happened. In contrast to this spirit, the next day Bank of England announced delaying their upcoming pre-scheduled monetary policy meeting from 15 to 22 September. The rescheduling was unexpected, i.e., an exogenous monetary policy shock. This time it was not an unexpected decision but an unexpected `lack of.` Financial markets expected a new interest rate hike. However, for a further week, interest rates stayed the same.

The thesis investigates the effect of this unexpected delay of MPC decisions on financial markets. Our method to isolate this story from other news events is to use high-frequency data in a narrow window around the announcement.

Nakamura, Emi, and Jón Steinsson. Forth- coming. “High Frequency Identification of Monetary Non-Neutrality: The Information Effect.” Quarterly Journal of Economics

Supervisors:   Markus Karlman and Krisztina Molnar  

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

• Knowledge Base
• Dissertation

Prize-Winning Thesis and Dissertation Examples

Published on September 9, 2022 by Tegan George . Revised on July 18, 2023.

It can be difficult to know where to start when writing your thesis or dissertation . One way to come up with some ideas or maybe even combat writer’s block is to check out previous work done by other students on a similar thesis or dissertation topic to yours.

This article collects a list of undergraduate, master’s, and PhD theses and dissertations that have won prizes for their high-quality research.

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text

Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes

Table of contents

Award-winning undergraduate theses, award-winning master’s theses, award-winning ph.d. dissertations, other interesting articles.

University : University of Pennsylvania Faculty : History Author : Suchait Kahlon Award : 2021 Hilary Conroy Prize for Best Honors Thesis in World History Title : “Abolition, Africans, and Abstraction: the Influence of the “Noble Savage” on British and French Antislavery Thought, 1787-1807”

University : Columbia University Faculty : History Author : Julien Saint Reiman Award : 2018 Charles A. Beard Senior Thesis Prize Title : “A Starving Man Helping Another Starving Man”: UNRRA, India, and the Genesis of Global Relief, 1943-1947

University: University College London Faculty: Geography Author: Anna Knowles-Smith Award:  2017 Royal Geographical Society Undergraduate Dissertation Prize Title:  Refugees and theatre: an exploration of the basis of self-representation

University: University of Washington Faculty:  Computer Science & Engineering Author: Nick J. Martindell Award: 2014 Best Senior Thesis Award Title:  DCDN: Distributed content delivery for the modern web

Don't submit your assignments before you do this

The academic proofreading tool has been trained on 1000s of academic texts. Making it the most accurate and reliable proofreading tool for students. Free citation check included.

Try for free

University:  University of Edinburgh Faculty:  Informatics Author:  Christopher Sipola Award:  2018 Social Responsibility & Sustainability Dissertation Prize Title:  Summarizing electricity usage with a neural network

University:  University of Ottawa Faculty:  Education Author:  Matthew Brillinger Award:  2017 Commission on Graduate Studies in the Humanities Prize Title:  Educational Park Planning in Berkeley, California, 1965-1968

University:  University of Ottawa Faculty: Social Sciences Author:  Heather Martin Award:  2015 Joseph De Koninck Prize Title:  An Analysis of Sexual Assault Support Services for Women who have a Developmental Disability

University : University of Ottawa Faculty : Physics Author : Guillaume Thekkadath Award : 2017 Commission on Graduate Studies in the Sciences Prize Title : Joint measurements of complementary properties of quantum systems

University:  London School of Economics Faculty: International Development Author: Lajos Kossuth Award:  2016 Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance Title:  Shiny Happy People: A study of the effects income relative to a reference group exerts on life satisfaction

University : Stanford University Faculty : English Author : Nathan Wainstein Award : 2021 Alden Prize Title : “Unformed Art: Bad Writing in the Modernist Novel”

University : University of Massachusetts at Amherst Faculty : Molecular and Cellular Biology Author : Nils Pilotte Award : 2021 Byron Prize for Best Ph.D. Dissertation Title : “Improved Molecular Diagnostics for Soil-Transmitted Molecular Diagnostics for Soil-Transmitted Helminths”

University:  Utrecht University Faculty:  Linguistics Author:  Hans Rutger Bosker Award: 2014 AVT/Anéla Dissertation Prize Title:  The processing and evaluation of fluency in native and non-native speech

University: California Institute of Technology Faculty: Physics Author: Michael P. Mendenhall Award: 2015 Dissertation Award in Nuclear Physics Title: Measurement of the neutron beta decay asymmetry using ultracold neutrons

University:  Stanford University Faculty: Management Science and Engineering Author:  Shayan O. Gharan Award:  Doctoral Dissertation Award 2013 Title:   New Rounding Techniques for the Design and Analysis of Approximation Algorithms

University: University of Minnesota Faculty: Chemical Engineering Author: Eric A. Vandre Award:  2014 Andreas Acrivos Dissertation Award in Fluid Dynamics Title: Onset of Dynamics Wetting Failure: The Mechanics of High-speed Fluid Displacement

University: Erasmus University Rotterdam Faculty: Marketing Author: Ezgi Akpinar Award: McKinsey Marketing Dissertation Award 2014 Title: Consumer Information Sharing: Understanding Psychological Drivers of Social Transmission

University: University of Washington Faculty: Computer Science & Engineering Author: Keith N. Snavely Award:  2009 Doctoral Dissertation Award Title: Scene Reconstruction and Visualization from Internet Photo Collections

University:  University of Ottawa Faculty:  Social Work Author:  Susannah Taylor Award: 2018 Joseph De Koninck Prize Title:  Effacing and Obscuring Autonomy: the Effects of Structural Violence on the Transition to Adulthood of Street Involved Youth

If you want to know more about AI for academic writing, AI tools, or research bias, make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

Research bias

• Survivorship bias
• Self-serving bias
• Availability heuristic
• Halo effect
• Hindsight bias
• Deep learning
• Generative AI
• Machine learning
• Reinforcement learning
• Supervised vs. unsupervised learning

 (AI) Tools

• Grammar Checker
• Paraphrasing Tool
• Text Summarizer
• AI Detector
• Plagiarism Checker
• Citation Generator

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

George, T. (2023, July 18). Prize-Winning Thesis and Dissertation Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 26, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/dissertation/examples/

Is this article helpful?

Tegan George

Other students also liked, how to choose a dissertation topic | 8 steps to follow, checklist: writing a dissertation, thesis & dissertation database examples, "i thought ai proofreading was useless but..".

I've been using Scribbr for years now and I know it's a service that won't disappoint. It does a good job spotting mistakes”

•   DigitalGeorgetown Home
• Georgetown University Institutional Repository
• Georgetown College
• Department of Economics

Graduate Theses and Dissertations - Economics

Creators Titles By Creation Date

Search within this collection:

Browse All Items

Most Recent Submissions

Environmental Woes and Their Economic Echoes 

Essays on the Economics of Search Algorithms 

The Role of Government Policy and Firm Behavior in Health Care 

Essays on Latent Variables in Time-Series and Panel Econometrics 

Essays on Labor Economics 

Master’s Theses

Browsing these examples of Master’s Theses you can figure out the kind of expertise you will obtain if you decide to enroll in our master’s program.

From the 2018-2019 academic year, Master’s Theses  can be downloaded from the University’s repository at: ADDI repository

A sample of Master’s Theses up to the 2017-2018 academic year follows:

• Aitor Irastorza The Effects of Economic Distortions on Firm Dynamics
• Ander Galean The Impact of Contributive Benefits on Job Finding
• Asier Beristain The Importance of a First Job Mismatch on the Current Job: Evidence from Spain
• Belen Inguanzo Remaining Poor or Growing at a High Rate: a Sectoral Analysis
• Luis Herrera How Do Inflation Forecasts Affect the Estimation of DSGE Models?
• Serhat Hasancebi The Cost of Separatist Conflict in Turkey: A note on Bilgel and Karahasan (2017)
• Eduardo Polo Culture consumption after retirement in Spain
• Laura Bengoa Work schedules and parents’ time use
• Mari Mar Sola Does the Fed follow the predictions of the professional forecasters?
• Daniel Rohbeck An empirical analysis of the valuation of travel time savings within consumer choices among modern urban transportation modes
• Dario Betancor Interest rates forecasts: An analysis of SPF
• Peru Muniain Modelling and forecasting realized volatility and intraday continuous German-Austrian electricity market
• María Álvarez The role of Locus of Control in economic experiments
• David Martínez de la Fuente Universal Primary Education: Does education aid really assist?
• Anastasiia Prydius Evaluation of public programs on small and medium enterprises in Spain
• Lucía Gorjón The impact of family friendly policies on the labor market: Evidence on Spain and Austria
• Bernet Kubanychbekova Time for children: Parents’ time allocation in Spain
• Dimitris Sgourinakis Novia Salcedo Foundation courses and the probability of employment
• Agurtzane Lekuona Inequality of Opportunity in Education
• Konrad Benze Competition in the Spanish Gasoline Market. Collusion and Market Dominance
• Simona Demel Changes in the Non-Financial Employment Commitment in Times of Economic Crisis among the Youth in Spain
• Luz Karime Abadíe Changes in the Gender Wage Gap and the Role of Education and Other Job Characteristics: Colombia 1994-2010
• Cristina Pizarro Effect of Renewable Energy Production in the Spanish Electricity Market
• Ainhoa Vega Innovation Determinants in the Spanish Service Sector. Another Type of Innovation?. An Empirical Study
• Hua Wang Allocation of Time to Work, Housework, and Childcare between Couples: An Empirical Analysis Using the Spanish Time Use Survey
• Raquel Grandes Santolalla A choice experiment in Garate-Santa Barbara (Guipuzcoa) Welfare benefits of conservation plans for a Natura 2000 Network site
• Viktor Hultgren Evaluating the Knowledge-Capital model. The impact of verticality on foreign direct investments
• Stefan Lamp How competitive is the Spanish Gasoline Market? Testing for Asymmetries in the Oil-Gasoline Price Relationship
• Lukas Mazal Stock market seasonality: day of the week effect and January effect
• Alaitz Artabe Income distribution orderings based on differences with respect to the minimum acceptable income
• Arritokieta Chamorro A simple model of betting in Basque Pelota
• Luis Pinedo A Macroeconomic Assessment of the Gender Wage Gap: The case of Spain
• Ainara González San Román The Impact of Firm-Level Contracting on Wage Levels and Inequality: Spain 1995-2002
• Patricia Peinado Martínez An Exercise on Policy Evaluation: the Case of Corporate Taxes in the Basque Country
• Ružica Savčić Comovement of Nominal Variables in Hyperinflation

