examples of economics dissertations

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Students in the School of Economics at the University of Nottingham consistently produce work of a very high standard in the form of coursework essays, dissertations, research work and policy articles.

Below are some examples of the excellent work produced by some of our students. The authors have agreed for their work to be made available as examples of good practice.

Undergraduate dissertations

• The Causal Impact of Education on Crime Rates: A Recent US Analysis . Emily Taylor, BSc Hons Economics, 2022
• Does a joint income taxation system for married couples disincentivise the female labour supply? Jodie Gollop, BA Hons Economics with German, 2022
• Conditional cooperation between the young and old and the influence of work experience, charitable giving, and social identity . Rachel Moffat, BSc Hons Economics, 2021
• An Extended Literature Review on the Contribution of Economic Institutions to the Great Divergence in the 19th Century . Jessica Richens, BSc Hons Economics, 2021
• Does difference help make a difference? Examining whether young trustees and female trustees affect charities’ financial performance. Chris Hyland, BSc Hons Economics, 2021

Postgraduate dissertations

• The impact of Covid-19 on the public and health expenditure gradient in mortality in England . Alexander Waller, MSc Economic Development & Policy Analysis, 2022
• Impact of the Child Support Grant on Nutritional Outcomes in South Africa: Is there a ‘pregnancy support’ effect? . Claire Lynam, MSc Development Economics, 2022
• An Empirical Analysis of the Volatility Spillovers between Commodity Markets, Exchange Rates, and the Sovereign CDS Spreads of Commodity Exporters . Alfie Fox-Heaton, MSc Financial Economics, 2022
• The 2005 Atlantic Hurricane Season and Labour Market Transitions . Edward Allenby, MSc Economics, 2022
• The scope of international agreements . Sophia Vaaßen, MSc International Economics, 2022

Thank you to all those students who have agreed to have their work showcased in this way.

School of Economics

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Digital Commons @ USF > College of Arts and Sciences > Economics > Theses and Dissertations

Economics Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2023 2023.

Natural Disasters and Human Capital: Empirical Evidence from Indonesia , Lei Lv

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

Two Essays in Applied Microeconomics: Retirement, Income Inequalities, and other Economic Indicators of Health and Life Satisfaction , Zahra Akbari

The Impact of Critical Illness Insurance among Older Adults in China , Jiaosi Li

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

Essays on SNAP Participation, BMI, and Food Purchasing Decisions , Samaneh Ghadyani

Reference-Dependent Choice on Digital Platforms , Joshua K. Kaisen

Theses/Dissertations from 2020 2020

Effects of the 340B Drug Pricing Program on Hospitals’ Prescribing Behavior, Patient Mix, and Quality of Care , Yilu Dong

Does Hedging Success Matter? An Empirical Study of Jet Fuel Hedging in the U.S. Airline Industry , Brian Hornung

Essays in Applied Public Policy and Health Economics , Stephen W. Poteet

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

Essays in Applied Microeconomics , Lijuan Feng

Essays on Health, Healthcare, Job Insecurity and Health Outcomes , Ichiro Nakamoto

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

Essays in Applied Microeconomics , John Hartman

Essays on Family-Friendly Policies, Child Planning and Children’s Early-Age Outcomes , Stefani Milovanska-Farrington

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

Education and Health Impacts of an Affirmative Action Policy on Minorities in India , Robin Dhakal

Testing the Medical Arms Race Hypothesis: a Spatial Approach , Robyn M. Kibler

Essays in Health Economics , Olga Petrova

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

Impact of Health Insurance for the Poor on Labor Market Out comes: Evidence from Indonesia. , Youssef Fassi Fehri

Essays in Health and Development Economics , John Bosco Oryema

Assessing Property Value Impacts of Access to Bus Rapid Transit (BRT): Case Study of the Cleveland HealthLine , Victoria A. Perk

An Exploration of Adolescent Obesity Determinants , Anastasia King Smith

The Impact of Criminal Justice Interventions and Social Policies on Family Violence: Theory and Evidence , Sianne Diana Vijay

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Two Essays Examining Organizational Performance , Stacey Alexis Gelsheimer

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Generic Competition and Price Regulation in the European Union Pharmaceutical Market: The Case of Cardiovascular Medicines , Berna Colak

Social Interactions In Breast Cancer Prevention Among Women In The United States , Natallia Gray

Discrepancies in Labor Market Outcomes From Migration Evidence From Colombia , Liza Beatriz Pena

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

Bayesian Estimation of Panel Data Fractional Response Models with Endogeneity: An Application to Standardized Test Rates , Lawrence Kessler

Essays in Happiness Economics , Boris Nikolaev

Measuring Technical Efficiency of the Japanese Professional Football (Soccer) League (J1 and J2) , Dan Zhao

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

Essays in Sports Economics , Daniel Mark Chin

Theses/Dissertations from 2011 2011

Modeling Endogenous Treatment Eects with Heterogeneity: A Bayesian Nonparametric Approach , Xuequn Hu

Internet Use and Economic Development: Evidence and Policy Implications , Joseph J. Macdougald

Theses/Dissertations from 2010 2010

The Interaction Between Urban Form and Transit Travel , Sisinnio Concas

The Effect of Land-Use Controls on Urban Sprawl , Marin V. Geshkov

The Role of Rater Motivation in Personnel Selection Validation Studies , Dan Ispas

Theses/Dissertations from 2009 2009

Globalization, Migration and the U.S. Labor Market for Physicians: The Impact of Immigration on Local Wages , Finnie B. Cook

Medicare Part D Program: Prescription Drug Plan Copayment Structure and Premium Sensitivity , Rui Dai

Theses/Dissertations from 2008 2008

The Effects of Depressed Mood on Academic Outcomes in Adolescents and Young Adults , Robert Christopher Jones

Theses/Dissertations from 2007 2007

Malaria, Labor Supply, and Schooling in Sub-Saharan Africa , Taiwo Abimbola

Determinants of female labor force participation in Venezuela: A cross-sectional analysis , Betilde Rincon de Munoz

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Honors Theses

Improving economics teaching and learning for over 20 years

Undergraduate Dissertations in Economics

A practical guide

1. Introduction

2. the uk experience, 3. the dissertation life-cycle, 4. an alternative to the dissertation.

Emeritus Professor Peter Smith, University of Southampton  First published 2009  Revised version July 2016

https://doi.org/10.53593/n169a

For many students, the dissertation is the culmination of their undergraduate careers, and a rewarding and satisfying experience that gives them the opportunity to undertake an in-depth study of a topic that interests them. However, it can also become a traumatic and disillusioning venture for students who do not engage with the research, or who have a bad experience with some aspect of the dissertation process.

This chapter sets out to share good practice and provide guidance for co-ordinators, curriculum planners and supervisors, highlighting danger areas and providing discussion of some of the more contentious aspects of the dissertation process.

A key aim of any honours degree programme in the UK is to encourage students to become independent learners. This is no easy task in an environment in which many students arrive from school or college with preconceived notions of what is meant by study, and an array of expectations about the support they will receive from academic staff, not to mention the feedback and interaction with staff that they can expect.

The Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) in August 2008 set out the Frameworks for Higher Education Qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland , which contains the following descriptor for a Bachelor’s degree with honours:

‘Bachelor's degrees with honours are awarded to students who have demonstrated:

• a systematic understanding of key aspects of their field of study, including acquisition of coherent and detailed knowledge, at least some of which is at or informed by, the forefront of defined aspects of a discipline
• an ability to deploy accurately established techniques of analysis and enquiry within a discipline
• to devise and sustain arguments, and/or to solve problems, using ideas and techniques, some of which are at the forefront of a discipline
• to describe and comment upon particular aspects of current research, or equivalent advanced scholarship, in the discipline
• an appreciation of the uncertainty, ambiguity and limits of knowledge
• the ability to manage their own learning, and to make use of scholarly reviews and primary sources (e.g. refereed research articles and/or original materials appropriate to the discipline).’

(Source:   http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/Framework-Higher-Education-Qualifications-08.pdf  )

In the context of an economics programme, where in many cases students can arrive at university with no prior knowledge of the discipline, it is ambitious to think that students will be able to use ideas and techniques ‘at the forefront’ of the discipline after only three years of study, especially if this is really to be the aim for all honours students. On many programmes, the dissertation has become the prime vehicle by which students find an opportunity to become independent learners and to confront current research. For many students, the dissertation is the culmination of their undergraduate careers, and a rewarding and satisfying experience that gives them the opportunity to undertake an in-depth study of a topic that interests them. However, it can also become a traumatic and disillusioning venture for students who do not engage with the research, or who have a bad experience with some aspect of the dissertation process.

After a brief investigation of the current experience in the UK, this chapter is organised around the typical life-cycle of a dissertation, divided into a series of stages:

• laying the foundations
• topic selection
• early practicalities
• supervision
• progress monitoring
• data issues
• dissertation structure
• academic integrity.

As background to this chapter, a brief email survey was undertaken to gather information about the role of the undergraduate dissertation in economics departments across the UK. A report on this survey may be found in Appendix 1 .

From the survey it seems that dissertations are a part of the majority of Economics programmes in the UK. However, there are significant differences in the way in which the dissertation module is organised, and the way that students experience the dissertation.

A particular issue is whether all students should be required to complete a dissertation as part of their undergraduate programme. In some institutions, the dissertation is indeed compulsory for everyone, but elsewhere it is restricted to single honours students, or to those students who obtain an average of 60% or more in their second year. The QAA’s descriptor quoted above suggests that all students should receive some exposure to research, but clearly joint honours students are likely to find this more challenging than the specialists, having acquired less in-depth familiarity with either of their chosen disciplines.

Where joint honours students are required to take the dissertation, it may be necessary to adjust the expectations in terms of content. For example, whilst a single honours student with some exposure to econometrics may be expected to undertake some empirical work, it would be unreasonable to expect a joint honours (e.g. Politics and Economics) student to have the same familiarity with econometric methods. It has been known for students to try to teach themselves econometrics, which can prove disastrous.

