Young Economists To Compete At The 2nd Edition Of Young Economists Research Competition

Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics (MDAE), one of the top institutes for post-graduate Economics education based in Mumbai, has invited applications for the 2nd edition of its Young Economist Research Competition (YERC). It has already received several applications from colleges from various cities including Bengaluru, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad and Jaipur. The competition is organized with a vision to promote economic research as a subject of interest among the Indian youth. 

The 2nd edition of the YERC has currently registered applications from 9 colleges and 25 teams consisting of nearly 50 students will be submitting their abstract research papers for the competition. MDAE will continue accepting applications until 15th October post which a thorough and strenuous qualification process will be conducted. Competitors can send in their thesis and theories on issues such as inequality and import substitution as well as hot topics like gig economy and fintech this year. The competition is open to undergraduate students from any stream and any year of their graduation course. Each team must have 2 members and is not required to have a faculty advisor. Additionally, this year, there is no restriction on the number of teams participating from a given college, and team members can also be from two different colleges. The first prize will include a sum of INR 7500 and an opportunity to be a Research Assistant at MDAE. The second prize will be a sum of INR 5000.

Commencing the competition, Prof. Indradeep Ghosh, Associate Professor & Dean (Faculty), MDAE, said, “We are thrilled to kick off yet another edition of this exhilarating competition. Through the competition, we aim to create a platform for young economists with utmost potential to polish their knowledge and expertise. We also view it as a learning and knowledge sharing platform for the economists of tomorrow. This year, we are giving the contestants more freedom to choose their teammates and topics. It is exciting to anticipate the kind of enlightening and interesting entries we will receive this year.”

The first edition of the YERC saw 11 teams from colleges in Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru and Jaipur competing against each other. After an engaging and fun session, Sarwari Das from Jai Hind College, Mumbai and Nidhi Taparia from St. Xavier’s, Jaipur tied for the first prize. Sarwari presented her thesis on the topic ‘How can India become a nation of innovators?’, while Nidhi presented hers on ‘Does good economics require bad politics?’ Applications for the competition can be made by clicking on this link - http://www.meghnaddesaiacademy.org/yerc/