alumni
BSE master programs Class of 2013 share their post-graduation plans
The BSE Class of 2013 is preparing to graduate very soon and the results, both academic and in terms of placement, are starting to take shape after a year of hard work. One month before graduation, over 25% of this year's students have been offered a job or have been admitted to a PhD program.
In parallel with their academic activities, the students have been actively applying for jobs and PhD programs and participating in selection processes. Several companies have visited the BSE campus again this year for recruitment talks and interviews (see list at right). Most of these companies recruit BSE students for international positions, mainly for their headquarters in London, Brussels or Paris, or other European cities such as Frankfurt and Munich.
In addition to the on-campus recruitment talks, the BSE is regularly in contact with other organizations, some from abroad, like Bruegel, OECD, the European Commission or European Central Bank, and others locally based such as Banc de Sabadell.
Another source being used by current students for their job hunting is the BSE Alumni & Friend Network. The network provides a platform for graduates to network and to exchange professional best-practices, job opportunities and advice. Alumni are currently working and continuing education in about 60 countries worldwide. Those that have chosen a professional career path are working as economists, analysts, researchers or consultants in industries such as banking and financial institutions, international organizations, consultancies, governments or public institutions. Alumni are constantly showing great commitment with the BSE and have helped the School develop new corporate relations with their respective industries and universities.
As of June 2013, One month before graduation, a quarter of the Class of 2013 has already informed the BSE Placement Office about their post-graduation plans. Some of them share a brief look at their exciting plans below:
Loukia Grigoriadi, Program in Economics - Frontier Economics, London
"In September I will join Frontier Economics in the London office to work as an analyst. On a daily basis I will work as part of a team helping regulators and companies improve the level of competition or towards the achievement of optimal policy. My daily tasks will vary depending on the project I will be working, for instance, a project on regulation would include tasks such as comparing performance metrics of the companies with international benchmarks. For a competition case, I might consider examples where a merged entity would have a negative impact on market outcomes. A public policy project could involve a cost benefit exercise for new policies. Through this experience I will gain great understanding on the application of Microeconomics to solve real life problems."
Leila Rohd-Thomsen, Program in Economics - European Commission and United Nations
"Next October I will be starting a five month traineeship at the European Commission in the Directorate General for Economics and Finance. The Unit deals with the financing of climate change, infrastructure policies and Euratom. I will be working with the team which carries out market analysis, monitoring and evaluation of EU wide developments in financing physical infrastructure for transport, energy and the environment. Further to this, I have been accepted onto the United Nations Young Professionals Program as an Economic Affairs Officer, and am currently on a roster waiting for my first posting. Vacancies are filled on a regular basis, and could be at any UN Secretariat duty station or field operation."
Cedrick Mercken, Program in Finance - European Central Bank, Frankfurt
"In August, I'll join the ECB Financial Stability Assessment team as a trainee. The Financial Stability Assessment is responsible for the overall analysis of the euro area and European Union (EU) economic stability. During the four months of the traineeship (extendable to one year), I am expected to participate in the development of databases for monitoring financial institutions as well as financial and real sector developments. This traineeship is all the more interesting as it comes at a time where the role of the ECB in maintaining financial stability is developing thanks to the introduction of a European Banking Union."
Vladimir Manaev, Program in Finance - UPF PhD Program, Barcelona
"Upon graduation, I am planning to continue my studies as a PhD student in the doctoral program at UPF. The focus of my work will be on Systemic Risk research, one of the most challenging topics in Economics and Finance at the moment. During the first year of the doctoral program, I will take advanced doctoral courses and participate in research seminars. The doctoral program is a fantastic opportunity to deepen my knowledge in Finance, and learn how to make state-of-the-art theoretical and applied research."
Juan José Cortina, Program in International Trade, Finance and Development - World Bank, Washington DC
"After receiving my Master in ITFD I will be joining the World Bank Research department "Macroeconomics and Growth program" and start working in August as a Research analyst. This program is focused on issues related to financial globalization and financial development. I will help them to empirically analyze these topics and others related with capital flows, capital markets, institutional investors, financial crises and systemic risk using STATA as main statistical package. I believe this Master gave me a greater understanding on these topics, especially the classes taught by professionals on this literature such as Jaume Ventura and Alberto Martín."
Olga Tschekassin, Program in International Trade, Finance and Development - Bruegel, Brussels
"Starting October I will join Europe's leading think tank Bruegel in Brussels to work as research assistant in European Macroeconomics. Bruegel is conducting research with the goal of improving European policy-making. My work will consist of helping the scholars with the development of publications, more specifically - data work and graphical presentation of results. Moreover, my responsibility will be preparing policy briefs, organizing meetings and writing blog entries for the website. I want to use this opportunity to gain an insight into economic research and learn as much as possible about the work in this area."
Giulia Branzi, Program in Competition and Market Regulation - OfWat, London
"After receiving my Master in Competition and Market Regulation I will be joining OFWAT, the Water Services Regulation Authority in the UK, and start working in September as a Junior Economist. OFWAT's mission is to advocate at high quality standards and fair prices in the Water sector. The main tools OFWAT resorts to in order to reach its mission are water bill monitoring, scrutiny of companies costs and investments, and the design of incentive rules aimed at fostering competition. I will join the Economics team and provide qualitative and quantitative input for the design and use of regulatory tools."
On-campus recruitment talks
Companies and organizations that came to Barcelona to meet GSE students in 2012-13:
- Compass Lexecon
- Deloitte
- Frontier Economics
- J-PAL
- KPMG
- La Caixa
- Nera
- RBB Economics
- UK Competition Commission
The "Alumni Outlook" magazine contains placement statistics from all master cohorts through the Class of 2012, as well as interviews with master program alumni and reflections from faculty.
Alumni Outlook Magazine