Whether the dissertation should be limited to the better students is a moot point. On the one hand, it could be argued that weaker students should have equal access to the dissertation option; it may even be that there are some students who may achieve a better result on the dissertation where they can immerse themselves in a topic and produce a polished piece of work, than they could produce under examination conditions or in a problem-set-oriented assessment. On the other hand, experience suggests that weaker students require more supervision, and are more likely to resort to practices that breach academic integrity guidelines.

For these reasons, it may be necessary (or desirable) to provide alternative ways of exposing joint honours and weaker students to research methods. This will be discussed later in section 4 .

Where the dissertation is compulsory for all students, the organisation of the module causes concern. When there are large numbers of students requiring supervision, the load on individual staff members becomes heavy – especially given that some topic areas (and some staff members) tend to be more popular with students than others. It may then be necessary to find some way of spreading the supervision load across available staff or accommodating differences through a workload management system. Spreading the load evenly may result in inconsistency in the supervision provided, which can be very difficult to monitor effectively.

Another major impact on the dissertation has been the rise of the internet, and the ease with which students are able to find material. This can lead to excessive reliance on sites such as Wikipedia, and makes it imperative to be able to monitor standards of academic integrity. Almost all of the survey respondents reported using TurnitinUK, whether as routine for all dissertations submitted, for a random sample or for suspect cases. The traditional remedy of holding vivas for all student dissertations becomes extremely costly when large numbers of students are involved (one institution reported that more than 500 dissertations are submitted in a typical year). Nonetheless, this practice appears to have survived in some economics departments.

3.1 Laying the foundations

3.2 topic selection, 3.3 some early practicalities, 3.4 supervision, 3.5 early progress monitoring and the dangers of the last minute rush, 3.6 data issues, 3.7 dissertation content and structure, 3.8 submission, 3.9 assessment, 3.10 academic integrity.

There is a sense in which the whole of learning and teaching in a programme can be seen as preparation for the dissertation, as it provides the opportunity for students to draw holistically upon the range of material that they have studied during their programme. However, the dissertation is a very different exercise from anything else that they will have been required to undertake and specific preparation is needed.

First, some training in research skills will need to be provided. This may or may not take place as part of a specific module within the programme that is devoted to preparation for the dissertation, perhaps in the penultimate year of study. This needs to include general discussion of research in economics, and the ways in which economists undertake research and scholarship. It is important to remember that this is likely to be a wholly new experience for most students, who may be well drilled in problem solving and mathematical exercises, but who may not have had much exposure to the practicalities of economic research.

The booklets by Greenlaw (2006) and Neugeboren (2005) may be useful references for students at this stage of the process, or they may wish to visit the "Doing a dissertation" tab of the Studying Economics website run by the Economics Network.

Included in this research training it is important to provide some guidance in library skills and the use of evidence in economics research. Being able to evaluate evidence, to weigh up the importance of a set of results and to be aware of the limitations of the evidence produced are challenging skills for students to develop.

There are different approaches to providing such research methods training. It may be that library staff will be able to provide sessions in library skills. It may be wise to incentivise students by awarding a small percentage of the dissertation marks for a library skills exercise. For example, students could be required to undertake an online literature search related to their chosen topic and produce a preliminary reading list. This has the added benefit for forcing them to start their research at an early stage of proceedings.

Depending on programme structure, some students may have had extensive exposure to statistical and econometric methods, so may be accustomed to handling data and interpreting results. However, there may still be a difference between running some regressions in response to a specific exercise during an econometrics module and devising a model to allow testing of a specific hypothesis.

Where students have not been exposed to econometrics, this will clearly affect the scope and nature of research that they can undertake. It may be that they are restricted to a theoretical approach or a literature review style of project, or that they need to find alternative ways of presenting evidence. Where there is a mixture of single and joint honours students it may well be that there are students working on similar topic areas, some of whom know some econometrics and others not. This can create particular pressures on the joint honours students, who may feel obliged to try to use techniques with which they are unfamiliar. This is almost always disastrous. It also becomes important that the skills base of students is taken into account during the assessment process, so that students without training in econometrics are not unduly penalised by markers.

It is increasingly crucial to provide clear guidance on academic integrity at an early juncture. Section 3.10 explores this issue in more depth.

Where there are large numbers of international students, support may need to be provided in academic writing. Indeed, such support may be necessary more generally, given that so many economics assessments are based on problem sets and exercises, rather than on extended continuous prose. There is some evidence that the writing skills of UK students may also need to be further developed in this context.

From a student perspective, finding a topic for the dissertation is a critical step. One of the key strengths of the dissertation is its capacity to engage the student by arousing interest and motivating through a sense of discovery. However, it can also be a stressful part of the process, especially for some weaker students who may not have strong ideas about topics that might inspire interest, and who may be daunted by the prospect of undertaking the task. Failure to find the right topic can be a recipe for a weak dissertation that does not fulfil the intended outcomes.

When the numbers of students looking for dissertation topics are relatively small, then it may be that students can be left to choose their own topics – probably subject to the availability of an appropriate supervisor or the submission of a coherent research proposal. With large numbers of students, this laissez-faire approach may not be feasible.

An alternative approach is to provide students with a list of topics from which they can choose. These topics may be closely circumscribed, or may simply offer a general topic area, leaving the student to focus on a specific research question within that topic area.

The advantage of providing very general topics is that that it leaves the responsibility of formulating a specific research question with the student. This is a key part of research in economics, of course, so it is good (albeit challenging) for the student to have to think about how to go about it. It also has the benefit of giving the student ownership of the question to be investigated, which helps to provide motivation.

Where there are large numbers of students, topic choice can be handled online.

Students can submit their preferences through a webpage, and asked to specify their top four choices and rank them. Students can then be allocated to topics and supervisors, with no guarantee that they will get their first choice – depending on whether certain topics are over-subscribed.

It is helpful for students if a selection of past dissertations is made available to current students to provide some guidance on what is expected of them. However, if the same topics appear for too many successive years, there may be the obvious danger of plagiarism. Even where this does not extend to actual copying, there is the danger that students will simply adopt the same dissertation structure as used by previous students rather than working through this part of the process on their own.

Top tips: dissertation topics

There are several ways in which students can find (or be allocated) the topic for their research.

Students find their own topic, and then look for a supervisor

This may work where the number of students is limited, but may be more difficult to manage when numbers increase. Some staff members are likely to be overwhelmed with requests, especially if they happen to have taught popular second year modules.

Students may also congregate around topics of recent interest – the financial crisis, the impact of migration, or the economics of Brexit…

Others may delay thinking about their topic until it is too late, or may choose topics that prove to be impracticable.

Staff declare topic areas in which they are prepared to supervise projects

This seems to work for a number of institutions. Topics here may be defined broadly – labour economics, development economics, or monetary economics. This may also produce bunching around some staff members.

A list of topic areas is provided

This entails listing key areas of economics – public economics, behavioural economics etc. Students are then allocated a supervisor, where possible a supervisor with a specific interest in that area. Bunching can be ameliorated by not guaranteeing that the allocated supervisor will be an expert in that field. After all, at undergraduate level, detailed knowledge of the topic area may not be crucial.

A list of topics is provided

More specific titles could be provided, rather than general areas. Some staff may prefer this, but others may not. Too specific a topic may attract no students at all (there are only so many undergraduates burning to undertake research into theoretical issues in econometrics).

For example, a topic such as ‘Child labour in less developed countries’ offers wide scope for tackling the issue in different ways and different contexts. A more specific topic such as “Are household members altruistically linked? an examination based on the Mexican anti-poverty programme Progresa’ is much more prescriptive, and may deter students.

There will always be students with fixed ideas about what they wish to research, and these should be accommodated where possible and plausible.

Legislation impinges on the dissertation process, and students may all be required to complete risk assessments before they start their research. The impetus from this comes from Health and Safety legislation in place since 1992, and many universities require such assessments for undergraduate and postgraduate students undertaking research. The need for this is perhaps more obvious where students are carrying out experiments in the physical sciences, but may also be important in the social sciences. There may also be a need to seek ethics approval, especially where research involves the use of human subjects, for example, where students intend to undertake surveys or to conduct experiments using human participants.

Given that most economics dissertations tend to be desk studies that do not involve the use of human subjects, the bureaucracy may be viewed as superfluous. Nonetheless, compliance with the law is essential. This may be especially important where economics as a discipline is part of a wider School of Social Sciences. Sociologists who decide to interview local drug dealers as part of their dissertation research clearly face rather different risks and ethical issues than an economist who decides to estimate a consumption function from macro data.

Sample forms can be viewed in Appendix 2 . The ethics form is designed for a School of Social Sciences. The expectation is that the vast majority of economics projects will qualify to skip from question 1 to question 15, thus minimising the paperwork whilst still complying with the demands of the legislation.

Given the requirements of the Data Protection Act, it is also advisable to ask students to give permission for their completed dissertations to be made available within the university for succeeding generations of students. This then allows a database of previous dissertations to be mounted on an internal website or a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) such as Blackboard or Moodle.

It is also important at the outset to be absolutely clear about some aspects of the dissertation. In particular, students seem to get very exercised about word length. In many UK undergraduate economics programmes, the dissertation counts as a double module in the final year – for example, 15 ECTS, or a quarter of the assessment for the year. Given the importance of this piece of work (especially where the final year carries a heavy weight), it is probably appropriate for the dissertation to carry a word length of 7,500 to 10,000 words. Notice that this may depend on institutional demands set by your School, Faculty or at University level.

Top Tips on the word limit

• Be explicit from the start about what is included and not included in the word count. When students get near to submission time, the chances are that they will be hitting the limit, and will want to exclude as much as possible from the count. To remove ambiguity, it is wise to be clear.
• Acknowledgements
• Table of contents
• Bibliography
• Figures (i.e. diagrams, maps)
• Tables of data
• Prohibit the widespread use of appendices – otherwise, students will simply carve chunks of material out of the main text and stash it away at the back in the hope that it will not count. Make it clear that appendices will be part of the word count (perhaps allowing some appendices to be exempt, e.g. raw data, with the express permission of the supervisor).
• Then state that everything else counts. Students will still find questions to ask (what about footnotes?), but if you have been explicit you will be on reasonably firm ground – and you can point out that the rules are the same for everyone.
• In order to enforce the word limit, you will probably need to impose penalties for exceeding it. A sliding scale is probably best – say, 1 percentage point per 100 words (or part thereof) by which the dissertation exceeds the limit. This provides students with the incentive to learn to be selective and to avoid waffle in presenting their report. And it seems to work!