Privacy Overview

Honors Theses

• Assistant Professor / Lecturer
• PhD Candidate
• Senior Researcher / Group Leader
• Researcher / Analyst
• Research Assistant / Technician
• Administration
• Executive / Senior Industry Position
• Mid-Level Industry Position
• Junior Industry Position
• Graduate / Traineeship
• Remote/Hybrid Jobs
• Summer / Winter Schools
• Online Courses
• Professional Training
• Supplementary Courses
• All Courses
• PhD Programs
• Master's Programs
• MBA Programs
• Bachelor's Programs
• Online Programs
• All Programs
• Fellowships
• Postgraduate Scholarships
• Undergraduate Scholarships
• Prizes & Contests
• Financial Aid
• Research/Project Funding
• Other Funding
• All Scholarships
• Conferences
• Exhibitions / Fairs
• Online/Hybrid Conferences
• All Conferences
• Career Advice

Study Advice

• Work Abroad
• Study Abroad
• Campus Reviews
• Recruiter Advice
• Teaching Advice Articles
• INOMICS Educator Resources
• INOMICS Academy
• INOMICS Study Guides
• Economics Terms A-Z
• University / College
• Graduate / Business School
• Research Institute
• Bank / Central Bank
• Private Company / Industry
• Consulting / Legal Firm
• Association / NGO
• All EconDirectory
• 📖 INOMICS Handbook

All Categories

All disciplines.

• Scholarships
• All Economics Terms A-Z
• EconDirectory
• All 📖 INOMICS Handbook

How To Pick A Topic For Your Economics Research Project Or Master's Thesis

Read a summary or generate practice questions using the INOMICS AI tool

One of the biggest and most exciting challenges of a young academic's career is coming up with that first economics research topic. Knowing how much is riding on the decision, it can also be pretty stressful. With so much to consider, we thought it would be easier to break the decision-making process down into some key points. Consideration of each will give you the best chance possible to make sure the topic of your economics Master's thesis is the right one - both for you personally and for your future career.

Without further ado, read on for our advice on how to pick a topic for your economics thesis.

Browse our course listings for economics Master's degrees

1. Make sure it's something you're interested in

This sounds obvious, but you should make sure that the project you choose is of interest to you. If you're going to be working on a project for months or even longer, then it has to be something which you are engaged with.

The best way to keep engaged is to pose a question for your project to which you want to know the answer. Think back over the lectures you've attended and the books you've read, and consider what issues you enjoyed discussing and thinking about. If there was ever a topic which you came across and enjoyed studying, but didn't have the time or resources to investigate more, this is your chance to dive deep and become an expert.

2. Get inspired by previous students' projects

If you're unsure where to start, or don't know what sort of project would be appropriate for your course, it's a great idea to look at previous students' projects. In most universities you'll be able to access previous student theses in the library, so you should take advantage of this resource.

While you should never copy someone else's idea, you can use it as inspiration. For example, perhaps someone has done a project on the economic implications of an international policy within a certain country. Your project could look at the implications of that same policy in a different country. Or you could look at a similar policy in a different period of history.

Additionally, many alumni will still have links with your university, so it may be possible to get in contact with them directly. If someone has written about a topic you are interested in, do not hesitate to request a meet up to pick their brains. Most academics relish the opportunity to discuss their own research, so there is no reason to be shy. In any case, it is always fascinating meeting those more experienced than yourself who have remained in the field.

3. Ask your lecturers or supervisor for advice

Once you have one or more ideas about thesis topics, you'll want to ask for advice from people who have experience in assessing projects. You don't want to do a lot of work on a project idea, only to hear much later that your supervisor thinks your topic is not a good choice.

Do some basic preparation before meeting with a supervisor or lecturer. Make sure you understand the basic facts of the topic area in which you're interested, and that you have some ideas about what your research question will be and what methods you'll use to study it.

Further, make sure that you get feedback on your idea early in the process. This advice extends to the rest of the research project too. It is your supervisor's job to guide you, so keep in regular contact with them throughout the course of your research.

4. Pick something original, but not too obscure

It’s common to struggle to come up with new economics research topic ideas, but you don't want to do the same project which has been done by a million students before. Not only will this be uninteresting to you, but it will be uninteresting to the person marking your thesis.

Try to come up with a novel approach or a new topic to study. Perhaps there is a new type of data analysis you could use to study an old problem from a new angle. Perhaps new data has been made available, and an older study could be challenged or reaffirmed by studying the new data.

However, be wary of anything too obscure – you don't want to be stuck with no materials or resources to work from. To reiterate the above, definitely run your more ambitious topic ideas by your supervisor to help avoid the pitfall of going too niche and really falling down the rabbit hole.

Suggested Opportunities

• Master's Program
• Posted 1 month ago

Applied Economics (Banking and Financial Markets) online MSc

• Posted 5 days ago

Master of Science in Health Economics

Msc applied economics.

5. Choose a small and specific topic

One general tip when coming up with a project or research question is to think smaller. If you don't know a lot about a topic, you won't yet appreciate all the subtleties and complexities it contains. You might think that you can produce a great project on the impact of the introduction of the Euro in Ireland, for example, but this topic is way too broad to cover in a Master's project.

Choosing a topic that is far too broad like the above example is a common mistake that new students make when they are unfamiliar with academic research. Get more specific, and your project will not only be more manageable, but you will actually get to the crux of something.

It may seem counterintuitive, or scary - it can seem impossible to write 50 or more pages about an obscure question. But, it’s much better for your final evaluation to maintain a small scope and conduct very high-quality research about that small topic, rather than attempt to explain a large phenomenon alone and fill up an entire paper with surface-level analysis.

6. Consider an interdisciplinary topic

If you're thinking of economics Master's thesis ideas but find yourself interested in another academic subject, you may have the opportunity to learn about that field as a part of your research project. You could consider a project which touches on a subject like history, sociology, business, politics, or psychology, for example.

The advantage of this is that you can try out learning information and methods from another field to see if studying it further would interest you. It will also help you to create a unique and memorable project, as most of your fellow students will likely study a topic which is based purely in economics.

However, this might also make your project a little harder, as you will have more new information to grasp than others – but it can also be very rewarding for ambitious and engaged students. If you wish to take this route, strongly consider finding a secondary supervisor within the interdisciplinary field who can guide you along with your more economics-focused supervisor. This can even be beneficial for your career, as you become well-versed in a niche set of skills that employers or PhD programs would find attractive.

7. Check for available data

If you’re doing an empirical project, the success or failure of your thesis may very well come down to data availability. It’s very important to have an idea of what data to use for your study before you commit to a topic. If you have the world’s greatest research idea, but the data to study it just isn’t available, you’re out of luck.

To avoid this heartbreaking situation, search for usable data as early in the process as possible. This search can even help you narrow down your topic area of focus, and pick a specific, small-scope research question within your field of interest.

Perhaps you’re interested in the effect of malaria prevention programs on children’s economic outcomes in the future, but panel studies haven’t yet been completed in your region of interest. If you search for data, you might find a completed panel dataset that studied a similar disease, or one that studied malaria in a different country. These types of searches can help you pick a related, doable, and properly-scoped research question without wasting time racing towards a dead end.

8. Meticulously plan your experiment

Of course, if you’re running an experiment, you can create your own dataset. This situation presents its own, equally important challenges.

A poorly designed experiment can render your data biased or unusable even after months of work. To avoid this type of catastrophe, spend as much time as you can designing the experiment, checking over all your assumptions meticulously, and seeking feedback and approval from your supervisor to ensure that the experiment is designed well.

Studying examples of experimental designs that led to published studies in prominent journals is highly recommended. Modeling your experiment on successful ones in the past is a great way to ensure your experiment runs smoothly.

Photo Credits: Title:  Shutterstock Content: Pixabay & Pixabay  

Currently trending in Russia

• PhD Program
• Posted 1 year ago

PhD in Economics and Finance, University of Verona, Italy (two more scholarships available)

• Posted 2 weeks ago

36th RSEP International Conference on Economics, Finance and Business

• Postdoc Job, Researcher / Analyst Job
• Posted 1 week ago

Post-doctoral researcher in Finance/Economics

• economics master's thesis
• economics research
• master's thesis economics

Related Items

Master of Science in Applied Economics

RSEP & SRH Dresden School of Management International Conference on Economics, Finance and Business

MSc Economics and Finance

Featured announcements, ecomod school of modeling and data science - dubai, uae october 2024, 37th rsep international conference on economics, finance and business, wits global fintech conference, 2024 asia-pacific conference on economics and finance ‘live’ (apef….

• scholarship

Call for Research Projects 2024 “Women and Science”

Upcoming deadlines.

• Aug 28, 2024 MSc in Economics
• Aug 29, 2024 TEaM – Two year Master's programme in Tourism Economics and Management, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna
• Aug 31, 2024 MSc Economics and Finance
• Aug 31, 2024 MSc Economics
• Aug 31, 2024 MSc Applied Economics

INOMICS AI Tools

The INOMICS AI can generate an article summary or practice questions related to the content of this article. Try it now!

An error occured

Please try again later.

3 Practical questions, generated by our AI model

For more questions on economics study topics, with practice quizzes and detailed answer explanations, check out the INOMICS Study Guides.

Login to your account

Email Address

Forgot your password? Click here.

• Essay Writing
• Dissertation Writing
• Assignment Writing
• Report Writing
• Literature Review
• Proposal Writing
• Poster and Presentation Writing Service
• PhD Writing Service
• Coursework Writing
• Tutoring Service
• Exam Notes Writing Service

Editing and Proofreading Service

Technical and Statistical Services

• Appeals and Re-Submissions

Personal Statement Writing Service

• Sample Dissertations
• Sample Essays
• Free Products

Economics Dissertation Topics

Microeconomics.

