PhD Job Candidates Profiles
Donation from the Rathlyn Foundation
Thanks to a generous donation from the Rathlyn Foundation, the Department of Economics is pleased to announce the Rathlyn Doctoral Fellowships in Economics. Awarded to one or more outstanding candidates in the entering PhD class, these fellowships are tenable for up to five years. We look forward to welcoming the first Rathlyn Fellow(s) in the fall of 2024.
Davidson Distinguished Lecture Welcomes Prof. James MacKinnon
On October 13, 2023, the Davidson Distinguished Lecture in Econometrics, established in 2022 thanks to the generosity of Professor Russell Davidson, welcomed Professor James MacKinnon, who delivered a presentation entitled, "Using Large Samples in Econometrics".
Ranking News
The most recent version of the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023 ranks the McGill Economics Department third in Canada. We have held this position since 2020 when the QS rankings by subject were first published. QS also ranks our department 33rd in North America, and 90th in the World. This ranking is based on a combination of indicators, including citations, academic reputation, and employer reputation.
Welcome to Santiago Camara
Dr. Santiago Camara joined the Department of Economics at McGill University as an Assistant Professor in August 2023. He holds a PhD in Economics from Northwestern University (2023), an MA in Economics from Universidad de San Andres (2015), and a BA in Economics from Universidad de Buenos Aires (2013).
Dr. Camara's research interests include international macroeconomics, monetary policy, finance, and international trade. His work delves into various topics, such as the impact of financial frictions in Emerging Markets, the international repercussions of US interest rate shocks, and the policy and quantitative implications of agent heterogeneity in an open economy setting.
Victoria Zinde-Walsh awarded the 2023 CWEC/CFEC Sylvia Ostry Award
Victoria Zinde-Walsh's academic achievements include role-modelling and mentoring of young female scholars in a male dominated field. Her distinguished work in econometrics has served as example and inspiration for younger female economists and econometricians.
She has also played an important role in unifying the econometric community in Canada as Director of the Econometrics Study Group with its yearly conference. Her nomination letters from female scholars who grew and blossomed under Victoria’s wing are enthusiastic and full of genuine admiration of their mentor.
CWEC/CFEC awards the Sylvia Ostry CWEC/CFEC Award to an economist judged by the selection committee to have furthered the status of women in the economics profession, through example, achievements, increasing our understanding of how women can advance in the economics profession, or mentoring others. The word ‘women’ is interpreted quite broadly to include those who identify as a woman and those whose gender expression may be perceived by society as being associated with being a woman or female.
Raphaël Langevin awarded CEA second prize for the Embrace Day Graduate Student Posters
Raphaël Langevin has been awarded second prize for the 'Embrace Day Graduate Student Posters' competition at The 57th Annual Conference of the Canadian Economics on June 1, 2023. His poster is entitled Consistent Estimation of Finite Mixtures: An Application to Latent Group Panel Structures.
Erin Strumpf interviewed on CBC
Erin Strumpf was interviewed on CBC’s The National on March 10, 2023 regarding the Federal government’s warnings to provinces regarding clinics that charge patients for publicly insured services, and their plans to claw back $80 million in provincial health-care funding if the practice is not stopped.
Graduate Student Miao Dai Wins Lasserre-Renzetti Prize
Miao Dai, a graduate student in the Department of Economics, was awarded the Lasserre-Renzetti Prize for best student paper at CREEA | ACERE for his paper "Environmental Lobbying on Trade in Waste: Theory and Evidence." Miao's job market paper examines the effects of environmental lobbying on international trade in waste, finding that strengthening environmental NGOs can contribute to reducing international waste trade.
Welcome to Nicolás Ajzenman
Nicolás Ajzenman joined the Department of Economics at McGill as an Assistant Professor in August 2022. He earned a PhD in Economics from Sciences Po, a Master in Public Administration-International Development from Harvard University, a Master's degree in Economics from Universidad de San Andres, and a BA in Economics from Universidad de Buenos Aires.
He is a research affiliate at J-PAL (The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab) and IZA. Previously, he was an Assistant Professor at Sao Paulo School of Economics-FGV and a Visiting Scholar in the Behavioral Economics Group of the Inter-American Development Bank. He has also worked and consulted for multilateral development organizations, such as the World Bank and the EBRD.
Dr. Ajzenman is an applied microeconomist, working at the intersection of development economics, behavioral economics, and political economy. His research has appeared or is forthcoming in top scientific journals, including the American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, Economic Journal, Journal of Development Economics, The Journal of Law and Economics, Economics of Education Review, and Health Economics.
The incredible journey of Manyang Lual Jok
After fleeing war-torn South Sudan as a nine-year-old and spending 12 years in a Kenyan refugee camp, Manyang Lual Jok earns his BA from McGill in Computer Science and Economics.