The provision of good supervision is crucial to the success of the dissertation. In many institutions facing increasing student numbers, the amount of contact between staff and students on a one-to-one basis is in decline. Indeed, it may be that the supervision of the dissertation provides the single most important opportunity for students to interact on a personal basis with a member of the academic staff. Some students may be intimidated by this, but if the relationship works, it can be mutually rewarding as an educational experience.

As in many other areas of learning and teaching, it is important to manage student expectations of the supervision process. It is helpful for students to be told clearly what they can expect from their supervisor. This may be expressed in terms of an entitlement, rather than being left open-ended. Such an entitlement could be expressed in terms of a number of meetings that each student is entitled to have with their supervisor or it could be expressed in hours. Experience with operating such a system is that although some students may request assistance above their entitlement – and this need not be prohibited within the scheme – others may choose not to avail themselves of their full entitlement. In the context of encouraging students to become independent learners, it may not be desirable to insist that all students attend for a given number of sessions. It is this that makes the entitlement system an attractive way of specifying what is the normal expectation for supervisory contact.

Such an approach has the added benefit of helping to manage the supervisors’ expectations of the process. Supervisors need to know what is expected of them in terms of reading drafts, marking, length and frequency of meetings, and so on. It is also crucial that both supervisors and students have the same expectations of what is involved. Being explicit about this is thus crucial for both groups.

Achieving consistency of supervision provision is one of the challenges, especially when large numbers of students are in need of supervision. Just as some students may need more help than others, it is also important to be aware that some supervisors may be more comfortable in the role than others, or more prepared (or able) to make themselves available.

It is also common for certain topic areas to be more popular than others – and for some supervisors to be more popular than others. If unregulated, this can lead to a situation in which some members of staff find that they have much heavier loads than their colleagues.

Some fair way of allocating supervisory responsibilities may thus be needed. One possibility is to ensure that supervisory loads are recognised as part of a workload management system, in which there is a trade-off between supervisory responsibilities and other forms of teaching contact. An alternative is to allocate loads evenly across available staff. This may require allocating students to topics that are not their first choice, or requiring supervisors to oversee topics of which they have little specialist knowledge. This needs to be monitored carefully to safeguard the student experience. However, at the undergraduate level, specialist knowledge of topic areas may be less crucial than at masters’ or doctoral level.

There may be benefits from group supervision of students following similar topics, not only in terms of economies of scale, but also because the students may be able to learn from each other. Economies of scale may arise because much of the advice given to students will be common – the central importance of economic analysis, the need for a literature review, the interpretation of evidence, how to avoid plagiarism and so on.

At my university, each supervisor is responsible for between six and ten students. It may be highly time-consuming to meet each supervisee separately on a one-to-one basis, but there are some issues that can be readily communicated in group sessions, perhaps even in combination with a colleague supervising in similar topic areas.

A first meeting could take place early in the year, or at the end of the penultimate year, when students have been allocated their topics and supervisors. This would be a preliminary briefing meeting, to answer questions and concerns, highlight some key relevant readings and data sources, and explain how the supervision will be conducted. Some preliminary explanation of how to structure a good dissertation is also provided, together with some discussion of what is meant by academic integrity.

At a second meeting each student could be asked to talk about their topic, outline their progress to date, identify their research question (if they have formulated it) and comment on any problem areas that they have encountered.

A third meeting could be held towards the end of the first term. By this time, students will have been required to submit an interim report, in which they sketch out their proposed research, including an explanation of their research question, and the methodology that they propose to use in order to investigate their question. This is an opportunity to provide feedback and progress to date, to suggest future directions and to identify potential problems.

A fourth meeting could be held towards the end of the second term. Before this meeting, you could invite each student to submit an extract from the first chapter, including their explanation of their research question. In the meeting, you could comment on writing styles and referencing, and provide an opportunity for questions. The importance of maintaining standards of academic integrity also needs to be stressed.

Students should also be encouraged to meet up on a one-to-one basis if they have questions that are specific to their own research.

In some institutions, this is taken one step further, through the provision of a whole module (normally in the second year) that deals with research methods. The economies of scale in doing this are even greater, of course, as one individual (or a relatively small number of staff) can provide the generic advice that all students need in approaching the dissertation. Such dedicated modules are not always popular with students, who may see the material as being fragmented and of little relevance to them at the time. In other words, they may need to be convinced that they really will need this material at a later stage. Such modules are not always popular with the staff either. They may not be appealing to teach, and also put pressure on the curriculum. When so much other material has to be covered in the second year, there may be a reluctance to use up a whole module on research methods that could have been used to provide more micro theory or econometrics.

A frequent complaint about students undertaking undergraduate dissertations is that they leave everything until the last minute. The pressures of other coursework items and mid-term or mid-year examinations may encourage students to devote their time to these, as the dissertation seems less urgent.

There are various ways of trying to encourage students to start work on their research early, and not to rely on a late rush. It may be worth drawing an analogy in early discussions with them. Few students would think of arriving at an exam with only a few minutes to go, and thus finding they have no time to answer the questions. So, why should they think they can fritter away their dissertation time and start work on it when it is too late to do it justice?

However, as economists, we understand about incentives, and thus realise that exhortation alone will not suffice. We need to provide good incentives if we expect students to start work early.

One possibility is to require students to give a presentation of their intended research at an early stage of proceedings. This could be a presentation to their peers with a member of academic staff present. It would even be possible to designate a discussant for each presentation or for a small percentage of the overall mark to be attached to it. However, as soon as numbers begin to grow, this option begins to become very costly in time and effort. Ensuring consistency in the assessment becomes problematic – although if it is a very small percentage of the overall mark, this may be less crucial. If the presentation becomes more than a small percentage, then the logistics of enabling appropriate external examining becomes a potential issue.

An alternative is to introduce an interim report or research proposal that has to be submitted at an early stage. Again, attaching a modest percentage of the overall marks to this report has good incentive effects, and provides an early check to identify students that are not engaging with the process, or who have unrealistic grandiose plans for solving the world’s problems in 10,000 words. It is also a good opportunity to provide formal feedback – an important consideration when the paucity of feedback is a common criticism emerging from questionnaire surveys.

It may be helpful to ask students to submit draft material (or even chapters) to provide a framework for discussion in supervisory meetings – and to do so before the meeting takes place. There is nothing worse than having a student arrive to discuss their work clutching their precious draft, only to find that the time is mainly spent in the supervisor reading it, rather than being able to discuss it. It should be made clear that this is not for the purpose of proof-reading, which is not the supervisor’s responsibility. It may be worth setting a timetable for such discussions at the beginning of the year – which then forces the student into a regular schedule of work. Of course, your institution’s rules may prohibit the reading of draft material. You may also think that it is possible to go too far in helping the student, as this may militate against encouraging independent work and time management. However, it can make for more productive supervisory meetings – and anything that highlights that you are providing feedback may pay dividends in national student surveys.

The other task that must be tackled at an early stage is data hunting. Students embarking on empirical work – probably for the first time – almost always have over-optimistic views of the data that are likely to be available. Perhaps a student has been to a course in development economics that has stressed the importance of human capital formation in stimulating improvements in agricultural productivity. An interesting project might be to examine the effect of primary schooling on agricultural productivity in rural Zanzibar. Or to examine the effect of overseas assistance on the provision of health care in Papua New Guinea. Panic then sets in when it transpires that, with only a few weeks remaining, there are no data to be found.

Again, this is partly a question of managing student expectations – and of getting students to hunt for their data as early as possible.

Of course, there is a time inconsistency problem here. We tell the students that they must look for data as soon as possible… but we also tell them that they should think about the underlying economics of their topic first, in order that they know what data they will require. Without this proviso, the danger of data-mining is high. Students told to look for data early may well see what they can find, run a few regressions and then see if they can find a theory that will match their results.

There is a lot of data readily available on the internet. This brings good and bad news. The good news is that there are more data accessible on a wide range of economic topics that students can readily obtain. This expands the range of topics on which they can undertake empirical work – and they are aided and abetted in this by the software at their disposal to enable them to produce lots of results. The bad news is that the scope for doing foolish things and getting nonsense results is also much expanded. The ease of use of today’s software makes it very easy to produce results that go way beyond the competence and understanding of the students. Indeed, a key part of the supervisor’s role may be to rein in the over-enthusiastic student to ensure that the work undertaken is appropriate for the topic being investigated, and the reasonable ambition of the student given knowledge and understanding of statistical and/or econometric methodology. This reining in has to done in a sensitive way, so as not to discourage or dishearten. A fine line to tread.

Provide web links to the most relevant data sources.

Providing web links to key recommended data sources is wise. This can be accomplished through a dedicated dissertation webpage or VLE. The links can then be tailored to the needs of a particular cohort of students. There is also a helpful section on the Economics Network website that provides links to freely available data .

One obvious situation in which this can be an issue is where a student has received no training in econometrics, but has heard of ‘regression’ and perceives that no dissertation is complete without it. There may be some bright students out there who can teach themselves regression along the way and produce sensible results. But for every one such student, there are likely to be countless others who will be unable to produce coherent results. For the econometrically untrained, more modest objectives need to be set for the analysis of empirical data. However, the collection of data, and the marshalling of evidence in support (or not) of an hypothesis, is a central part of research in economics. In some cases, students may sign up for an optional course in econometrics for which they are ill-prepared. This has a doubly damaging impact, as they may fail the module as well as finding themselves no better off for the research.

Another pitfall is where a student with some econometric training collects data and runs some regressions, but is unable to produce results that are consistent with any known economic theory. Panic then sets in. Can economic theory really be so wrong? It takes confidence for a novice researcher to look at a set of seemingly meaningless results with equanimity. It may then be for the supervisor to reassure, and to point out how many possible explanations there are for seemingly contradictory results. Perhaps the data do not measure what the model demands. Perhaps a more sophisticated econometric methodology is required. Perhaps there are omitted variables. And so on. The student researcher may then need to be persuaded that it is perfectly OK to present weak results, so long as some awareness is shown that the analysis has limitations, and that there are many possible reasons for the seeming contradictions.

