Economic Futures Summer Placement Programme

The Fraser of Allander Institute is delighted that four Business School students have secured placements on the Economic Futures Summer Placement Programme.  Economic Futures is a key initiative within the University of Strathclyde Business School’s Fraser of Allander Institute and is centred on supporting applied economics learning and teaching, offering work experience opportunities for talented undergraduate students from across Scotland.

This year Economic Future has secured 17 summer placements for students, the placements are from across a broad spectrum of policy areas, hosted by partnering organisations including BiGGAR Economics, the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA), Scottish Fiscal Commission, and several academic institutions.

Last summer Lewis O'Neill completed an Economic Futures placement, building the Economic Futures Hub. This online resource, accessible at https://hub.economicfutures.ac.uk/  provides comprehensive material for applied economics teaching in secondary schools. It's part of an ongoing endeavour to support economics learning and teaching within the Scottish education system.

This summer, he has returned to the EF project to update and enhance the Economic Futures Hub, working to ensure content reaches even more students, particularly within state schools. The overarching mission is to democratise access to economics education in Scotland, opening up opportunities for all young minds to explore, understand, and engage with economic concepts.

Lewis said, “Working with Economic Futures has been an enriching experience for me, not just professionally but personally. The opportunity to engage directly with teachers and students, to understand their needs, and to help create a resource that can fulfil those needs, has been incredibly rewarding. Translating complex economic concepts like fiscal and monetary policy into accessible, digestible content is a challenge that I've thoroughly enjoyed.

“My journey in this project has reaffirmed my belief in the power of education and the importance of making it accessible to all. I come from a state school background myself, and I'm passionate about ensuring that every young person, regardless of their starting point, has the opportunity to learn about and engage with economics. Both the Economic Future summer placements and the Economic Future Hub are crucial steps in achieving this, helping to close the access gap to economics education in Scotland.”

Economic Futures, a project funded by the Scottish Funding Council which aims to engage with undergraduate economics students, graduates, and early career academics, across Scotland to provide an eco-system for applied economic analysis. The project offers a series of programmes including work placement opportunities in academia, public policy, charities and the private sector and events to showcase opportunities and learning in applied economics.  Economic Futures is hosted by the University of Strathclyde and supports activities across all HE institutions in Scotland which have economics teaching provision.

 Any organisation interested in being part of this journey should email economicfutures@strath.ac.uk.  You can follow Economic Futures on LinkedIn for up-dates and opportunities: https://www.linkedin.com/in/economic-futures/

Published: 2 June 2023