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As a researcher for the largest union of service workers in the nation and as legislative aide to a populist U.S. Representative striving to protect the interests of his working class constituents, I confronted the hegemony of capital and capitalism on a daily basis. I do not like what I saw. I am studying economics, therefore, for answers; answers to questions born of numerous, frustrating encounters with injustice. Why does our economy reward those who create with their heads so much better than those who create with their hands? Why can’t a species that has visited the moon provide sustenance for all of its members? How do we explain the ruthless caprice of a system that confers riches to the wicked and inept and penury to the gifted? Are these outcomes inevitable? Might there be another way? Solutions to many of these questions still elude. But interacting with talented, inquisitive, and diverse peers, grappling with some of the more dynamic scholars in the world, and participating in the intellectual life of a department that refuses to be fettered by orthodoxy, I feel closer to a full understanding of our all-pervasive market system and its many viable alternatives than ever before. Free-market capitalism, beware. [top] I am someone who would never have imagined herself in a master's program in Economics- at the University of Chicago, where I just graduated from, economists were always on the other side of the debates that we as student activists were having. I was attracted to the Masters in Global Political Economy and Finance particularly because of its focus on political economy, and the fact that you didn't need an economics background to come into it. I work currently as National Organizing Director for United Students Against Sweatshops, a national grassroots student labor justice organization, working with students around the country who are fighting for labor justice at home and around the world. What I realized working in the labor movement for the past several years at Chicago Jobs with Justice was that we NEED more progressive economists- people who are willing to look for creative solutions to the myriad of economic problems that face the world today. Something led me last December to The New School website just by chance, and the experience has been incredible. Working and going to school is a challenging situation, but I always find myself in class realizing how closely what the professors are talking about mirrors the on-the-ground struggles that so many people are experiencing today. This is what academia should be like. Lenore
M. Palladino [top]
Robert Heilbroner wrote in 21st Century Capitalism, "[t]he vocabulary in which we appraise the performance of the economy is already laden with the prerogatives of the very social order to which that presumably objective appraisal is applied." A lesson I learned from engineering is that how a problem is setup largely determines what results can be expected. As economists we must be very conscious of the language - the parameterization - we apply to the society we live in. My hope is to help expand the vocabulary with which economists describe society beyond the vocabulary of orthodox economics. Of course, this is a rather lofty, long-term goal - it is more of a lifetime dream. In the nurturing yet critical environment at The New School, I am learning how to strengthen my approach to pursuing my long-term goal. More importantly, I am discovering that I am not alone in my critical view of the world, or my idealistic optimism that changes are possible, and that, even if these changes are small, they matter. [top] 
The attraction of the economics department at the GF, the reason why I finally chose to come here, was its stated committment to "informed, critical and passionate investigation of the economic foundations of contemporary society". And I have not been disappointed. I was looking for a broader, more historically rooted and socially relevant approach to economics. Not only am I getting a rigourous training in the conventional tools and methods of orthodox neoclassical economics, I am also getting a more profound insight into its premises and implications than I would have in other economics departments. It is one of the rare departments, where I am able pursue my own predisposition to more hetrodox economics with some of the the best minds in the fields. I also get to interact with a bunch of students who are deeply committed and passionate and share my concerns. The fact that there is a large section of international students has been particularly interesting because it creates the opportunity for making connections between the different experiences of different countries. [top]
Although I studied economics as an undergraduate, I have a variety of interests. I have worked with a professional theater company, touring and performing throughout the United States and abroad. I have also worked with a small civil engineering, land surveying and planning office. In addition, I was actively involved in several local political campaigns in Vermont. It was important for me to find a program that would appreciate this variety. I found that to be the case here at The New School. It is quite refreshing to have such a variety of academic backgrounds represented in the economics program. In addition, the program itself encourages an interdisciplinary approach to the study of economics. The research opportunities that present themselves through CEPA, the internship opportunities in New York City, small classes that allow you to meet your fellow students, as well as an open, enthusiastic, and knowledgeable faculty, have all convinced me that I chose well when selecting The New School. [top]
[top]
This program matches my academic and professional objectives for various reasons. I came to New York City as a participant of an exchange program between The New School for Social Research and the Goethe University in Frankfurt/Main, where I finished my undergraduate studies in Political Science and Economics. Since I received a scholarship through the Economics Department in Frankfurt it seemed that my academic studies were "doomed" to pivot on pure economics at The New School for the year to come. Fortunately this wasn’t true. The Master of Arts in Global Political Economy and Finance offered me the chance to combine my interests in Economics and Political Science. Part of the program is an internship that will be awarded with three credits. I had the chance to work at the United Nations (Financing for Development-Branch) and the insights I could gain there turned it into one of the most useful experiences I had during my academic career at The New School. [top]
While I was working in Fiji trying to provide affordable housing, the government significantly devalued the Fijian dollar. It seems that every non profit I have ever volunteered or worked at is fighting an uphill battle against an increasingly inequitable distribution of wealth. I saw this in many of my past experiences that lead me to The New School--from volunteering as a rape crisis counselor, to community organizing in Southern India, to working various administrative assistant positions at non profits, to my study abroad experience in China, to trying to find an affordable apartment in Manhattan. Best of luck with that last one—it has been the hardest of the bunch so far. [top]
After earning an M.B.A. from Columbia in 1970, I spent my first career in the world of finance and investment banking for start-up companies. My second career, teaching applied ethics at Fairfield University, began in 1997 while still a M.A.R. degree student at Yale Divinity School; my focus there was and remains on Ethics. While continuing to teach part time, I am determined to gain a better understanding of how our economy works, how the market might provide sufficient public goods, and why ethics are no longer part of economics as they once were.