It is important to remind students of the key objective of the dissertation – namely, to showcase what they have assimilated during their degree programme. If they can show competence in applying economic analysis and (perhaps) econometric techniques in a topic area of their choice, then they are on their way to a reasonable mark. They will not be submitting their dissertation to Econometrica .

‘The secret of happiness lay in limiting the aspirations.’ Thomas Hardy in The Woodlanders .

Students who have spent most of their undergraduate careers solving problems and tackling exercises are likely to need specific help in constructing a coherent argument through continuous prose and appropriate structuring of material. Furthermore, the dissertation will require them to move beyond the descriptive to analysis and evaluation. These are also key skills that may only be developed through the dissertation in many economics undergraduate programmes.

There are several guides available providing advice to students on how to structure a report on a piece of economic research (e.g. Neugeboren (2005); Greenlaw (2006) ).

A typical structure

From Neugeboren (2005)

Students need further guidance to keep an appropriate balance between the key components. The temptation is to use up too many words in the early sections in introducing the topic and describing the background. This is especially tempting in relation to some projects. For example, a student investigating a question in the context of a particular country may begin by describing the economic conditions of that country, so that the report comes to resemble something more appropriate for economic history or geography than economics. On the other hand, there may be a temptation to take some of the economic analysis for granted, thus missing the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of economic analysis and thereby showcasing their skills to the examiner. This question of knowing what to include and what to omit is a tricky one, and an area in which supervisors will need to be ready to offer guidance. Another challenge is for students to be evaluative and analytic, going beyond description.

At the outset, students often find it intimidating to launch themselves on writing an 8,000 or 10,000 word report. It is important to find a way of overcoming this. One way is to encourage students to draw up a chapter plan at an early stage. This could be based on the general pattern set out above, with the students being asked to draft a few sentences describing the intended content of each chapter, and a target word count. This has the advantage of breaking the overall task into a sequence of shorter pieces of work, which may be less intimidating. Making some examples of previous dissertations available for students to consult may also be helpful, as they are able to see what can be achieved, as well as getting a feel for how to structure a long report.

Make sure there is no ambiguity about the deadline for submission and the penalties for missing it.

Another danger point comes at submission time. Be clear about the conditions under which an extension might be granted and how and whether this might be authorised. In addition, be clear about the conditions in which an extension will not be granted. For example, you might want to be explicit that extensions will not be granted for frivolous reasons or because ‘my computer crashed’. There are good reasons for being strict about this. One of the skills that students derive from producing a dissertation is project management. Meeting deadlines will give students the opportunity to practise time management. A student who does not understand the need to keep back-up copies of files will have a rude awakening in the world of work. Furthermore, a student granted an extension is likely to find that there are knock-on effects in terms of exam preparation.

Assessment is a crucial part of the dissertation process and entails a number of problematic issues.

It is important that students have a clear idea of what is expected of them in producing a dissertation. Unlike the problem sets and exercises that characterise much of assessment in economics, there cannot be a specific mark scheme for the dissertation. However, it is possible to provide a set of grade descriptors designed for the dissertation, showing the characteristics that markers will be looking for in allocating marks to the final product. This helps in forming student expectations and provides transparency. A sample set of descriptors is available in Appendix 3 . These descriptors can be tailored to local requirements. Asking markers to highlight a copy of the descriptors for each student being assessed indicating how well they have performed on each aspect is a good way of reaching comparability of standards across markers, and providing feedback to students afterwards.

There is no universal agreement that this approach is desirable. It has been argued that marking to descriptors enforces too much conformity and inhibits markers from examining with their own personal and professional judgement. However, this may be an argument for framing the descriptors in such a way that they are not overly prescriptive, but yet identify the intended outcomes on which the assessment of the dissertation should be based. When large numbers of students are involved, it may be that personal and professional judgement has to be harnessed in order to ensure equity in treatment.

Another way of trying to manage student expectations is through some element of peer- or self-assessment – not necessarily as part of the summative assessment. For example, students could be encouraged to evaluate a fellow student’s research proposal or presentation. Alternatively, a self-assessment checklist could be required as part of the dissertation submission, itemising key aspects of the dissertation. A sample self-assessment form is available through the Appendices .

Students may also gain confidence in their work if some portion of the summative assessment is derived from interim pieces of work, such as the research proposal, a presentation or library skills project. This can also incentivise students to manage their time and receive feedback on how they are progressing.

Achieving consistency in assessment is challenging, especially where the number of dissertations to be marked is large so that marking has to be spread between a relatively large number of staff members. Consistency is also difficult because of the wide range of dissertation topics that is possible. The use of descriptors can help here, as they are cast in general terms that do not vary across topics. The danger is that some markers will be more diligent than others in giving marks based on the descriptors. At department level, this could be monitored by constructing a spreadsheet to compare mean marks (and the standard deviation) for each pair of markers. This may help to reassure external examiners that marking has been carefully undertaken — as well as ensuring equality of treatment for students.

The nature of the dissertation is such that it is difficult to maintain anonymity in the marking, so this is one type of assessment where double-blind marking must be retained, rather than some form of sample moderation process.

Where the economics dissertation can be taken by both single honours students and those following joint honours, it is important for markers to be aware of what is reasonable for particular students to produce. A politics and economics student should not be penalised for avoiding econometric work, nor should a single honours economics student be penalised for lacking background in political science.

One of the issues on which practice varies between universities is the question of whether the supervisor should or should not be one of the markers of the dissertation. Some argue that the supervisor should be excluded from the assessment process in order to ensure independence of the marking, whereas others argue that the supervisor is able to identify the extent to which the student had received assistance as part of the supervisory process. Consistency may be more likely where marking is organised to mix up the pairings of first and second markers.

Given the ubiquity of the internet, it has become impossible to discuss undergraduate dissertations without also discussing the greater opportunities for student plagiarism. The internet provides students with access to a vast range of material, and anecdotal evidence suggests that many students arrive at university with at best a sketchy understanding of methods of scholarship and standards of academic integrity.

Inculcating a sense of what constitutes academic integrity at an early stage in the degree programme is critical. This approach – stressing that there are expected standards for student work – is to be preferred to instructing students simply to ‘avoid plagiarism’. The notion of avoiding plagiarism is almost tantamount to telling students not to get caught, whereas setting expected standards is a more positive tack to take.

The importance of academic integrity is reflected in the fact that there is a whole chapter in this Handbook by Jeremy Williams devoted to the topic. The detail of this discussion will not be repeated here, where the focus will be on academic integrity in the dissertation.

Jeremy Williams identifies three types of plagiarist. The ‘lazy plagiarist’ takes the work of another author and puts his or her own name to it, and may use a ‘cheat’ site in order to purchase a dissertation or part thereof. The ‘cunning plagiarist’ uses the work of another author or authors, but changes things sufficiently to avoid detection. ‘Cut-and-paste’ characterises this approach. The ‘accidental plagiarist’ does not even realise that they are plagiarising – for example, they may have taken notes on a journal article in the early stages of their research without realising that they were simply noting down the original author’s words. They then construct their dissertation from those notes. In some cases, students from a Confucian tradition may believe that in reproducing the words of the experts they are paying them a compliment, and may find it culturally difficult to criticise or even amend what has been printed in a textbook. The use of anti-plagiarism software will throw up examples of all three types.

In the email survey of UK economics departments, most made use of TurnitinUK as a way of identifying whether plagiarism has taken place. The convenience of this is that a dissertation submitted via a VLE can be automatically screened for overlap with TurnitinUK’s growing database. The disadvantage is that the output produced by the software requires very careful interpretation. The software produces a Similarity Index (SI), which quantifies the degree of overlap with material in the database. A high SI does not necessarily indicate plagiarism, but it does help to highlight which dissertation submissions are suspicious.

An important practical point to remember is that when students submit their dissertation they should not only be asked to sign a declaration stating that the work is their own, but also that they understand what is meant by academic integrity and that their dissertation will be checked by TurnitinUK.

Sample declaration for students to sign on submission:

I understand that by signing the declaration below, I have read and accepted the following statements:

• I have read and understood the University’s Academic Integrity Statement for Students, including the information on practice to avoid given the Statement and that in the attached submission I have worked within the expectations of this Statement.
• I am aware that failure to act in accordance with the Academic Integrity Statement for Students may lead to the imposition of penalties which, for the most serious cases, may include termination of the programme.

I consent to the University copying and distributing any or all of my work in any form and using third parties (who may be based outside the EU/EEA). This may include the use of anti-plagiarism software (e.g. TurnitinUK) to verify whether my work contains plagiarised material, and for quality assurance purposes.

Perhaps more valuable than its diagnostic properties is the deterrent value of TurnitinUK. The very fact that all dissertations are to be screened may encourage students to take care in their work. If this does not suffice, then a practical demonstration may be effective.

Encouraging good academic practice

Find a brief paper written by a member of staff in the department and submit it to TurnitinUK. Then hack the article about. Include some quotations (some with, some without quotation marks), paraphrase some passages, introduce some new material. Submit the revised version to TurnitinUK.

Arrange a session for all students writing a dissertation, and show them the TurnitinUK output on the amended version. Let them see what we see as examiners. Point out the key examples of bad practice that we can readily recognise.

This exercise can have a dramatic effect. In one academic year, I (as the School’s Academic Integrity Officer) had to investigate 10 breaches of academic integrity in economics dissertations. Penalties were imposed in all cases. The following year, having demonstrated the examiner’s eye view of the TurnitinUK output, not one single case emerged.

More difficult to detect is where students commission a third party to produced their dissertation for them – either to order, or off the peg from subscription websites. TurnitinUK may or may not identify these cases, although I have known one case where the dissertation that had been purchased was picked up because some paragraphs from it were used as an advert on the website, and were thus caught by TurnitinUK. The risks of being caught may be lower for this form of cheating – but the penalties are likely to be more severe.