• To what extent does the concentration in the industry determine individual firm profitability?
• How does competition in the market determine corporate strategies for growth?
• Impact of the covid pandemic on the market entry modes practised by corporations.
• How do models of funding of non-profit organisations affect their sustainability?
• Privatization of Public Enterprises and its implications on economic policy and development
• Fraud and Abuse in Non-profit Organizations
• Antitrust Practices and Market Power in the UK
• Effect of antitrust regulations on the performance of the IT sphere in the UK
• Antitrust regulation of horizontal mergers
• Challenges for the industry from digitalisation
• How changes in industrial structure affected economic growth in China?
• How can Brexit change industrial policies in the UK?
• Effect of covid on the entertainment industry
• Perspectives of the alternative energy industry over the world
• Contribution of smart materials to the development of the construction industry
• Transformation of consumer tastes over the last two decades
• How do local culture and mentality affect entrepreneurial behaviour and inclination to running a business?
• How does the behaviour of single-person households differ from the behaviour of couple-based households?
• Product life cycle in the era of digitalisation
• Influence of IT on product development
• Crowd funding as a driver of product development
• How did Covid-19 affect economic inequality?
• Dynamics of the Gini index as an indicator of income distribution
• Forces behind income inequality in the UK
• Is economic equilibrium attainable in the modern world?
• How will equilibrium change after the covid-19 pandemic
• The effect of trade liberalisation on general economic equilibrium
• Impact of the informal sector of the economy on welfare
• Potential consequences of the unconditional income introduction
• Effect of covid-19 on income distribution in the UK
• Collective decision-making in social networks
• Collective decision making on mergers and acquisitions
• Analysis of decision making on tourism destinations
• How uncertainty affects decision making?
• Career perspectives in the knowledge economy
• The effect of covid on uncertainty in a particular market
• Job search from the perspective of behavioural economics
• The role of emotions in personal investing strategies
• What drives customers to change mobile operators?

Macroeconomics

• How do demand and supply control market forces in the UK?
• Should the neoclassical growth model be revised in conditions of the modern world?
• How does covid affect aggregate spending in the UK?
• Do interest rates affect consumption in the UK?
• Does consumption depend on the country’s currency exchange rate?
• What industries were hit by covid most of all in terms of production?
• Do consumer prices move synchronously in EU countries under the regime of inflation targeting?
• What counter-cyclical measures can help to mitigate economic turmoil?
• How do oil prices affect business activities in oil importing and oil-exporting countries?
• How do interest rates affect investment activities?
• Analysis of money supply in developing and developed economies
• Is interest rates an effective instrument of inflation control in developing countries?
• Forward Guidance as an Instrument of Monetary Policy: Experiences and Prospects
• Does money supply influence rates of economic growth?
• Is austerity an appropriate instrument of reducing national debt?
• Influence of political situation on macroeconomic regulation in the UK.
• How do macroeconomic policies affect capital structure of firms?
• How do recommendations of international organisations (WB, WTO, IMF) affect macroeconomic policies of developing countries?
• The use of big data in behavioural economics at the macrolevel
• Public policy formulation through the lens of behavioural economics
• How to bridge the gap between the theory and practice of behavioural macroeconomics?

International Economy

• International trade as a factor of growth of developing economies
• The effect of IT on restructuring international trade
• How IT progress changed international value chains
• How did covid affect international business activities?
• The most prospective developing markets for international business
• Tendencies in international factor movements over the last decade
• Are there preconditions for creating new currency unions anywhere in the world?
• Latest tendencies in international finance: liberalisation or restrictions?
• Is the current global financial system viable?
• The most prospective regional trade unions
• What are the most attractive destinations for FDI right now?
• The impact of FDI on economic growth in developing countries
• How will the inauguration of Joe Biden change the US-China relations?
• Macroeconomic drivers of local armed conflicts
• Comparison of macroeconomic structure of the US and China
• The impact of globalisation on poverty
• Does IT affect poverty in the global scale?
• How does globalisation influence corruption in the global scale?

Financial Economics

• Reaction of financial markets to covid-19
• How mutual funds change their risk-taking strategies depending on different incentives
• How did financial markets react to the Biden win?
• How FinTech companies affect the sphere of financial services
• The latest accomplishments in the sphere of financial engineering
• How IT changes competition in the sphere of financial services
• Has covid changed corporate governance practices in the UK?
• The effect of corporate governance procedures on capital structure in developing countries
• Does IT progress influence companies’ investment in R&D?
• Behavioural finance and its influence on investing decisions
• Is behavioural finance able to completely explain investment decisions?
• How personal characteristics of an investor explain their investment decisions
• Patterns in spending of single-person households and couple households
• Has covid changed inclination to saving among households?
• The role of mediators in the mortgage market

Labour and Demographic Economics

• Economic effects of changes in demographic structure
• The relationship between the number of children and family wellbeing in developing countries
• Does the child-free movement have a real impact on demographic situation in the UK?
• Does Affirmative Action Reduce Gender Discrimination in the Labor Market? Recent Evidence for Developing Countries
• Has covid changed the demand for labour in the EU?
• Digitalisation and changes in labour market
• The influence of marital status on income
• How does marital status impacts labour force structure?
• What are the reasons behind regional wage inequality in the EU.
• Influence of uberisation on labour force structure.
• The demand for refugee labour force in the EU.
• Benefits and disadvantages of being self-employed
• Strategic HR management and trade unions
• A critical analysis of collective bargaining in the context of the UK
• Do all participants of the single market have the same collective bargaining conditions?
• The influence of regional disparity of income on labour mobility
• How has covid changed unemployment patterns in the UK?
• What is the contribution of immigrant workers to GDP of the UK?
• Differences in labour standards between top-5 European football leagues
• An overview of labour laws in the tourist sector across EU countries
• UK labour regulations: drawbacks to be amended in the future

Development Economics and Innovation

• What are the most relevant indicators of economic development?
• The influence of population growth on developing economies: case study of India.
• Exploring the relationship between migration and economic development
• How do land regulations affect the pace of development in developing countries?
• Ecovillages: regulation and development prospects
• What are the residential location preferences of the new generation of millennials?
• Instruments of funding innovations
• Issues of protecting intellectual property rights of start-ups
• Impact of technological change on productivity in the manufacturing industry
• How does trade openness affects aggregate productivity of the economy? On the sample of Australia
• What affects productivity in the long run?
• The impact of structural change on productivity in developing economies
• Economic development in Russia: effects of privatisation
• Economic implications of climate change in developing countries
• Economy wide effect of free trade agreements: the case of developing countries

Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics, Environmental and Ecological Economics

• The effect of technology on productivity of the agricultural sector in developing countries.
• How do labour force flows affect agricultural sector performance in an emerging economy?
• Managing livestock farm as a business: issues and benefits
• Sustainable management practices in fish industry
• Benefits and methods of energy conservation
• Influence of renewable energy sources: economic, social and environmental aspects
• Management of non-renewable sources in the context of Germany.
• How does depletion of resources affect the UK economy?
• Methods of monitoring and control of non-renewable resources
• What is the potential of the solar energy in the world market of energy?
• Opportunities, benefits and drawbacks of alternative energy sources
• What are the main sources of risk in the sphere of renewable energy?
• Water management and conservation policies: A comparative study of the UK and Malaysia.
• The influence of climate policies on economic development.
• How can innovations contribute to the development of an eco-friendly economy?

Looking for something specific? Use our FREE Dissertation Topics service to get 3 unique topics within 48 hours

Monday - Friday:   9am - 6pm

Saturday: 10am - 6pm

Got Questions?

Email:  [email protected]

*We do NOT use AI (ChatGPT or similar), all orders are custom written by real people.

Our Services

Essay Writing Service

Assignment Writing Service

Coursework Writing Service

Report Writing Service

Reflective Report Writing Service

Literature Review Writing Service

Dissertation Proposal Writing Service

Dissertation Writing Service

MBA Writing Service

• Utility Menu

44d3fa3df9f06a3117ed3d2ad6c71ecc

• Administration
• Senior Thesis

A senior honors thesis is a chance to investigate an idea, theoretical issue, policy problem, or historical situation of keen economic interest. All economics senior thesis writers are required to take an ECON 985 Senior Thesis Seminar.  Attention Thesis-Interested Seniors: See the  Ec Thesis Canvas page for a recording of the spring Thesis Interest meeting and other key details! If you're not yet enrolled in an Ec 985 Thesis Seminar , check the Canvas page for important info!

Resources for Writing an Economics Thesis

• Thesis Canvas page
• Senior Thesis Guide , 2024-25 
• Ec Thesis Registration Form  (due 10/7/24)
• Non-Ec Thesis Agreement (due 10/7/24)
• Thesis Formatting Guidelines , 2023-24
• Check out Why to Write a Senior Thesis in Economics  by Professor Benjamin Friedman.
• Our  Writing Economics guide is a great reference for thesis writers, as well as for anyone doing any writing in economics (course paper, RAship, etc.).
• Sortable Thesis Advisor List, 2023-24  (updated 9/21/23)
• Advice from  former thesis writers
• Advice for  juniors thinking about a thesis
• Economics Senior Thesis Titles through 2024 , available in Harvard Archives
• Ec Dept Thesis Blog , launched May 2020!
• Ec Thesis Prize Winners , 2024!
• General (not ec-specific) thesis support from the Academic Resource Center  

Research Resources

• Undergraduate Research at Harvard , a source of info on research funding, research opportunities like BLISS, PRISE, PRIMO, and more.
• Resources for Economics Research
• Diane Sredl , Data Reference Librarian extraordinaire!
• HBS Baker Library: Data & Resources Overview ,  Financial Data FAQ .  HBS library contact:  Emilie Codega
• Sources for research funding   on our website and through the College
• Apply through Harvard's Committee on the Use of Human Subjects (CUHS).
• Fall 2023 Human Subject Training Seminars for undergraduates: details here .
• Guidance  about research that may need IRB approval and steps to follow for approval.
• FAQs  about human subjects research.
• If you have questions, please reach out to  the econ IRB contact person  at CUHS. 
• COVID-19 Related Program Changes
• Concentrating in Economics
• Courses, Tutorials and Seminars
• Honors Program
• Secondary Field
• Summer School
• Study Abroad
• Opportunities
• After Graduation
• Alumni Resources

• To the content
• To the main navigation
• To the target group navigation
• To the sub-navigation

Information

At our chairs, we are pleased to supervise your bachelor and master thesis as well as project studies.  