The New School offers a close to perfect place for my project. It is unique in encouraging interdepartmental work and, in my opinion, that is where the really interesting questions are going to be answered. The environment is serious and welcomes challenges to the traditional ways of thinking. The school is small enough for each of us to be individuals and still remarkably diverse. My student colleagues represent more cultural, national, religious, and political diversity than I have ever experienced in my life. It is not unusual for class discussions to include views from persons with entirely different life experiences. When a student challenges the prevailing wisdom it could be with the intension of reaching a solution to actually transport to her home country.
I have found the faculty here challenging in the best sense as well as encouraging and affirming. As an example, Robert Heilbroner who has been a hero of mine over the years read two of my papers in my first semester. I would be happy to answer questions, especially from second career graduate students. Feel free to email me at tannerjan@earthlink.net. [top] Fabian
Balardini Lucas
Bernard Daniel
Austin Green Jenny
Gustavsson Michel
Kervyn John Lawson Christopher
Malikane John Mark llya
Merenzon Ahmed
Moustafa James
Mutende-Shinyabulo Hugo
Navaro Nikolaos
Papanikolaou Codrina Rada Juan
Santarcangelo Jana Simonova David
Singer Eric
Sunol Leanne Ussher [top] |
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The
decision to study Economics at the graduate faculty has proven to
be a gratifying avenue of personal growth, which comes as a great
relief since I left a burgeoning career in engineering to start
at The New School. As I wrote in my statement of purpose when I
applied to The New School: "Arriving at economics from aeronautical
engineering, Veblen might refer to me as a class-conscious technologist.
My academic interests have been shaped by the problem-solving methodology
of my engineering background, " which I hope to apply to problems
of inequality and discrimination faced in contemporary society.
I
am studying for a Master of Arts in Global Political Economy and
Finance. I received a B.S. in Agricultural Economics from the University
of Vermont in 1994. After working in a variety of jobs I decided
that I wanted to go further in my studies of economics, and after
much consideration, decided to continue at The New School for Social Research. There were several factors that lead to this
decision. I wanted an environment where I could critically examine
the study of economics itself. Why is neoclassical economics the
dominant paradigm, and what are the alternatives? These are important
questions to me, and I feel that they can be addressed at The New
School. I find that the program is especially strong in the historical
foundations of contemporary economic thought. 
When
I graduated from my undergraduate course I really was not sure of
what to do next; I had in the back of mind to go back to University
but I felt I needed to gain some experience. Work took me far and
wide both in terms of geography and professions. I started off in
Sri Lanka trying to sort out Millennium bug problems; finance was
unsurprisingly next on my path and I found myself in London where
I ended up working in Canary Wharf for an investment bank; I tried
the dot com world for a while before it burst; and then finally
I ended up working for a news organisation as a financial journalist.
After working for a couple of years I felt that the time was right
to do a Masters but when I decided to come back to University it
was hard choice to work out really where to go. My undergraduate
education had been in Economics at Cambridge University in England
and although I was completely set on doing my postgraduate training
in economics it was where to go which was my biggest headache. After
learning the English way I had a desire to come and learn in America.
I felt graduate education should be one of specialising but also
of a much more multidisciplinary approach. I wanted the scope to
develop my own ideas as well as look at different angles from other
schools of thought. The New School offered me both of these, helping
me develop my ideas as well as encouraging me to learn in other
faculties to broaden my understanding. What attracted me to the
University was the faculty. In the economics world it is hard to
find a broad based faculty, particularly ones that teach the history
of the subject and a range of thinking on the subject from political
to philosophical to sociological. The faculty offers a thorough
teaching of the subject of economics and brings in a lot of applicable
ideas from outside of the economics field.
Diana
Wehlau and I are the first students that will be awarded the recently
established degree of Master of Arts in Global Political Economy
and Finance.
I
chose to study Economics because I was tired of hitting my head
against the wall. I chose to come to The New School because I thought
that people here would understand what I meant by that statement.
My first job after graduating with a B.A. in Political Science from
Macalester College was with Habitat for Humanity International.
I
am at The New School for Social Research to work toward a Ph.D in Economics with
emphasis on Public Goods and Ethics. The courses in the Global Political
Economy and Finance program provide necessary background in world
economies and politics.79 Fifth Avenue New York NY 10003 USA • 212.229.5700