An important part of the fight for academic integrity is to make sure that all supervisors are familiar with your university’s procedures for dealing with breaches of academic integrity, and with how to interpret the TurnitinUK output. This is a key part of ensuring consistency in supervision and equity of treatment across students. It is wise to make sure that the general principles of academic integrity are covered in joint sessions to all students, rather than this being left as part of the responsibility of the individual supervisor. Student handbooks also need to carry clear guidance on your institution’s policies and procedures.

More discussion on academic integrity may be found in the Handbook chapter by Jeremy Williams and the more recent chapter by Carlos Cortinhas .

If it is accepted that all honours students should be exposed to ‘current research, or equivalent advanced scholarship, in the discipline…’ (QAA), then can the dissertation be avoided?

It could be argued that if we provide research-led teaching , then this in itself ensures that students will fit the bill in terms of exposure to research. But what do we mean by ‘research-led teaching’? Does it mean that academic staff are given the opportunity to teach in their specialist research areas? Is that enough? How do we ensure that students engage with this process? If we cannot be sure about the answer to these questions, then is the dissertation the only solution?

To some extent, a research-led approach can be embedded within the normal curriculum. Modules can be designed in such a way as to enhance the students’ ability to develop critical and evaluative thinking skills and thereby support and promote independent learning. This approach can be reinforced by a research-led approach to assessment and may be most straightforward in econometric or other quantitative methods modules, where students can be required to find, analyse and interpret their own data. A similar approach can be adopted for other modules. A development economics module can require students to prepare a report on a particular country; students could be required to evaluate a recent report from the CMA . Such exercises can encourage and engender a sense of discovery and engage students in a reflective and self-critical process. There is much more discussion or undergraduate research in economics in KimMarie Goldrick’s chapter in this Handbook .

An alternative approach would be to run a seminar or tutorial-based module, in which students are required to provide critical evaluation of recent research, probably through the vehicle of appropriate journal articles. This sort of exercise can also provide students with the opportunity to develop their presentation skills, and could be part of a module that also includes sessions on aspects of research in economics. Such presentations could be given in a quasi-conference setting, if the number of students permits.

A well-organised dissertation can be the most rewarding part of the student experience. However, this may require careful thought and planning if it is not to turn into a nightmare. Here are some key points to remember as the dissertation life-cycle unfolds:

• Think about how research training will be provided
• Ensure that students are guided towards a feasible topic
• Be aware of the legislative context
• Give early rules on word length
• Manage student and supervisor expectations of the supervisory process
• Look for a coherent way of allocating students to supervisors
• Set intermediate targets to prevent students leaving too much to the last minute
• Be aware of data issues
• Provide guidance in terms of how to structure a dissertation
• Offer clear guidelines for the assessment process, so that students know what is expected of them
• Be unambiguous in setting deadlines and the rules for extensions
• Explain academic integrity and monitor adherence

Students can benefit greatly from undertaking a dissertation. The process can capture their interest and give them confidence to engage in independent work. The finished product can be used to sell their abilities to potential employers, by showcasing their skills. Supervisors can add to the experience by making sure that students are aware of these benefits. Furthermore, students often enjoy their dissertation work.

Greenlaw, S. A. (2006) Doing Economics: A guide to carrying out economic research. Boston: Houghton Miffin. ISBN 9780618379835

Neugeboren, R. (2005) The Student’s Guide to Writing Economics. London: Routledge. ISBN 9780415701235

"Doing a dissertation" in the 'Studying economics' section of the Economics Network website.

If you Google 'dissertations in economics' you will find many websites that claim to provide help and guidance. Some of these will be helpful to students e.g. the guide by Paul Dudenhefer ; other links take you to guides provided by various Universities for their students. However, care is needed here, as students may also find offers from tutors prepared to write their dissertations at a price...

Other chapters in the Handbook for Economics Lecturers augment this guide. In particular:

KimMarie McGoldrick, Undergraduate Research in Economics

Jeremy B. Williams, Plagiarism: Deterrence, Detection and Prevention

• The undergraduate dissertation in UG economics in the UK: A brief survey
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Undergraduate Honors Theses (archives)

These are examples of Economics Honors theses. Theses are posted with their permission of the author. This is not a reflection on the quality of their work. All work is © 2009-2019 by the individual authors. All rights reserved.

• "U.S.-Backed Coups in Latin America: An Empirical Inquiry" - Basil Farooq Abdur Raquib
• "Violations of Neoclassical Economic Theory in the NBA Labor Market" - Jordi Adoumie
• "Measuring Income Inequality in Pakistan: Constructing Distributional National Accounts" - Ali Ahmed
• "The Resilience of Islamic Banks in the Wake of Crises: Comparing Islamic and Conventional Banks in the MENA Region" - Nuh Bahemia
• "Analyzing the Effects of School Spending on Student Achievement" - Anoop K. Baliga
• "Does Sexual Harassment Affect Labor Market Choices?" - Aakash Bhalothia
• "Does Inflation Targeting Reduce Exchange Rate Pass-Through?" - Gabriele Buontempo
• "Trump, Tariffs, and Tweets: How Trade Negotiations and Presidential Communication Impact Auto Manufacturers" - Yann Decressin
• "The Effect of Wildfires on Labor Markets: A California Case Study" - Martha Fiehn
• "Priced-Out: The Impact of Home Prices on the Age of Homebuyers" - Matthew Forbes
• "Analyzing Factors in Political Systems that Affect Fiscal Prudence: An Empirical Study" - Tianlang Gao
• "Understanding the Opioid Epidemic: How Pain Management Policy Contributed to Opioid Mortality" - Thea Hanson
• "The Effect of Play Style on NBA Revenues" - Jake Harrison
• "Medicaid Expansion Under the Affordable Care Act and Household Financial Outcomes" - Angel Yin-Hua Hsu
• "Public Debt and Economic Growth: Is There a Change in Threshold Effect?" - Xinruo Hu
• "Does a Causal Relationship Between International Trade and Travel Really Exist? Evidence from the U.S. and Its PTA Partner Countries"  - Danlin Huang
• "Leaving the Nest: The Effect of Moving Out on Victimization Rates Among Young Adults" - Eugene Hui
• "Always in Motion is the Future: The Accuracy of Historical CBO Debt Projections" - Ammar Inayatali
• "Does Political Instability Lead to a Culture of Individualism?" - Baran Iscen
• "The Effect of Weather on Stock Trading" - Dasol Jeong
• "Investigating Peer Effects on Student Choices to Continue Foreign Language Enrollment" - Hoyun Kim
• "Effects of Minimum Wage Increase on Employment in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Korea" - Hyunah (Julia) Kim
• "Incentives, Demographics, and Biases of Ethical Consumption: Observation of Modern Ethical Consumers" - Laura Kim
• "The Effect of New BART Stations on Housing Prices" - Kasha Clark LaRoche
• "Demographics and the Implications for Voter Participation in US Counties" - Julia Lewis
• "School Shootings and Academic Achievement: A Look at the 2014 Isla Vista Killings" - Frankie Lin
• "Institutions and Missing Women: Evidence from Qing China" - Shaoyu Liu
• "How Internal Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape of the United States: An Empirical Study" - Jaya Mantovani
• "The Effect of ACA Medicaid Expansion on Ambulance Demand" - Sam Melville
• "Death Rates in California Prisons Post Realignment" - Devin Montgomery
• "The Impact of Infrastructure and Access to Markets on Lange Values in Rwanda" - Zain Nanji
• "Acquiring Economic Stability: M&A Activity as an Automatic Stabilizer for Unemployment" - Caroline Newman
• "Differences in Industry Responses to Monetary Policy Shocks: A Study of Industry Financials, Equity Prices, and Valuation" - Javier Bravo Nieto (winner of 2019  Mark A. Schimbor award for outstanding thesis)
• "The Role of Autonomy and Information in Patient-Physician Clinical Decision-Making" - Anoeil Odisho
• "Competition, Public Funding and Innovation: The Case of the Pharmaceutical Industry" - Carlos Paramo (winner of 2019  Mark A. Schimbor award  for outstanding thesis)
• "The Effect of School Quality on Prices versus Rents" - Isaac Pariser
• "A Potential Crisis or a Profit Machine: An Analysis of the Subprime Auto Lending Market" - Sahil Patel
• "STEMinism: Evaluating the Attitudes of Middle-School Girls Towards their STEM Abilities in an All-Female Environment" - Alexis Polevoi
• "Comparing Automation and Income Inequality in the United States: Impact of the Automated Teller Machine" - Daniel Rosales
• "Smooth or Lose: Natural Disasters and Child Outcomes in Vietnam" - Leon Sim
• "The Impact of Education on Social Equality Beliefs in East Africa" - Somara Sabharwal
• "Differences by Race and Gender in Persistence Rates After Taking Introductory Classes in Economics and Computer Science" - Sakthi Ponnuswamy
• "Solving Pandora's Matrix: A Search Theory Model" - Anirudh Viswanathan
• "Asymmetric Cross-Price Elasticities of Private Label and National Label Organic Product" - Mitchell James Wong
• "E-cigarettes and Cigarettes: Complements or Substitutes?" - Juliana Zhao
• "The Effect of Teachers' Unions on Educational Outcomes" - Simon Zhu
• "State Feedback Control in Macroeconomic Policy" , Polina Alexeenko
• "Does Stop and Frisk Deter Crime? Evidence from the Aftermath of Floyd vs. City of New York" , Nathaniel Barlow
• "Offshore Deposits and Tax Policy" , Asha Bharadwaj
• "The Income Elasticity of Demand for Health Insurance" , Sarah Goodman
• "The Impact of Race and Effort on Social Preferences in an Experimental Setting" , Allison Green
• "Smoking Cessation Success and Labor Market Productivity" , Daniela Grinblatt
• "Social Dynamics in Lending Opinions" , Hengyu Kuang
• "The Role of Prosecutorial Discretion in Creating Racial Disparities in Sentence Length" , Kenny Lo
• "Capital Mobility Incentives: Foreign Direct Investment and Shareholder Protection Under Periods of Financial Distress" , Carlos Ramos de la Vega
• "Breaching the Zero Lower Bound: Are Negative Interest Rates an Effective Monetary Policy Tool?" , Daniel Saedi
• "Analyzing Bitcoin Price Volatility" , Julio Soldevilla
• "The Assessment on Free Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific Area" , Caren Suciono
• "Analyzing the Expenditure Share of Smoking in China" , Shu-hui Wee
• "Capital Expenditures and the Heterogeneous Response of Equity to Monetary Policy" , Michael Wei
• "Assessing the Impacts of State Regulations on the Usage of Alternative Financial Services" , Lucas Zhang
• Regression Discontinuity Designs with Multiple Assignment Variables , Yizhuang Alden Cheng
• Mind the Gap: Early Consequences From Medicaid Expansion Decisions , Sowill Chu
• The Monetary Policy Effects of Sweden's Transition Towards a Cashless Society , Therese Dalebrant
• Unconventional Monetary Policy Spillovers: Evidence from Emerging Markets , Tejas Dave
• The Earned Income Tax Credit and Educational Attainment for its Recipients: Evidence from Personal Level Data of the Current Pop , Timothy Han
• A Detailed Look into Peer to Peer Lending , Kyle Jackson
• Decriminalizing Indoor Sex Work: Effect on Quantity of Transactions , Andrea Kwan
• Effects of Board Gender Diversity on Firm Performance and Director Compensation in India , Christopher Siantar
• Understanding Public Transit Ridership Through Gasoline Demand: Case Study in San Francisco Bay Area , Hansen Sun
• The Relative Value of Draft Position in the NBA , Adhiraj, Watave
• Multi-Unit Uniform Price Auction Applied to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California , Giovanni Castaldo
• How Does Foreign Aid Affect Political Stability? , Jeffrey Chao
• Who Cares About the Neighborhood? Gentrification and Educational Outcomes in Oakland Unified School District Elementary Schools , Sanat Daga
• Land Reform, its Effects on the Rice Sector, and Economic Development: Empirical Case Study in Taiwan,  Li Duan
• Reexamining Ferguson: The Effect of Police Officers on Arrests by Race , Bhargav Gopal
• An Analysis of Global Homicide Patterns , Rachel Hart
• Traffic Jams in Japan: Does Public Transit Have an Impact? , Gordon Heaton
• Impacts of India's Rural Workfare Program on Child Development , Anushah Hossain
• Trade Specialization and the Occupational Wage Distribution: Evidence from OECD Countries , Trace Levinson
• Potential Methods of Structural Estimation of Loewenstein's Anticipatory Utility Model , Saul Rosen
• A Study of the Microfinance Penetration Imbalance in India , Avika Saraf
• Travel Mode Choice Since the 2007 Beijing Public Transit Fare Reform: A Study of the Effect of Crowding and Thermal Comfort , Diwen Shen
• Firm Size Effects on Targeted Prizes to Incentivize Innovation in Neglected Tropical Diseases , Jodi So
• Evaluating Demand for Courses at UC Berkeley , Matthew Symonds
• The Effect of the 2008 Great Recession on Child Poverty in California: A Fixed Effects Model , Laura Tsui
• The Cost of Punishment: Fairness in High-Stakes Ultimatum Games , Kent Van Donge
• Illegal File-sharing & The Film Industry , Daren Zhang
• An Analysis of the Effect of Income on Adult Body Weight in China , Ruizhi Zhang
• Trends in Income Distribution in China and Implications on Migrant Workers , Shuhan Zhou
• The Impact of Postgraduate Education Attainment on Legislators' Progressive Voting Patterns , Andrew Chang
• Returns to School: A College Athlete's Perspective , Alex Dombrowski
• An Analysis on the Effect of Old Age Dependency Ratio on Domestic Saving Rate , Jinwoo Hyung
• Possible Causes and Implications of Seasonality of Birth , Carmen Ng
• A Model of Exchange Rates in Iceland , Andy Pham
• Does the Implementation of Affirmative Action in a Competitive Setting Incentivize Underrepresented Public School Applicants' Performance? , Dounia Saeme
• Explaining Regional Disparities of China's Economic Growth: Geography, Policy, and Infrastructure , Zhengyun Sun