Topic assignment

We always discuss the search for topics with you individually. We welcome your personal suggestions on specific topics for the thesis. We support you in the further development of initial ideas on an exciting research topic. However, you can also apply for advertised thesis topics. Here you can also find examples of theses that have already been completed.

Supervision

The final theses are supervised by Prof. Trede, Prof. Wilfling and the academic staff. If you would like to write your thesis with us, please contact us via the  information card . For further questions, please contact  Susanne Deckwitz or  Andrea Rüschenschmidt .

Our notes on the procedure refer to the bachelor and master thesis as well as the project studies. The empirical results of your project studies can serve as the basis for your master thesis. Ideally, you should contact us first before registering your thesis with the examination office. 

In a first meeting, possible topics for the paper are discussed, then put in concrete terms and a supervisor is furthermore found. From now on, the scope, goals and further details of the paper are agreed upon. Registration with the examination office takes place and the binding start date is determined. This is then also the starting point for your thesis in close coordination with your supervisor. You are not bound to any formal requirements regarding the paper, but we will be happy to provide you with templates.

List of completed theses

• „Analysis of inheritance and consumption based on HFCS data“ - 11/2022
• „Correlation of stock market returns in different time zones“ - 07/2022
• „Estimation of age-dependent excess mortality using the mortality tables of the Federal Republic of Germany“ - 04/2022
• „The survival of a cartel as a function of the number of companies involved and their qualitative heterogeneity: An empirical analysis of cartel cases detected by the EU Competition Authority“ - 02/2022
• „Does wage transparency reduce the Gender Pay Gap in Germany?“ - 01/2022
• „Analysis of donation behavior in Germany“ - 01/2022
• „Randomized response techniques in online surveys“ - 01/2022
• „INARMA-models - parameter estimation by indirect inference“ - 10/2021
• „Robust fitting of INGARCH processes - a generalized method of moments approach“ - 10/2021
• „Non-parametric Machine Learning regression under misspecification“ - 09/2021
• „A panel data analysis of the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis considering schooling“ - 02/2023
• „Forecasting of crude oil price volatility using GARCH-MIDAS approach“ - 12/2022
• „Behavioral economics and policy solutions - An economic analysis of the COVID-19-pandemic in Germany“ - 09/2022
• „Hierarchical time series forecasting of business revenues using the example of Telekom Deutschland GmbH“ - 09/2022
• „Solving real business cycle models with Deep Reinforcement Learning“ - 09/2022
•  „Man-made fire risk under Solvency II“ - 07/2022
• „Operational risks in commercial banks and Machine Learning“ - 06/2022
• „Deep Reinforcement Learning Portfolio optimization on Cryptocurrency Markets“ - 06/2022
• „Estimating risks of portfolio: A Copula approach“ - 06/2022
• „The European monetary union and the importance of an economic convergence in times of crisis“ – 04/2022

Announced theses

Prof. Dr. Mark Trede  

Areas for bachelor thesis :

 Inheritance and consumption

 Descriptive analysis of the reaction of rich taxpayers to tax changes

 Income distribution in Germany considering housing costs

 Development of housing costs

 Time zones and stock exchanges

 Tuition fees and wage distribution

 Are subjectively expected income fluctuations autoregressive?

Duration of work and wage level

Areas for master thesis :

       1.  Structural microsimulations

       2.  Return modelling

       3.  Misspecified state space models

       4.  Forecast models for commodity prices

       5.  Education and economic shocks

       6.  Multivariate density forecast

       7.  Income mobility

You can find more detailed information on each topic here .

Prof. Dr. Bernd Wilfling 

Area for bachelor and master thesis:

            Financial Econometrics

Dr. Andrea Beccarini​

Master theses:

•   Economics and pandemic: a broad overview of the related microeconomic, macroeconomic, financial and policy aspects
•  Economics and pandemic: from the Microeconomic analysis to the economic policy solutions
•   Economics and pandemic: from dynamic aspects to the economic policy solutions
•   Quantifying and internalizing the externalities due to the pandemic
•   Designing a better welfare state
•   The volatility in financial markets during the pandemic
•   Investment, uncertainty and the pandemic
•   Investing in startups: risks and opportunities due to the pandemic
•   The uneven effects of the pandemic on economic and/or financial sectors
•   Labor market restructuring due to the pandemic
•   Which labor market reforms for the era after the pandemic?
•   The ECB monetary policy in times of the pandemic
•   Then nonconventional ECB monetary policy
•   The Next generation EU plan and the pandemic
•   The German fiscal policy during the pandemic
•   Redesigning the Stability and Growth Path
•   Toward a fiscal European Union  

​ Gaygysyz Guljanov, M.Sc.

            Estimation of DSGE models 

Stella Martin, M.Sc.

Areas for bachelor and master thesis:

 Applied Microeconometrics

 Labour Economics

 Treatment Evaluation

Verena Monschang, M.Sc.

Friederike Schmal, M.Sc.

•  Labour market, local labour markets
•  Optimisation algorithms
•  Employment biographies
•  (Income-) inequality

Björn Schulte-Tillmann, M.Sc.

Dr. Mawuli Segnon

Areas for bachelor and master thesis:   

•  Forecasting Financial Market Volatility
•  Risk Management
•  High-Frequency Financial Market Data
•  Quantitative Macroeconomics
•  Quantitative Energy Economics
•  Machine Learning

Kevin Stabenow, M.Sc.  

•  Gender-specific labour market decisions
•  Inequality of income
•  Inequality of assets

Manuel Stapper, M.Sc.   

• Count Data in Econometrics
• Disease Spread
• Machine Learning Methods

Harvard University Theses, Dissertations, and Prize Papers

The Harvard University Archives ’ collection of theses, dissertations, and prize papers document the wide range of academic research undertaken by Harvard students over the course of the University’s history.

Beyond their value as pieces of original research, these collections document the history of American higher education, chronicling both the growth of Harvard as a major research institution as well as the development of numerous academic fields. They are also an important source of biographical information, offering insight into the academic careers of the authors.

Spanning from the ‘theses and quaestiones’ of the 17th and 18th centuries to the current yearly output of student research, they include both the first Harvard Ph.D. dissertation (by William Byerly, Ph.D . 1873) and the dissertation of the first woman to earn a doctorate from Harvard ( Lorna Myrtle Hodgkinson , Ed.D. 1922).

Other highlights include:

• The collection of Mathematical theses, 1782-1839
• The 1895 Ph.D. dissertation of W.E.B. Du Bois, The suppression of the African slave trade in the United States, 1638-1871
• Ph.D. dissertations of astronomer Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin (Ph.D. 1925) and physicist John Hasbrouck Van Vleck (Ph.D. 1922)
• Undergraduate honors theses of novelist John Updike (A.B. 1954), filmmaker Terrence Malick (A.B. 1966),  and U.S. poet laureate Tracy Smith (A.B. 1994)
• Undergraduate prize papers and dissertations of philosophers Ralph Waldo Emerson (A.B. 1821), George Santayana (Ph.D. 1889), and W.V. Quine (Ph.D. 1932)
• Undergraduate honors theses of U.S. President John F. Kennedy (A.B. 1940) and Chief Justice John Roberts (A.B. 1976)

What does a prize-winning thesis look like?

If you're a Harvard undergraduate writing your own thesis, it can be helpful to review recent prize-winning theses. The Harvard University Archives has made available for digital lending all of the Thomas Hoopes Prize winners from the 2019-2021 academic years.

Accessing These Materials

How to access materials at the Harvard University Archives

How to find and request dissertations, in person or virtually

How to find and request undergraduate honors theses

How to find and request Thomas Temple Hoopes Prize papers

How to find and request Bowdoin Prize papers

• email: Email
• Phone number 617-495-2461

Related Collections

Harvard faculty personal and professional archives, harvard student life collections: arts, sports, politics and social life, access materials at the harvard university archives.

Jump to navigation

Search form

• History of Women Faculty in Economics
• Chairs & Managers
• Research Centers
• Publications
• Year-end letter: Berkeley Economics
• Faculty Profiles
• In Memoriam
• Graduate Program and Advising
• Graduate Profiles
• 2023-2024 Job Market Candidates
• 2023-2024 Ph.D. Job Market Infopage

Undergraduate Program

• Prospective Majors
• Current Majors
• Student Organizations
• Commencement
• Course List
• Course Enrollment
• This Week's Seminars
• Next Week's Seminars
• Summer 2024 Economics Classes
• Fall 2024 Economics Classes
• Charter Hill Society for Economics
• Submit a note
• Alumni Notes

Economics Undergraduate Honors Theses

Examples of honors theses written by economics undergraduate students.

Posted with permission of the author. © 2019-2022 by the individual author. All rights reserved.

• "The Causal Effect of ACA Subsidies on Insurance Coverage Status Among California Adults"  - William Vereyken
• "Economic Impacts of Immigration Detention Centers Built Between 1990-2016 on U.S. Commuting Zones"  - Ekaterina Yudina

Spring/Summer 2022

• "The Impact of Indiv. Mandate on High-Income, Non-elderly Indiv. Health Insurance Coverage Rates and Racial/Ethnic Disparities"  - YeJin Ahn
• "An Economic Analysis of the 1997 Amhara Land Redistribution in Ethiopia"  - Ezana Anley
• "Affirmative Action's Effect on Educational and Wage Outcomes for Underrepresented Minorities"  - Vishnu G. Arul
• "Are the Effects of Racism Really That Black and White? A Study on the Effect Racism Has on the Productivity of Black   Footballers in the Premier League"  - Advik Banerjee
• "An Empirical Analysis of Industrial Concentration and Prices: Can We Blame Inflation on Corporate Greed?"  - Anton Bobrov
• "Tax Revenue Cyclicality and Income Inequality: Evidence from U.S. Counties From 1989 to 2019"  - Yiyang Chen
• "The Impact of Economic Opportunities on African American Migration Patterns in Oakland"  - Fernando Cheung
• "Impact of Tech Companies on Wages in the Local Economy"  - Niki Collette
• "Warm Welcome: Evidence for Weather-based Projection Bias in College Choice"  - Maria Cullen
• "Impact of the Belt and Road Initiative on Bilateral Trade with China"  - Pedro de Marcos
• "Renaissance of the Black Homeowner: Impact Evaluation of Michigan's Renaissance Zones"  - Rupsha Debnath
• "Lockdown Blues: The Effect of Social Norms on the Psychological Cost of Unemployment During the COVID-19 Pandemic"  - Dylan Hallahan
• "How Education Affects Health Outcomes Across Genders"  - Jessica Li
• "Is Increasing Diversity Inclusion Effective in Improving Companies' Performance in the Financial Services Industry?"  - Miranda Li
• "The Future Financial Status of the Social Security Program"  - Chloe Manouchehri
• "Does Recreational Marijuana Legalization Affect Hard-Drug Use? - Evidence from Cocaine Prevalence and Treatment Admissions"  - Arthur Weiss
• "Relationship Between Economic Status and Money Spent on Private Education Leading to Economic Inequality in South Korea"  - Jiho Lee
• "The Impact of Migrant Remittances on Rural Labor Supply: Evidence from Nepal"  - Amanda Wong
• "Confirmation Bias: The Role of Messages and Messengers"  - Hongyu (Randol) Yao