In the fall of 2017, Jok took the huge leap, boarding his first plane, relocating to Canada and beginning his Arts degree at McGill. It was a bittersweet moment, as starting his new life meant leaving family and friends behind. “These are people I lived with my whole life,” he says. “It was difficult, but they were so happy that I had been given the opportunity to further my education.” When Jok stepped off the plane at Trudeau International Airport, he was a 22-year-old in a new country without a single friend. “It was scary,” he admits. But that would quickly change. He was met at the airport by students who were part of WUSC McGill. “They were very first people I met in Canada and they were also some of the nicest people I’ve ever met,” says Jok. Please see the McGill Reporter.
Congratulations to Lou Naigeon, graduating student in Economics, one of the two recipients of the Governor General’s Silver Medal
Selected by the Scholarship and Student Aid Office in a university-wide competition, the medal is awarded “to the graduating student who obtains the highest academic standing in a Bachelor degree program.” The medal was presented to Lou Naigeon by Principal Suzanne Fortier at her convocation ceremony in May 2022.
In memory of our colleague Ngo Van Long
It is with great sadness we report that our esteemed colleague Ngo Van Long passed away on Saturday afternoon, January 15, 2022. Long was a James McGill Professor of Economics and long-time member of our department. In his distinguished career he made key contributions in several fields in economics including natural resource and environmental economics, international economics and applied economic theory in general. He will be missed.Please visit the In Memoriam section of our website.
Our esteemed colleague Russell Davidson
Russell Davidson is supporting the greatest needs of his home Department of Economics, see the story McGill Faculty Member Turned Philanthropist by Stephanie Wereley. In 2016 the Department of Economics established the Russell Davidson Research Fund, which continues to grow thanks to Davidson’s generous contributions. The endowed Fund provides financial assistance to graduate students and assistant professors, and going forward it will support a seminar series, a visitor program, and an annual lecture series. “All these activities are essential to the intellectual life of our department,” says Prof. Francisco Ruge-Murcia, Economics Chair. “We are very grateful to Russell for his generosity.”
Welcome to Larry Epstein
Larry G. Epstein joined the Department of Economics at McGill in August 2021 as Full Professor. His main research areas cover topics in decision theory, mathematical economics, and asset pricing, and he has written influential and widely cited articles in those areas. Prof. Epstein is Fellow of the Econometric Society (since 1989), Fellow of the Canadian Economic Association (since 2019), Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (from 1994 to 1999), Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (since 2013), and he has received the prestigious Frisch Medal of the Econometric Society and the John Rae Award of the Canadian Economics Association for Outstanding Research (both in 1994). In addition to his research work, he has also held editorial positions in numerous journals such as Econometrica and the Journal of Economic Theory.
Ranking News
The most recent edition of the Tilburg Ranking of Economics Departments ranks the McGill Economics Department third in Canada and among the top 60 in North America in all its three ranking categories. This ranking is based exclusively on journal publications over the period 2016-2020. Our excellent performance is confirmed by the latest edition of the Quacquerelli Symonds (QS) ranking by subject, which also places our department third in Canada and 38 in North America. The QS ranking is based on a combination of indicators, including citations, academic reputation, and employer reputation.
Winner of the Upjohn Institute 2021 Early Career Research Awards
Fernando Saltiel is one of the winners of the Upjohn Institute 2021 Early Career Research Awards. The award is given to promising economists who have earned their PhD within the previous six years and who carry out policy-relevant research on labor market issues.
Welcome to Fernando Saltiel
Dr. Fernando Saltiel joined the Department of Economics as an Assistant Professor in Fall 2020. He earned his BA in Economics, a Master of Public Policy (MPP), and a PhD in Economics from the University of Maryland at College Park. He previously held a Postdoctoral Associate position in Economics at Duke University.
Dr. Saltiel’s research interests lie at the intersection of labor, education, and development economics. Within these fields, he analyzes how cognitive and non-cognitive skills affect educational attainment and labor market outcomes in developed and developing countries, exploring the importance of firms in determining the wage structure, and understanding the impact of government policies and unexpected shocks on labor market outcomes.
Opinion: Pay out emergency benefits or subsidize wages?
Francesco Amodio's article "Opinion: Pay out emergency benefits or subsidize wages?", in the Montreal Gazette, published March 30, 2020, speaks to the COVID-19 impact on the economy and the unprecedented economic measures that are underway.
Silver for McGill's team at the 2019 Bank of Canada's Governor Challenge
The team from McGill Economics finished in the first runner-up spot in 2019 Bank of Canada’s fifth annual Governor’s Challenge that took place on Saturday, February 8, 2020. This year’s team consisted of Frédéric Aubé, Henrique Mecabô, Zacharie Quiviger, Nikoline Svendsen, Léo Tronchon, with the support of Inbar Amit, and was coached by Professors Markus Poschke and Francisco Alvarez-Cuadrado. Congratulations to all concerned! The Governor’s Challenge is a competition where university students simulate the monetary policy decision-making process at the Bank of Canada by playing the role of advisors to the Governing Council. The McGill team was victorious in the first two national competitions in 2016 and 2017.