Spring 2013

• The Synergies of Hedge Funds and Reinsurance , Eric Andersen
• The Effect of Children on Voter Turnout , David Arnold
• When Unemployment Strikes - Age, Income, and Sector Factors , Noa Dreymann
• The impact of presidential approval rate and unemployment rate in imposition and outcome of the United States sanctions , Yooseon Hwang
• Isolating the School Quality Premium in Housing Markets , Arman Khachiyan
• The Greek Tragedy: How the Euro Failed to Promote Greek Bilateral Trade , Paul Matsiras
• Islamic Finance and Banking in the Great Recession: A Comparison of Profitability with Conventional Banks , Muhammad Memon
• An Exploration of Renminbi-USD Exchange Rate: China's Foreign Exchange Intervention , Ching Wai Ng
• Homeowners Insurance Market in Texas with Catastrophic Effects: Market Competition, Supply and Demand , Jingting Yi
• Inequality does cause underdevelopment: Comprehensive analyses of the relationship , SooSun Tiah You
• The Bigger the Better? An Analysis on the Effect of Conference Size on NCAA Football Team and Conference Profit , Trevor Abbott
• The Role of Asset Prices in Monetary Policy , Shuonan Chen
• Measuring the Non-Observed Economy: A Survey-Based Study of Demand in the Korean Prostitution Market , WonSoon Kim
• China's Influence on the World's Iron Ore Market: A Supply-Side Perspective , Lingxiao Ou
• Pirates Acting for the Public Good: An Experimental Study , Seung-Keun Martinez 
• Stock Price Forecasting Using Information from Yahoo Finance and Google Trend , Selene Yue Xu

Spring 2012

• Food for Thought: Evaluating the Impact of India’s Mid-Day Meal Program on Educational Attainment , Stephanie Bonds
• The Implication of the Exchange Rate Floor in Current Times , Shuangshuang Chen
• Testing for Robustness in the Relationship between Fatal Automobile Crashes and Daylight Saving Time , Joseph Crawley
• Do Individuals "Strategically Divorce" To Maximize Marital Settlements? , James Fan
• Comparing Active and Passive Fund Management in Emerging Markets , Klemens Kremnitzer
• Market Efficiency: Is the NFL Betting Market Efficient? , Alexander Kuper
• Magnitude Statements in Abstracts: A Content Analysis and Evaluation of Information Clarity , Marston Litvinsky
• The Financial Impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on Small vs. Large US Public Companies , Stephen Primack
• Predicting the Effects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 , Adrienne Sabety
• The Effect of Sports Participation on GPAs: A Conditional Quantile Regression Analysis , Andreas Santucci
• Monetary Policy in the Eurozone: Evaluating the European Central Bank’s interest rate decisions, Tejasvi Srivangipuram
• The Value of Pace in the NBA , Tim Xin
• Adverse Selection in Health Insurance Purchasing in Cambodia , Hongyu Zhang (Schimbor Prize for Best Thesis recipient)
• The Impact of Microfinance Loans On Children's Educational Attainment In Rural Thailand , Evelyn Hytopoulos
• Analyzing the Determinants of Contract Renegotiation: A Case Study of Eighteenth- Century British Turnpike Trusts , Hannah Markee

Spring 2011

• The Impact of Changing East Asian Trade Dynamics on Japanese Growth , Rahim Dharssi
• Measuring Cultural Fluency in Berkeley Unified School District: Steps Toward an Effective Parent Involvement Strategy , Sachi Takahashi-Rial
• Stock Market and Consumption: Evidence from China , Leslie Hau
• Impact of Rural-to-Urban Migration on Agricultural Commodity Inflation in China , Kan Liu
• The Temporal Component of Reference Point Determination , Mikaela Aziz
• Persistent Discrimination in Residential Mobility Between Cities and Suburbs: Flight from Minority Suburbs Succeeds Flight from , Jeanette Ling
• Religion and Economic Development - A study on Religious variables influencing GDP growth over countries , Wonsub Eum
• Stock Market Repurchases: The Undervaluation and Negative Outlook Theories , Tammy Tieu
• Housing Wealth and Consumption in the Chinese Urban Economy: Evidence from Micro-Data , Yizhou Jin (Departmental Citation & Earl Rolph Prize recipient)
• True Value in the NBA:An Analysis of On-Court Performance and Its Effects on Revenues , Harrison Li
• NAFTA and Female Labor Market Outcomes in Mexico , Emily P Tsitrian
• To Host or Not to Host? A Comparison Study of the Long-Run Impacts of the Olympic Games , Anita Mehrotra
• The Role of Contractionary Monetary Policy in the Great Recession , Charlie Deist
• The Costs and Returns to Medical Education n , Nicholas Roth
• Online Sports Gambling: A Look into the Efficiency of Bookmakers' Odds as Forecasts in the Case of English Premier League , Jasmine Siwei Xu
• The Effect of Drug Decriminalization in Portugal on Homicide and Drug Mortality Rates , Daniel Reuben Yablon

Spring 2009

• An Examination of International Drivers of Educational Achievement , Benjamin Bruno Johnson
• Voter Uncertainty and Economic Conditions: A Look into Election Competitiveness , Christopher V. Lau
• The Economics of Signing Petitions: Social Pressure versus Social Engagement , Diane Alexander
• Testing the Efficient Markets Hypothesis: A Behavioral Approach To the Current Economic Crisis , Iulia Stefan
• Nuclear Proliferation and the Deterrence of Conventional War: A Proposal , Justin Pollard
• Changing Endowment Sizes and Prices of Giving in Ultimatum Games , Kevin Haas
• Selective Beliefs over Preferences , Luke A. Stewart
• Difference of Percentiles: A New Look at the Ability Bias , Paul Lewicki
• The Effect of Mass Transit Systems on Price of Condominium in Bangkok , Peson Sirikolkarn
• The Sour Side of Today’s Housing Market: Testing internal relationships and understanding the composition of today’s market , Peter Lewicki
• The Impact of Sovereign Wealth Fund Investments on Listed United States Companies , Richard Schimbor
• The Transformation of the Demographic Differential Between the U.S. Military and the U.S. Population , Ryan Moffett
• Not Just a TRIP! Two Cases of Business Strategy and Economic Incentives to Patent in Beijing , Shelley Jingyi Jiang
• The Effect of Fertility Levels on The Educational Attainment of Children in Uganda , Tara Roach
• Unionization and Incentives: Evidence from the Field , Thomas Winberry
• Education and Wage Differential by Race: Convergence or Divergence? , Tian Luo
• Job Security and Productivity: Evidence From Academics , William Leung
• A Survey of the Ratio of Mortgage Assets to Total Assets and Its Relation to Regulation , Yelena Bakman

Current Thesis Examples (Fall 2019-present)

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Dissertations

The dv410 dissertation is a major component of the msc programme and an important part of the learning and development process involved in postgraduate education., research design and dissertation in international development.