Spring 2021

• "Gender Equality and Economic Growth: Solving the Asian Puzzle"  - Zoya Ali
• "Women in STEM: Moving Up or Falling Off the Academic Career Ladder?"  - Sophia J. Bai
• "Time Dependence in Okun's Law at the State Level" - Sarah Baig
• "Labor Regulation and the Impact on Firm Behavior in India" - Vatsal Bajaj
• "Gender Representation in Academia: Evidence from the Italian Education System Reform" - Oyundari Batbayar
• "Money & Marriage on the Elementary Mind: A High-Level Analysis of Inequitable Child Development in LA County" - Matthew J. Chang
• "Unanticipated Unemployment Rate News on the Stock Market" - David Chi
• "Should Physicians Be More Collaborative? Determining the Relationship Between Patient Participation and Treatment Plan Confidence Across a Spectrum of Illness Severity in the State of California" - Saif Chowdhury
• "Modeling Optimal Investment and Greenhouse Gas Abatement in the Presence of Technology Spillovers" - Sabrina Chui
• "Understanding the Influence of Marginal Income Tax Rates on Retirement Investment Habits"  - Daniel Cohen
• "Infrastructure in India's Internal War: A District-Level Analysis of the Naxalite-Maoist Conflict" - Krunal Desai
• "Do Eucalyptus Trees Increase Wildfires?"  - Lila Englander
• "Understanding the Labor Outcomes of Hurricane Sandy" - Kevin Fang
• "Does TikTok Show Viewers the Content Relevant to them?" - Ekaterina Fedorova
• "The Impact of the Affordable Care Act Dependent Care Provision on Long-term Young Adult Labor Market Choices" - Anne Fogarty
• "Orchestra Sex Disparity: Experimental Evidence from Audience Members" - Richard Gong
• "The Big Three Medical Price Indexes: A Comparative Review and Analysis"  - Robert Hovakimyan
• "Effect of Value-Added-Services on Customer Reviews in a Platform Marketplace" - Shankar Krishnan
• "COVID19 Recession: Gender Layoff Gap Explodes" - Ember Lin-Sperry
• "The Gender Wage Gap in China: Learning from Recent Longitudinal Data" - Donghe Lyu
• "Local Graduation Policies as a Tool for Increasing College Eligibility: Evidence from Los Angeles" - Dan L. Ma
• "Trust in Government and Lockdown Compliance in Sub-Saharan Africa" - Charles McMurry
• "I Do (or Don't): The Impact of Same-Sex Marriage Laws on International Tourism" - Oliver McNeil
• "International Shipping Consequences of a Navigable Arctic" - Jack Melin
• "Investigating Dollar Invoicing Trends Using United Kingdom Export Data" - Aneesh Nathani
• "Micro-Level Impact of Initial Public Offerings on Bay Area Housing Inflation" - Mina Nezam-Mafi
• "Explaining EU's Oil Dependency Through the Response of the Portuguese Sector Indexes to Brent Oil Prices Fluctuations" - Pedro S. Nunes
• "Dynamic Incentives and Effort Provision in Professional Tennis Tournaments" - Ruiwen Pan
• "Examining the Effects of Minimum Wage Laws on Part-Time Employment" - Odysseus Pyrinis
• "The Great Indian Identity Crisis? Exclusions & Intersectionality in the Indian Aadhaar System" - Aditi Ramakrishnan
• "The 'Clutch Gene' Myth: An Analysis of Late-Game Shooting Performance in the NBA"  - Can Sarioz
• "Estimating the Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Jobs Within the Healthcare Industry" - Sidharth Satya
• "Factors Influencing Telehealth Utilization: Evidence from California" - Emily Schultz
• "Cash and Conflict: Evidence from the Indian Banknote Demonetization" - Nachiket Shah
• "Determinants of the Number of Anti-Government Demonstrations: Evidence from OECD Countries" - Nina Singiri
• "Hygiene Heroes: A Process Evaluation of Promoting Hygiene Practices in Tamil Nadu Schools" - Malika Sugathapala
• "Exploring the Labour Patterns of Women and Mothers Through the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Impact of School Closures and a New Kind of Recession"  - Renee Isabel Utter
• "How Have Socioeconomic Achievement Determinants Changed in the Past Decade for First-Generation Chinese Immigrants in the U.S." - Haolin Wang
• "The Impact of Quarantining on School Enrollment: Evidence from the Ebola Epidemic in Sierra Leone" - David Willigrod
• "Weeding out Needy Households and Welcoming the Better Off? Impacts of Transactional Barriers on SNAP Participation Rates" - Kevin Woo
• "Are Soccer Teams Being Inefficient? An Analysis of Sunk Cost Fallacy and Recency Bias Using Transfer Fee" - Junru Lyu
• "The Effects of Access to Family Planning Facilities on Female Labor Market Outcomes"  - Marcus Sander
• "Macroeconomic Volatility at the Zero Lower Bound: Evidence from the OECD" - Anthony Swaminathan
• "How are Society's Conditions and Demographics Related to the Popularity of Chief Executive Carrie Lam  and the Hong Kong Government"  - Peter To

Spring/Summer 2020

• "Parental Involvement: The Differential Impacts of Consent and Notice Requirements for Minors' Abortions" - Angela Ames
• "Examining Local Price Levels and Income Distribution Over Time" - Josh Archer
• "Estimating the Effect of Grandparent Death on Fertility" - Jason Chen
• "Democracy in the Face of COVID-19: Have Less Democratic Countries Been More Effective at Preventing the Spread of This Pandemic ?" - Yi Chen
• "Understanding the Effects of Conditional Cash Transfers on Indigenous People in Mexico" - Arushi Desai
• "Microfinance and Payday Lending: Are they Solving a Problem or Creating One?" - Sophia Faulkner
• "The Risk-Taking Channel of Monetary Policy and Foreign Banks" - Noah Forougi
• "Ride of Die? Metropolitan Bikeshare Systems and Pollution" - Sean Furuta
• "Internet's Important Involvement in Information Industry Integration in Idaho, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana (and others): How the emerging internet affected the economic geography of the information industry" - Keming (Alex) Gao
• "The Relationship between Economic Crises and Long-Run Wealth Inequality" - Renuka Garg
• "Voter Bias in the Associated Press College Football Poll : Reconducting a 2009 study with new data in a $1 Billion-dollar industry that has seen significant changes in the past decade"  - Brent Hensley
• "Monopsony Exploitation in Major League Baseball: Using Wins Above Replacement to Estimate Marginal Revenue Product" - Jacob C. Hyman
• "The Relationship Between Currency Substitution and Exchange Rate Volatility" - Jewon Ju
• "Efficiency, Bias, and Decisions: Observations from a Sports Betting Exchange" - Alexander Kan
• "The Effect of Medicaid Expansion on Substance Use Disorder Treatment Utilization: Evidence from the Affordable Care Act" - Christy Kang
• "Analyzing the Relationship between Personal Income Tax Progressivity and Income Inequality" - Gevorg Khandamiryan
• "The Effects of Occupancy Taxes on the Short-Term Rental Market: Evidence from Boston" - Alan Liang
• "Corporate Types and Bank Lending in Contractionary Era: Evidence from Chinese Listed Companies" - Zishen Liu
• "Financial Constraints on Student Learning: An Analysis of How Financial Stress Influences Cognitive Function in Children" - Simone Matecna
• "The Effect of Workplace Inspections on Employment and Sales - A Regression Discontinuity Analysis" - Jeseo Park
• "Lending Sociodynamics, Economic Instability, and the U.S. Farm Credit Crisis" - Erfan Samaei
• "The Effect of Intangible Assets on Value Added: Evidence from microdata across small and large firms in Europe" - Tamara Sequeira
• "Price Efficiency Differences Between Public and Private Utilities: An Empirical Analysis of US Electric Utilities" - Yechan Shin
• "Effect of Campus Shootings on Academic Achievement: Examination of 2014 Isla Vista Killings" - Min Joo (Julie) Song
• "First-Degree Price Discrimination: Evidence from Informal Markets in India" - Rishab Srivastava
• "Who Benefits From Gentrification? A Case Study of Oregon Public High Schools" - Namrata Subramanian
• "Estimating the Economic Impacts of Wealth Taxation in France" - Jeffrey Suzuki
• "Transit-Oriented Development or Transit-Oriented Displacement? Evaluating the Sorting Effect of Public Transportation in Los Angeles County" - Yeeling Tse
• "How State Abortion Policy Restrictiveness is Associated with Unintended Pregnancy Outcomes in the United States from 2014-2018" - Ruhee Wadhwania
• "Global Food Security and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation"  - Aidan Wang
• "The Relationship Between Pharmaceutical R&D Spending and NME Development" - Taylor Wang
• "The Role of Individual Risk Attitude in Occupational Inheritance" - Yi Wang
• "Labor Market Segmentation: Evidence from U.S. Janitorial Jobs Advertised in English and Spanish" - Zijun Xu
• "Bias on the Brain: How Patient Gender Influences Use of Emergency Room Diagnostic Imaging" - Abigail Zhong
• "Age Effects, Irrationality and Excessive Risk-Taking in Supposedly Expert Agents" - William Aldred
• "Pricing Disparities for Minority Communities in Chicago: Rideshares and Taxis" - Matthew Cleveland
• "Where My Negros At? Evaluating the Effects of Banning Affirmative Action on Black College Enrollment" - Ellie Koepplinger
• "Race and Recession: How Minorities May Affect Downturns" - Alexander Szarka
• "Understanding the Effects of Canadian International Food Aid on Production and Trade" - Patrick D. Tagari
• "Urban Property Rights and Labor Supply in Peru: Heterogeneity Analysis by Gender and Educational Attainment" - Juan Sebastián Rozo Vásquez
• "Effect of High-Speed Rail on City Tourism Revenue in China: A Perspective on Spatial Connectivity" - Lingyun Xiao

Archives (2009-2019)

UCL Department of Economics

The MSc Dissertation

From June – early September students undertake a research project, lightly supervised by a member of faculty , and submit a 10,000 word dissertation on or before the deadline in early September. A good dissertation will be a piece of original research, the best dissertations are published . The three-months dissertation project gives you the opportunity to acquire and enhance a number of skills including research skills, project management, organisation, software and writing.