The DV410 dissertation is a major component of the MSc programme and an important part of the learning and development process involved in postgraduate education. The objective of DV410  is to provide students with an overview of the resources available to them to research and write a 10,000 dissertation that is topical, original, scholarly, and substantial. DV410 will provide curated dissertation pathways through LSE LIFE and Methods courses, information sessions, ID-specific disciplinary teaching, topical seminars and dissertation worksops in ST. With this in mind, students will be able to design their own training pathway and set their own learning objectives in relation to their specific needs for their dissertation. From the Autumn Term (AT) through to Summer Term (ST), students will discuss and develop their ideas in consultation with their mentor or other members of the ID department staff and have access to a range of learning resources (via DV410 Moodle page) to support and develop their individual projects from within the department and across the LSE. 

Prizewinning dissertations

The archive of prizewinning dissertations showcases the best MSc dissertations from previous years. These offer a useful guide to current students on how to prepare and write a high calibre dissertation.

2023-GA (PDF) The Impact of "Beca 18" on Secondary Educational Attainment: Experimental Evidence from a Peruvian Scholarship Program Alexandra Gutiérrez Traverso Joint winner of Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance Joint Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Development Management   

2023-WB (PDF) Democracy Aid Effectiveness and Authoritarian Survival: Democracy Protests as Windows of Opportunity Ben Wolfrum Joint winner of Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Development Management 

2023-ML (PDF) The Gendered Impact of Educational Devolution: Evidence from India’s Panchayat System Luke Martens Joint Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Development Management 

2023-MC (PDF) From Chains to Change: Gendered Problems and Blockchain Solutions in Jordan’s Refugee Camps Carys Milbourn Winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2023-ZF (PDF) Transit Migration and Biopolitics of Movement: How Italy Uses Mobility as a Biopolitical Technology of Control to Reproduce Its Position of Transit Country Francesco Zinni Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2023-BR (PDF) A scoping review of the implementation of infectious disease early warning systems (IDEWS) for building health system climate change resilience Rachael Barrett Winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Health and International Development

2023-RC (PDF) Caring for Asylum Seekers with Chronic Conditions: A Case Study in New Mexico’s Borderlands Caylyn Rich Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Health and International Development

Flushing Out Barriers: Identigying the Relationship Between School Sanitation and School Enrolment Jorin Wolff Winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Development Studies

2023-BL (PDF) Competing for Land: A Spatial Investigation of Large-Scale Land Acquisitions, Their Target Context, and the Dynamics of Deforestation in Africa Luc Bitterli Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Development Studies

2022-OW (PDF) The Politics of Political Conditionality: How theEU Is Failing the Western Balkans Pim W.R.Oudejans Joint winner of Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Development Management 

2022-GN (PDF) An Empirical Study of the Impact of Kenya’sFree Secondary Education Policy on Women’sEducation Nora Geiszl Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Development Management 

2022-JC  (PDF) Giving with one hand, taking with the other:the contradictory political economy of socialgrants in South Africa Jack Calland Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Development Studies

2022-GL (PDF) State Versus Market: The Case of Tobacco Consumption in Eastern European and Former Soviet Transition Economies Letizia Gazzaniga Joint winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Health and International Development

2022-ER (PDF) Reproductive injustice across forced migration trajectories: Evidence from female asylum-seekers fleeing Central America’s Northern Triangle Emily Rice Joint winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Health and International Development

2022-LICB  (PDF) The effects of Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) on child nutrition following an adverseweather shock: the case of Indonesia Liliana Itamar Carillo Barba Winner Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Health and International Development 2022-SC (PDF) Fiscal Responses to Conditional Debt Relief:the impact of multilateral debt cancellation on taxation patterns Sara Cucaro  Joint winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2022-RM  (PDF) Navigating humanitarian space(s) to provideprotection and assistance to internally displacedpersons: applying the concept of ahumanitarian ‘micro-space’ to the caseof Rukban in Syria Miranda Russell  Joint winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2021-CC  (PDF) International Remittances and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Investigating Resilient Remittance Flows from Italy during 2020 Carla Curreli Joint winner of Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance and Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Development Management 

2021-NB  (PDF) Reluctant respondents: Early settlement by developing countries during WTO disputes Nicholas Baxtar Joint winner of Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Development Management (Specialism: Applied Development)

2021-CD  (PDF) One Belt, Many Roads? A Comparison of Power Dynamics in Chinese Infrastructure Financing of Kenya and Angola Conor Dunwoody  Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Development Studies

2021-NN  (PDF) Tool for peace or tool for power? Interrogating Turkish ‘water diplomacy’ in the case of Northern Cyprus Nina Newhouse Winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Development Studies

2021-CW  (PDF) Exploring Legal Aid Provision for LGBTIQ+Asylum Seekers in the American Southwest from 2012-2021 Claire Wever Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2021-BP  (PDF) Instrumentalising Threat; An Expansion of Biopolitical Control Over Exiles in Calais During the COVID-19 Pandemic Bethany Plant Joint winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2021-HS  (PDF) A New “Green Grab”? A Multi-Scalar Analysis of Exclusion in the Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP) Project, Kenya Helen Sticklet Joint winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2021-GM  (PDF) Fuelling policy: The Role of Public Health Policy-Support Tools in Reducing Household Air Pollution as a Risk-Factor for Non-Communicable Diseases in LMICs Georgina Morris Winner of Prize for Best Dissertation MSc Health and International Development 

2021-LC  (PDF) How do women garment workers employ practices of everyday resistance to challenge the patriarchal gender order of Sri Lankan society? Lois Cooper Joint winner of Prize for Best Overall Performance MSc Health and International Development 

2020-LK  (PDF) Can international remittances mitigate negative effects of economic shocks on education? – The case of Nigeria Lara Kasperkovitz Best Overall Performance Best Dissertation Prize International Development and Humanitarian Emergengies 

“Fallen through the Cracks” The Network for Childhood Pneumonia and Challenges in Global Health Governance  Eva Sigel Best Overall Performance Health and International Development 

2020-AB  (PDF) Fighting the ‘Forgotten’ Disease: LiST-Based Analysis of Pneumonia Prevention Interventions to Reduce Under-Five Mortality in High-Burden Countries Alexandra Bland Best Dissertation Prize  Health and International Development   

2020-TP  (PDF) Techno-optimism and misalignment: Investigating national policy discourses on the impact of ICT in educational settings in Sub-Saharan Africa Tao Platt Best Overall Performance Development Studies 

2020-HS  (PDF)  “We want land, all the rest is humbug”: land inheritance reform and intrahousehold dynamics in India Holly Scott Best Dissertation Prize Development Studies   

2020-PE  (PDF)  Decent Work for All? Waste Pickers’ Collective Action Frames after Formalisation in Bogotá, Colombia  Philip Edge Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Management

2020-LC  (PDF)  Variation in Bilateral Investment Treaties: What Leads to More ‘Flexibility for Development’? Lindsey Cox Best Dissertation Prize Development Management

2019-GR (PDF) Political Economy of Industrial Policy: Analysinglongitudinal and crossnationalvariations in industrial policy in Brazil andArgentina Grace Reeve Best Overall Performance Development Studies 

2019-MM (PDF) The Securitisation of Development Projects: The Indian State’s Response to the Maoist Insurgency Monica Moses Best Dissertation Prize Development Studies 

2019-KM (PDF) At the End of Emergency: An Exploration of Factors Influencing Decision-making Surrounding Medical Humanitarian Exit Kaitlyn Macneil Best Overall Performance Prize Health and International Development

2019-KA (PDF) The Haitian Nutritional Paradox: Driving factors of the Double Burden of Malnutrition Khandys Agnant Best Dissertation Prize Health and International Development   

2019-NL (PDF) Women in the Rwandan Parliament: Exploring Descriptive and Substantive Representation Nicole London Best Dissertation Prize Development Management 

2019-CB (PDF) Post-conflict reintegration: the long-termeffects of abduction and displacement on theAcholi population of northern Uganda Charlotte Brown Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Management 

2019-NLeo (PDF) Making Fashion Sense: Can InternationalLabour Standards Improve Accountabilityin Globalised Fast Fashion? Nicole Leo Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Management 

2019-AS (PDF) Who Controls Whom? Evaluating theinvolvement of Development FinanceInstitutions (DFIs) in Build Own-Operate (BOO)Energy Projects in relation to Market Structures& Accountability Chains: The case of theBujagali Hydropower Project (BHPP) in Uganda Aya Salah Mostafa Ali Best Dissertation Prize African Development 

2019-NG (PDF) Addressing barriers to treatment-seekingbehaviour during the Ebola outbreak in SierraLeone: An International Response Perspective Natasha Glendening India Best Overall Performance Prize African Development 

2019-SYJ (PDF) The Traditional Global Care Chain and the Global Refugee Care Chain: A Comparative Analysis Sana Yasmine Johnson Best Dissertation Prize Best Overall Performance Prize International Development and Humanitarian Emergengies 

2018-JR (PDF) Nudging, Teaching, or Coercing?: A Review of Conditionality Compliance Mechanisms on School Attendance Under Conditional Cash Transfer Programs Jonathan Rothwell Best Dissertation Prize African Development 

2018-LD (PDF) A Feminist Perspective On Burundi's Land Reform Ladd Serwat Best Overall Performance African Development 

2018-KL (PDF) Decentralisation: Road to Development or Bridge to Nowhere? Estimating the Effect of Devolution on Infrastructure Spending in Kenya Kurtis Lockhart  Best Dissertation Prize and Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Management 