The research methods course supports you in this project, providing training in:

• Research and academic writing skills
• Software (Matlab, Python, R, and Stata)
• Empirical econometric skills.

In total, over 30 hours of lecture support skill acquisition directly relevant to the dissertation project. Helpdesks are also provided during the dissertation writing period. Dissertations fall into four categories:

Empirical Empirical dissertations typically take an econometric model from an existing paper and applying it to a new data set and / or extending it. Such a project involves:

•     A brief critical literature review of your chosen area
•     Finding and understanding your dataset
•     Learning the appropriate software
•     Implementing your model
•     Understanding, criticising and checking the robustness of your results.

Examples of recent empirical dissertations are:

•     Corruption and Education in the Developing World
•     Analysis of Chinese Stock Market Efficiency
•     UK Wage Flexibility in the Aftermath of the Great Recession
•     Hedonistic wage estimation and the market for head teachers: Evidence for England
•     Does Microcredit Crowd Out Traditional Moneylending? An Example From Hyderabad.
•     Estimating the Competitive Structure of the UK Petrol Retail Industry
•     The impact of paid work on women’s empowerment.

Theoretical Theoretical dissertations typically take model from an existing paper and extending it in some interesting way. Such a project involves:

•     Acquiring a deep understanding of your model, in the context of the core material you’ve covered

Examples of recent theoretical dissertations are:

•     An Investigation of a Network Targeting Model with Bounded Rational Consumers
•     The finite sample performance of single equation models of ordered choice
•     Rotating Savings and Credit Associations: A Theoretical Analysis
•     News aggregators and search engines: Thumping entrants in the newspapers industry
•     Disaster risk in a New Keynesian model

Policy Policy dissertations undertake a critical analysis of some previously unexplored policy or policy issue. Such a project involves:

•     A description of the economic principles involved in the policy decision
•     A critical appraisal of existing or proposed policies.

Note policy dissertations may often involve an empirical component Examples of recent dissertations are:

•     An assessment of the second round of quantitative easing policy in the UK: A BVAR approach
•     Capital controls on outflows during financial crises: Are they effective?
•     The technological factors in the economies of developing countries: Comparison of the effectiveness of public policies on innovation in Chile for local research and inward technology transfer
•     Welfare participation by immigrants in the UK
•     A study upon market structure characterised by regulation: Information and oligopoly conditions.

Analytical Survey An analytical survey dissertation provides a clear outline of the intellectual development of the a particular area. Such a project involves:

•     A thorough understanding of the literature in your chosen area
•     Explaining the extent to which different contributors were addressing similar of different questions and in what sense and how far one contribution marks a significant improvement over earlier ones.
•     Critically assessing the different contributions and of the field as a whole.

Examples of recent dissertations are:

•     Heterogeneous Adaptive Learning in Real Business Cycle Models
•     The Great Moderation: A critical survey since the crisis
•     What are the social costs and benefits of reversing innovations in mortgage markets?
•     What explains the top income surge?
•     A survey on observational learning and informational cascades: Are observational conditions simple enough to warrant simple predictions?

"I feel the course provided me with a far more sophisticated understanding of macroeconomic policy and a wealth of useful technical econometrics skills"

Widget Placeholder https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68J5HqGhI00

UCL Graduate Prospectus

Still have questions?  Follow the link below to a list of frequently asked questions.  

Economics Handbook for MSc Students

If you have any questions please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions section of this website.

For further information please see the UCL pages for current students , or contact: [email protected]

Scheme of Award

• SSE Publications

Master's Theses

Search for published master's theses.

Use the search field below to find our published Master's Theses. You can narrow your search by selecting a specialization. The theses are available as PDF documents.

Is it the first time you are entering this system? Use the following link to activate your id and create your password. »  Create / Recover Password

Master of Science in Economics

Past theses titles, msc in economics theses 2024.

Paolo Bacchetti, Population Aging: The Implications and Possible Solution for the Italian Healthcare System, Advisor: Prof. Vincenzo Atella

Giorgia Bazzurri , A Bayesian Inference Analysis on the Diffusion of Covid-19: The Effect of School Closures, Advisor: Prof. Maura Mazzetti

Federico Bruschi, Fiscal competition among Italian municipalities. Evidence from the property tax: IMU and TASI, Advisor: Prof. Francesco Sobbrio

Emanuela Chessa , The Impact of Remote Work on Housing Prices: A European-level Analysis, Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Matteo Ciarletta , Academic Performance in Tor Vergata, Advisor: Prof. Maura Mezzetti

Andrea D'Orta, Are gender role beliefs entrenched? Empirical evidence from the Netherlands during COVID-19, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Edoardo Fermante , What "Differentiates" the Municipal Waste of Italian Municipalities?, Advisor: Prof. Alessio D'Amato

Giulia Finauri , Economic Effects of Natural Disasters: The Impact of the Earthquake in Central Italy on Income and Inequality, Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Edoardo Iannetti , Dynamic General Equilibrium Analysis of Hydrogen and Renewable Energy Impacts on Energy-Intensive Sectors and Transport in Italy, Advisor: Prof. Alessio D'Amato

Pelin Kasap , Drivers of Water Consumption, Advisor: Prof. Alessio D'Amato

Eleonora Lo Surdo , Markov Chain Analysis of the Gender Gap in Italian University Recruitment, Advisor: Prof. Marianna Brunetti

Giorgia Nardini , Investigation of the Effects of a Social Capital Measure on the Study of Economic Growth and Income Inequality, Advisor, Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Cristiano Passeri, Assessing the Impact on Education and Health Considering Deworming Treatment Externalities, Advisor: Prof. Tiziano Arduini

Elena Izabela Serban , The Impact of High Growth Firms on Local Development: An Experiment on Italian Cities, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Luca Tognoni , Assessing High-frequency Event-Studies: An Empirical Procedure to Verify Their Identification, Advisor: Prof. Alessandro Casini

Romolo Consigna Tokong, Immigrants and Native Workers in the Italian Agricultural Sector: a Preliminary Analysis, Advisor: Prof. Furio Camillo Rosati

MSc in Economics Theses 2023

Lorenzo Bruno, Elite Colleges and Transmission of Political Power: Evidence from the US Congress, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Matteo Del Piano, The Effect of Gender Quotas on the Selection of Female Politicians, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Akemaerli Halimulati , The Impact of Sino-US Trade Friction on China's  Product Exports, Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Martin Kellgren , Analyzing the Impact of Soft Close Auctions on Bid Behavior: A Randomized Experiment on Online Second-Hand Auctions in Sweden, Advisor: Prof. Francesco Sobbrio

Anastasiia Kelman, Examining the Link Between the 2008-2009 Global Crisis and the Surge of Populism in Hungary: A Comparative Analysis, Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Vincenzo Lardo, Fertility and Women Education: Italy, 1881-1921, Advisor: Prof. Carlo Ciccarelli

Alessia Marcobelli, The relationship between economic growth, energy consumption, energy prices and greenhouse gas emissions in South Africa and China, Advisor: Prof. Alessandro Casini

Elena Parisi, Measuring the Peer Effect on Adolescent Alcohol Consumption, Advisor: Prof. Tiziano Arduini

Chiara Petrone, Local Pollutants in Italy: Is There an Environmental Kuznet Curve?, Advisor: Prof. Alessio D'Amato

Elisa Ranuzzi, The Economic Effect of Mafia Confiscated Asset Reuse: A Difference-in-Differences Model, Advisor: Prof. Francesco Sobbrio

Bernat Sales Nomen , Behavioral Insights into the Housing Sector: A DSGE Perspective, Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Giorgio Spaventa, Efficacy of Unconventional Monetary Policy After a Capital Quality Shock: Differences Between 2007 and 2019, Advisor: Prof. Andrey Alexandrov

Lena Uzelac , The Effect of Extreme Weather on Children’s Nutrition and Health: The Case of Uganda, Advisor: Prof. Jaime Arellano-Bover

LingZi Zhang, Study on the Relationship Between Population Development and Income Disparity of Residents in Beijing, Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

MSc in Economics Theses 2022

Pontus Blad, Swedish Public Service: Politically Biased or not?, Advisor: Prof. Francesco Sobbrio

Luca Caggiano , LATE in Macroeconomics: Application on High-Frequency Identification of Money Non-Neutrality, Advisor: Prof. Alessandro Casini

Valerio Camicia , Migrant Selection in Post-Unification Italy: Empirical Evidence from a new geographical disaggregation, Advisor: Prof. Carlo Ciccarelli

Valentina D'Anna , Do gender stereotypes affect women's labor market opportunities? Evidence from European countries, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Berna Dinc, The Relationship Between Economics Shocks and Femicide: Key study on Turkish Regions, Advisor: Prof. Francesco Sobbrio

Giulia Grasselli , Inequality and Growth: a study of education as transmission channel, Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Elizaveta Kizilbekova , The growing role of ESG in investment decisions and investors' preferences and the effects on macroeconomic performance, Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Andrea Mastroeni, Urban influences on rural schooling in Sub-Saharan Africa, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Jacopo Pitari , A Control Function Maximum Likelihood approach in the context of  Spatial Panel Data models with additional endogenous regressors, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Andrea Ruffelli , Macroeconomic Models with Financial Frictions: The Gertler and Kiyotaki Model, Advisor: Prof. Fabrizio Mattesini

Rosalba Scelzo , The challenges of the EU banking sector: an analysis post Covid19, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Caiazza

Theodora Fassil Taddesse , Drivers of Climate Change behaviors in the EU under Covid-19, Advisor: Prof. Alessio D'Amato

MSc in Economics Theses 2021

Francisco Aquino Pareja, The impact of COVID-19, the CARES Act and the ARP Act in the US Labour Market , Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Sara Biadetti, The Role of Weak and Strong Cross-SectionalDependence in Regional Policy Evaluation, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Renzo Jesus Castro Acosta, The impact of a political leader’s speech on mobility: Empirical evidence from the UK during the first Covid-19 wave, Advisor: Prof. Francesca Marazzi

Flavio Contrada, Diagnostic expectations and underreaction in DSG models: Empirical Evidence, Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Mohamed Lahmine Dahmani, Assessment of bid rigging damages in scoring procurement auctions, Advisor: Prof. Paolo Buccirossi

Riccardo Fabrizi, Inequality, Growth and Social Mobility, Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Martina Farinella, Migrants, health status and health right: A quantitative analysis of the problem in Italy, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Silvia Franchi, European Structural Funds: explaining time overrun in Infrastructure Investment projects by looking at the quality of the Italian Public Administration, Advisor: Prof. Elisabetta Iossa

Adriano Guzzi , A brief survey of methods for building panel data sets from repeated cross-sectional surveys, Advisor: Prof. Alessio Farcomeni

Federico Marciano , Stock Return Volatility and the Business Cycle: Feedback Effect and Time Variation, Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

Thomas Osborn , Does paternity leave affect mothers' labour outcomes? Empirical analysis of Spanish data, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

John Nicholas Paton, Platform pricing with vertical differentiation and consumer foresight: the case of airports, Advisor: Prof. Alberto Iozzi

Giorgia Pelagalli , Financial Intermediation With Hidden Side Trades, Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Giulia Salvi, Do gender quotas create spillover effects? Empirical evidence from Italian municipalities, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Giulia Tani , The Effect of Transparency on Pharmaceutical Pricing, Advisor: Prof. Elisabetta Iossa

MSc in Economics Theses 2020

Atturo Gabriele , "Determinants of Road Traffic Accidents and Intervention Policy: a Synthetic Control Approach to Italy", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Barros Dias Paulo Alexandre , "Explaining time overrun of infrastructure investment projects funded by the European structural funds and the cohesion fund in Italy", Advisor: Prof. Elisabetta Iossa

Binz Marissa , "Strategic Portfolio Construction with Alternative Asset Classes", Advisor: Prof. Ugo Pomante

Bozzoli Lorenzo , "Adverse Selection and Retrading in Competitive Markets", Advisor: Prof. Andrea Kamal Attar

Caggiano Emanuele , "Forward guidance: measuring the effects of ECB communication using speeches", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Casale Lorenzo Maria , "SLX-LM-Test for Spatial Econometric Models", Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Di Giovan Paolo Andrea , "Competing Mechanisms: Communication at Equilibrium" Advisor: Prof. Andrea Kamal Attar

Di Francesco Riccardo , "Fleet Competition with Autonomous Vehicles: the Role of Ownership", Advisor: Prof. Alberto Iozzi

Grapow Helen , "The Causal Effect of Air Pollution on the Spread of Covid19 in EU", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Grassi

Josefsson Elvira , "Behavioral Macroeconomics with a Costly Banking Sector", Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

La Rosa Giovanni , "The Determinants of CDS Spreads and the impact of ESG Factors", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Caiazza

Machiorlatti Matteo , "A cross-country analysis of offshore wealth determinants", Advisor: Prof. Lorenzo Carbonari

Marrazza Federica , "Social Skills and Gender Inequality: Evidence from Germany", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Nitti Marianna , “The consumption-based approach to estimate the shadow economy in Italy: A robustness review”, Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Pala Raimondo , "Optimal Inflation Targeting: the issue of Zero Lower Bound and the proposal of a 4% inflation target", Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Pellegrini Flavia , "Impact of Cash Transfer Programs on Technical Efficiency of Smallholder Farmers: The Case of Lesotho’s Child Grants Programme", Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Primativo Giovanni , "Investigating Hospitals Technical Efficiency: A Spatial Stochastic Frontier Approach", Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Santi Matteo , "Ungrouping Income Distributions - The Italian Doxa Survey of 1948", Advisors: Prof. Giovanni Vecchi and Prof. Federico Belotti

Schlenker Oliver , "The American Studying Poor - Governmental Monetary Incentives to favour Intergenerational Mobility: The Case of U.S. Pell Grants", Advisor: Prof. Gianni De Fraja

Stanco Antonio , "The Determinants of Non Performing Loans", Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

MSc in Economics Theses 2019

Bruch Michael , "100 % Reserves and Seigniorage: Budgetary consequences of implementing the Chicago Plan", Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Carli Marco , “Pecuniary Externalities through Financial Constraints”, Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Colcerasa Francesco , "Inequality and Growth: A Panel Analysis in EU-15 between 1990 and 2016", Advisor: Prof. Paolo Paesani

Dipierri Chiara , “Estimation of multivariate mixed-models via bivariate approximation”, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Felici Sofia , “Female Complementarity and Labor Market Polarization: Evidence from the U.S.”, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Lorè Luisa , "Does difference in Expiration Date labelling infuence Food Waste? An Experimental Approach", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Maurici Filippo , "The Role of Liquidity in the Kiyotaki-Moore Model", Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Medas Tiziano , "Long Short-Term Memory Techniques for Time Series Prediction", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Grassi

Mingoli Gabriele , “Score driven models for time varying tail dependence”, Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

Navarra Federico , “Theory of optimal income taxation and the effects of side trading over redistribution", Advisor: Prof. Andrea Kamal Attar

Orlandi Jacopo , “Liquidity management in inefficient credit booms”, Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Pannozzo Davide , “Eliciting time preferences of entrepreneurs as individuals and within the firm environment: survey evidence from an Italian sample”, Advisor: Robert Waldmann

Paoloni Flavia , “Finite sample properties of control function approaches for nonlinear models with endogenous explanatory variables”, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Recagno Laura , “Using Electronic Health Records for Attributing Medical Spending to Conditions: The Italian General Practitioners”, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Renzetti Andrea , “Static and Dynamic Correlated Random Effects Models for Household Portfolios”, Advisor: Prof. Federico Belotti

Romano Gilda , "The estimation of economies of scale in the water residential retail sector in England and Wales", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Sechi Chiara , "The determinants of Fly-tipping: a case study of England by Local Auhtority", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Sfregola Massimiliano , “The role of different international shocks on a small open country: a FAVAR approach for Sweden”, Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

MSc in Economics Theses 2018

Ballarin Giovanni , "Human Capital Policies and Inequality", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Beccari Gabriele , "Wildfires, Illegal buildings and local misgovernment", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Bellucci Emanuele , "Tax revenues on polluting activities and governments expenditure on environmental protection", Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Brignone Davide , "Internal and External Habits Formation: Policy Analysis Implications and Bayesian Estimation", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Corbo Eleonora , "Non parametric estimation of the Long Run", Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

D'Amelio Tommaso , "The effects of the recent immigration flows on the italian job market", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Failla Fabrizio , "Price effect caused by the American Airlines/ US Airways merger", Advisor: Prof. Alberto Iozzi

Garforth-Bles Simon , "Does Accepting Asylum seekers reduce natives working opportunities?", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Kof Desdina , "The effect of globalization on the performance of SMES: evidence from Turkey", Advisor: Prof. Robert Waldmann

Manias Eleonora , "Child Labor in Ivory Coast", Advisor: Prof. Anita Guelfi 

Mazzali Marco , "International Financial Integration and Financial Crises", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Moiso Carlotta , "The impact of the EBT program on crime", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Paolillo Aldo , "Commercial banks as money creators; Theory and implications in a dsge framework", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Paradisi Ludovica , "Abuse of dominant position and impact of competition enforcement in the EU telecommunication markets: an ex-post evaluation", Advisor: Prof. Alberto Iozzi

Pizziol Veronica , "Merger vs Licensing in a Duopoly Model with Product Innovation", Advisor: Prof. Alberto Iozzi

Plotnikova Mariya , "Natural resources and income inequality", Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni 

Tesfaye Meneyahel Zegeye , "Human Capital inequality and economic growth", Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Vocalelli Giorgio , "Neo-Fisherian Transmission of a Monetary Policy Shock: a Swedish analysis", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

MSc in Economics Theses 2017

Acar Berkan , "Electricity Generation Substitutes and Environmental Benefits of Wind Power in Turkey", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Adisa Olawale , "Economic Growth and Remittances its effect on Poverty in an Economy: Case Study Nigeria", Advisor: Prof. Anita Guelfi

Alesiani Andrea , "The effect of shocks and asset holdings on child labor and schooling outcomes in Ethiopia", Advisor: Prof. Anita Guelfi

Bezzi Andrea , "EU Citizens and Waste Management Behaviours", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Borrelli Flaminia , "Trusting Inference in the presence of High-Leverage points: the case of The Journal of Political Economy", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

De Polis Andrea , "Evaluating Quantitative Easing in the Eurozone: a Bayesian DSGE approach", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Latour Chiara , "Analysis of two measure of corruption across countries", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Lotti Clarissa , "The Heterogeneous Consumption Response to Income Shocks: Reconciling Theory and Evidence", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Manfredonia Stefano , "Measuring the impact of enviornmental damage on a firm financial performance: evidence from a novel dataset", Advisor: Prof. Leonardo Becchetti

Massotti Piero , "Bayesian estimation of a DSGE model for european Fiscal Compact", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Pieroni Valerio , "Trusting Inference in the Presence of High-Leverage Points", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Polselli Annalivia , "Trusting Inference in Presence of High Leverage Points: The Case of the American Economic Review", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

MSc in Economics Theses 2016

Albertini Silvia , "When Rule of Thumb Households meet the Underground Economy: a Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium Model", Advisor: Prof. Barbara Annichiarico

Angelini Daniele , "Evaluating the role of technological and non-technological shocks as a source of Business Cycle fluctuations: a FAVAR approach", Advisor: Prof. Gianluca Cubadda

Barnaba Daniele , "Contagion in Financial network", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Bernabei Riccardo , "Differences in earnings between married and cohabiting couples: Evidence from Italy", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Clavorà Braulin Francesco , "Consumer privacy and value of personal information", Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Valletti

Criscione Pietro , "Hierarchical related regression", Advisor: Prof. Maura Mezzetti

D'Amico Giuseppe , "Platform Competition and Consumer Myopia: a case of Airports", Advisor: Prof. Alberto Iozzi

Ferrazza Andrea , "Modeling Italian mayor's tenure", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Florio Erminia , "Propensity to borrow: Evidence from a Microfinance Institution in India", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Gambaro Eugenia Maria , "Returns to experience and the gender wage gap: evidence from Italy", Advisor. Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Landi Sara , "Online advertising industry: how tracking technologies contributed to Facebook's increasing revenues", Advisor: Prof. Alberto Iozzi

Marasli Samet , "The Effects of Curerncy Futures Trading on Turkish Spot Market", Advisor: Prof. Gianni Nicolini

Minucci Riccardo ,"Influencing factors of pro-environmental behaviors and attitudes", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Munisso Alberto , "Ruble exchange rate volatility and its effect on Russian market indexes", Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

Pallara Kevin , "The dynamic effects of government spending shocks and the Fiscal Foresight issue: a FAVAR approach", Advisor: Prof. Gianluca Cubadda

Sfregola Noemi , "Assessing Economic Integration in Europe: a Forecast-based Approach", Advisor: Prof. Gianluca Cubadda

Trovato Maddalena , "What matters for innovation: an empirical analysis from CIS Survey", Advisor: Prof. Elisabetta Iossa

MSc in Economics Theses 2015

Akkurt Ugur , "Analysis For The Relationship Between Inflation And Economic Growth In Turkish Economy", Advisor: Prof. Robert J. Waldmann

Bai Yu , “Environmental Inequality: The Case Of Rural Migrant”, Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Breglia Giulio , “Inequality In Italy And Measuring Bias, Evidence From 1948-1978”, Advisor: Prof. Giovanni Vecchi

Caterini Giacomo , "Measuring Connectedness Based On GFEVD", Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

Ceci Donato , “Interaction Between Unconventional Monetary Policies And Fiscal Policies”, Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

Costanzo Daniele , "TED, public procurement in Italy", Advisor: Prof. Elisabetta Iossa

Jeddi Balabaygloo Behzad , “Analysis Of Water Consumption Behavior In European Union: Are Motivations Relevant?”, Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Rovigatti Benedetta , "The Effect Of Swing Voters On Political Performance: Evidence From Italy", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Sassone Corsi Andrea , “From Feed-In Premium To Feed-In Tariff: What Drives Italian Distributed Generation?”, Advisor: Prof. Alessio D'Amato

Trotti Roberta , "The Problem Of Environmental Migrants: Is There An Impact Of Climate Change On Migration?", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

MSc in Economics Theses 2014

Antilici De Martini Paola , "Economic Growth and Subjective Well-Being: Generalized Ordered Probit Model", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Baldinucci Flavia , "Profiling the European green consumer: intrinsic and extrinsic motivations in action", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Bianchi Nicola , “Liquidity and Social Responsability in Equity Fund”, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Herzel

Core Fabrizio , “Financial Intermediation With Incomplete Contracts”, Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Kraus Florian , “Monetary Policy In The Light Of The Outright-Monetary-Transactions-Program”, Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Lenchak Arkadiy , “The Analysis Of Perspectives Of The Monetary Union Establishment Among The Member-States Of Eurasian Union”, Advisor: Prof. Barbara Annicchiarico

Mazzanti Giulia , "Here Comes the Sun - Good news or Bad news: a Fotovoltaic Resource", Advisor: Prof. Mariangela Zoli

Michetti Marta , “Impact Evaluation: an Analysis of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab' s Approach”, Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Nazzaro Roberta , “The impact of tertiary education on earnings premium. An empirical  approach”, Advisor: Prof. Gianni De Fraja

Parisi Diletta , “Monitoring Nutritional Status Of Small Children- Evidence From A Quasi-Experiment In Burkina Faso”, Advisor: Prof. Sara Savastano

Pellecchia Diego , “Housing submarkets and price dynamics in the province of Rome”, Advisor: Prof. Antonio Parisi

Russo Gianluca , “Number Of Parties And Government Spending: An Empirical Analysis”, Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gagliarducci

Sun Xiao , “Microfounded Model Of Monetary Exchange”, Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Tripodi Egon , “Observable Heterogeneity With Non-Exclusive Contracts”, Advisor: Prof. Andrea Kamal Attar

Tulli Andrea , “A Brief Discussion On Moral Hazard In Team And Adverse Selection”, Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Valletti

Venosa Vincenzo , “The Role and the Effect of the IAS/IFRS in the search of the Single Market”, Advisor: Prof. Nicoletta Ciocca

Wang Miao , "Shadow Banking In China", Advisor: Prof. Robert J. Waldmann

MSc in Economics Theses 2013

Antonaroli Valentina , “Taxation in a creative destruction model”, Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Artusi Valerio , “Betting on Football Matches: Theoretical Model and Empirical Prediction”, Advisor: Prof. Leonardo Becchetti

Berardini Francesco , “Income and subjective well-being: evidence from a generalized ordered probit model”, Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Brugnolini Luca , “Fiscal Compact And The Banking Sector”, Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Catalano Gabriella , "Fiscal policies and interest rate in the european monetary union: an empirical analysis", Advisor: Prof. Alessandro Piergallini

Costa Giulia , “The impact of the Tobin Tax: the French case”, Advisor: Prof. Leonardo Becchetti

Di Mari Roberto , “Finite mixture of linear models: numerical evidences and application to SHIW data”, Advisor: Prof. Roberto Rocci

Di Rella Marco , “Imperfect Financial Intermediation in a Monetary Economy”, Advisor: Prof. Leo Ferraris

Fraternali Fabio , “Green public procurement”, Advisor: Prof. Corrado Cerruti

Gabbuti Giacomo , “Composite Indices for the Long-run: Methodology and Application to Italy 1861-2013”, Advisor: Prof. Giovanni Vecchi

Graziano Giovanni , “Growth forecast errors and scal multipliers”, Advisor: Prof. Paolo Paesani

Martino Enrica Maria , “College wage premium and wage inequality”, Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Parisi Presicce Valerio , “Corruption and growth in Europe”, Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Piazzolla Annalisa , “Causal inference and principal stratification”, Advisor: Prof. Roberto Rocci

MSc in Economics Theses 2012

Barbato Maurizio , "Affine processes in finance", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Herzel

Castaldi Gionata , "The marginal willingness to save: an empirical analysis on energy saving and its determinants", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gorini

Cipollone Valeria , "The effect of external monitoring on standardized test: results from SNV", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Di Caprera Gloria , "Employment, education and wellbeing in europe: a panel data analysis using SHARE (Survey on Health, Age and Retirement in Europe)", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Lacava Chiara , "Forecasting labour indicators: micro vs macro", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Marazzi Francesca , "The empirics of social interactions using add health: the interplay between personal characteristics and social prestige", Advisor: Prof. Luisa Corrado

Nocera Noemi , "Industrialization, heights and mortality in post-unification Italy", Advisor: Prof. Gianluca Cubadda

Porreca Eleonora , "A solution to the problem of multiple equilibria in the wms model", Advisor: Prof. Andrea Kamal Attar

Saccal Alessandro , "Capital controls and growth", Advisor: Prof. Robert J. Waldmann

MSc in Economics Theses 2011

Civale Simone , "Nonparametric estimation of a conditional distribution function", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Donat Francesco , "Weight and see. Measuring U.S. core inflation using disaggregate inflation series", Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

Gualdani Cristina , "Cheating on tests: some experimental evidence from Tor Vergata", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Macaluso Claudia , “The sectoral shifts efficiency wages and cycle unemployment”, Advisor: Prof. Marcello Messori

Martinangeli Andrea , "The determinants of individual environmental behaviors and the role of public environmental protection expenditure: evidence from England", Advisor: Prof. Stefano Gorini

MSc in Economics Theses 2010

Di Battista Federica , "Vulnerability to poverty in Italy", Advisor: Prof. Giovanni Vecchi

Marandola Ginevra , "The cyclical composition of investments and growth: volatility and financial frictions", Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Milasi Santo , "Empirical analisy on the relation between inequality in income distribution and economic growth", Advisor: Prof. Robert J. Waldmann

Pierantozzi Armonia , "Macroeconomic forecasting in high dimensional system. cross-validation vs. information criteria", Advisor: Prof. Gianluca Cubadda

Saggio Raffaele , "Estimation of linear panel data models under nearly singular design", Advisor: Prof. Franco Peracchi

Valenti Fabrizio , "Volatility and growth", Advisor: Prof. Alessandra Pelloni

Zanetti Chini Emilio , "Does the parity of purchasing power hypothesis hold? Evidence from the last decade", Advisor: Prof. Tommaso Proietti

Links and Functions

• www.en.lmu.de
• Department of Economics

Breadcrumb Navigation

• Master in Economics
• Master Thesis

Main Navigation

• Application
• Exchange Programs

Master's Thesis

The Master's thesis will be written in the 4th semester and is a Compulsary Module of it's own. It should be an independently written scientific work in a specific field of economics. The Master's thesis has to be completed over a period of 22 weeks. Detailed Information on the master's thesis can be found in our FAQ's.

In the Master's thesis students prove their ability to independently apply scientific methods of economics and to write an original piece of research.

Learning objectives

Students should build up detailed knowledge in the planning, realisation and evaluation of a special issue in economics. This concluding scientific work should be an independently written research thesis in any area of economics. A suitable supervisor for your Master thesis can be chosen from all professors of the department who are currently teaching over the period of writing your thesis. Please refer to the information on the planned sabbatical semesters of professors.

In preparation for the Master's thesis, please note that at least in one of the 12-ECTS courses in the 2nd or 3rd semester students should work on an independently formulated research problem and present the results in a seminar paper, this seminar paper presenting a decision-making support for prospective supervisors.

POPULAR LINKS

• Examinations Office - ISC (in German)
• International Office
• Economics Exchange Office
• Information for first years
• All study programs of the Faculty of Economics
• Imprint and Disclaimer
• Privacy Policy
• Accessibility