2018-OS (PDF) From Accountability to Quality: Evaluating the Role of the State in Monitoring Low-Cost Private Schools in Uganda and Kenya Oceane Suquet Mayling Birney Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Management 

2018-LN (PDF) Water to War: An Analysis of Drought, Water Scarcity and Social Mobilization in Syria Lian Najjar Best Dissertation Prize International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2018-IS  (PDF) “As devastating as any war”?: Discursive trends and policy-making in aid to Central America’s Northern Triangle Isabella Shraiman  Best Overall Performance  International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies

2017-AR (PDF) Humanitarian Reform and the Localisation Agenda:Insights from Social Movement and Organisational Theory Alice Robinson Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies (IDHE)

2017-ACY (PDF) The Hidden Costs of a SuccessfulDevelopmental State:Prosperity and Paucity in Singapore Agnes Chew Yunquian Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Managament 

2017-HK  (PDF) Premature Deindustrialization and Stalled Development, the Fate of Countries Failing Structural Transformation? Helen Kirsch Winner of the Best Dissertation in Programme Development Studies

2017-HZ  (PDF) ‘Bare Sexuality’ and its Effects onUnderstanding and Responding to IntimatePartner Sexual Violence in Goma, DemocraticRepublic of the Congo (DRC) Heather Zimmerman Winner of the Best Dissertation in Programme International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies (IDHE)

2017-KT  (PDF) Is Good Governance a Magic Bullet?Examining Good Governance Programmes in Myanmar Khine Thu Winner of the Best Dissertation in Programme Development Managament 

2017-NL  (PDF) Persistent Patronage? The DownstreamElectoral Effects of Administrative Unit Creationin Uganda Nicholas Lyon  Winner of the Best Dissertation in Programme African Development 

2016-MV  (PDF) Contract farming under competition: exploring the drivers of side selling among sugarcane farmers in Mumias             Milou Vanmulken  Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation                                                      Dev elopment Management                

2016-JS  (PDF) Resource Wealth and Democracy: Challenging the  Assumptions of the Redistributive Model              Janosz Schäfer  Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Studies                

2016-LK   (PDF) Shiny Happy People: A study of the effects income relative to a reference group exerts on life satisfaction             Lajos Kossuth Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance                                     Development Studies  

2015-MP (PDF) "Corruption by design" and the management of infrastructure in Brazil: Reflections on the Programa de Aceleração ao Crescimento - PAC.             Maria da Graça Ferraz de Almeida Prado                                                          Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation                                          Development Managment                                                                                  

2015-IE (PDF) Breaking Out Of the Middle-Income Trap: Assessing the Role of Structural Transformation.                                                                               Ipek Ergin                                                                                                   Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Studies

2015-AML (PDF) Labour Migration, Social Movements and Regional Integration: A Comparative Study of the Role of Labour Movements in the Social Transformation of the Economic Community of West African States and the Southern African Development Community.             Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen                                                                                Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation                                   Development Management

2015-MM (PDF) Who Bears the Burden of Bribery? Evidence from Public Service Delivery in Kenya                     Michael Mbate                                                                                                   Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation and Best Overall Performance Development Management

2015-KK (PDF) Export Processing Zones as Productive Policy: Enclave Promotion or Developmental Asset? The Case of Ghana. Kilian Koffi Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation African Development

2015-GM (PDF) Forgive and Forget? Reconciliation and Memory in Post-Biafra Nigeria. Gemma Mehmed Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies (IDHE)

2015-AS (PDF) From Sinners to Saviours: How Non-State Armed Groups use service delivery to achieve domestic legitimacy. Anthony Sequeira Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation and Best Overall Performance International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies (IDHE)

2014-NS (PDF) Anti-Corruption Agencies: Why Do Some Succeed and Most Fail? A Quantitative Political Settlement Analysis. Nicolai Schulz Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

2014-MP (PDF) International Capital Flows and Sudden Stops: a global or a domestic issue? Momchil Petkov Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

2014-TC (PDF) Democracy to Decline: do democratic changes jeopardize economic growth? Thomas Coleman Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

2014-AK (PDF) Intercultural Bilingual Education: the role of participation in improving the quality of education among indigenous communities in Chiapas, Mexico. Anni Kasari Excellent Dissertation and Best Overall Performance Development Management

2014-EL (PDF) Treaty Shopping in International Investment Arbitration: how often has it occurred and how has it been perceived by tribunals? Eunjung Lee Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Management

2013-SB (PDF) Refining Oil - A Way Out of the Resource Curse? Simon Baur Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

2013-NI (PDF) The Rise of ‘Murky Protectionism’: Changing Patterns of Trade-Related Industrial Policies in Developing Countries: A case study of Indonesia. Nicholas Intscher Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation and Best Overall Performance Development Studies

2013-JF (PDF) Why Settle for Less? An Analysis of Settlement in WTO Disputes. Jillian Feirson Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Studies

2013-LH (PDF) Corporate Social Responsibility in Mining: The effects of external pressures and corporate leadership. Leah Henderson Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Studies

2013-BM (PDF) Estimating incumbency advantages in African politics: Regression discontinuity evidence from Zambian parliamentary and local government elections. Bobbie Macdonald Excellent Dissertation and Best Overall Performance Development Studies

WP145 (PDF) Is History Repeating Itself? A Critical Discourse Analysis of the Representation of Women in Climate Change Campaigns. Catherine Flanagan Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP144 (PDF) Disentangling the fall of a 'Dominant-Hegemonic Party Rule'. The case of Paraguay and its transition to a competitive electoral democracy. Dominica Zavala Zubizarreta Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP143 (PDF) Enabling Productive Entrepreneurship in Developing Countries: Critical issues in policy design. Noor Iqbal Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP142 (PDF) Beyond 'fear of death': Strategies of coping with violence and insecurity - A case study of villages in Afghanistan. Angela Jorns Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Studies

WP141 (PDF) What accounts for opposition party strength? Exploring party-society linkages in Zambia and Ghana. Anna Katharina Wolkenhauer Joint Winner, Best Overall Performance Development Studies

WP140 (PDF) Between Fear and Compassion: How Refugee Concerns Shape Responses to Humanitarian Emergencies - The case of Germany and Kosovo. Sebastian Sahla Joint Winner, Best Overall Performance Development Management

WP139 (PDF) Worlds Apart? Health-seeking behaviour and strategic healthcare planning in Sierra Leone. Thea Tomison Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP138 (PDF) War by Other Means? An Analysis of the Contested Terrain of Transitional Justice Under the 'Victor's Peace' in Sri Lanka. Richard Gowing Best Overall Performance and Best Dissertation International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies (IDHE)

WP137 (PDF) Social Welfare Policy - a Panacea for Peace? A Political Economy Analysis of the Role of Social Welfare Policy in Nepal's Conflict and Peace-building Process. Annie Julia Raavad Joint Winner, Best Overall Performance and Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP136 (PDF) Women and the Soft Sell: The Importance of Gender in Health Product Purchasing Decisions. Adam Alagiah Joint Winner, Best Overall Performance Development Management

WP135 (PDF) Human vs. State Security: How can Security Sector Reforms contribute to State-Building? The case of the Afghan Police Reform. Florian Weigand Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP134 (PDF) Evaluating the Impact of Decentralisation on Educational Outcomes: The Peruvian Case. Siegrid Holler-Neyra Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Management

WP133 (PDF) Democracy and Public Good Provision: A Study of Spending Patterns in Health and Rural Development in Selected Indian States. Sreelakshmi Ramachandran Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP132 (PDF) Intellectual Property Rights and Technology Transfer to Developing Countries: a Reassessment of the Current Debate Marco Valenza Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP131 (PDF) Traditional or Transformational Development? A critical assessment of the potential contribution of resilience to water services in post-conflict Sub-Saharan Africa. Christopher Martin Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies (IDHE)

WP128  (PDF) The demographic dividend in India: Gift or curse? A State level analysis on differeing age structure and its implications for India's economic growth prospects. Vasundhra Thakurd Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP127  (PDF) When Passion Dries Out, Reason Takes Control: A Temporal Study of Rebels' Motivation in Fighting Civil Wars. Thomas Tranekaer Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP126  (PDF) Micro-credit - More Lifebuoy than Ladder? Understanding the role of micro-credit in coping with risk in the context of the Andhra Pradesh crisis. Anita Kumar Best Overall Performance and Best Dissertation Development Management

WP124 (PDF) Welfare Policies in Latin America: the transformation of workers into poor people. Anna Popova Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP123  (PDF) How Wide a Net? Targeting Volume and Composition in Capital Inflow Controls. Lucas Issacharoff Best Overall Performance and Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP117 (PDF) Shadow Education: Quantitative and Qualitative analysis of the impact of the educational reform (implementation of centralized standardised testing). Nataliya Borodchuk Best Overall Performance and Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP115 (PDF) Can School Decentralization Improve Learning? Autonomy, participation and student achievement in rural Pakistan. Anila Channa Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP114 (PDF) Good Estimation or Good Luck? Growth Accelerations revisited. Guo Xu Best Overall Performance and Best Dissertation Development Studies

WP113 (PDF) Furthering Financial Literacy: Experimental evidence from a financial literacy program for Microfinance Clients in Bhopal, India. Anna Custers Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP112 (PDF) Consumption, Development and the Private Sector: A critical analysis of base of the pyramid (BoP) ventures. David Jackman Winner of the Prize for Best Disseration Development Management

WP106 (PDF) Reading Tea Leaves: The Impacy of Mainstreaming Fair Trade. Lindsey Bornhofft Moore Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP104 (PDF) Institutions Collide: A Study of "Caste-Based" Collective Criminality and Female Infanticide in India, 1789-1871. Maria Brun Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Studies

WP102 (PDF) Democratic Pragmatism or Green Radicalism? A critical review of the relationship between Free, Prior and Informed Consent and Policymaking for Mining. Abbi Buxton Joint Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP100 (PDF) Market-Led Agrarian Reform: A Beneficiary perspective of Cédula da Terra. Veronika Penciakova Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Studies

WP98 (PDF) No Business like Slum Business? The Political Economy of the Continued Existence of Slums: A case study of Nairobi. Florence Dafe Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Studies

WP97 (PDF) Power and Choice in International Trade: How power imbalances constrain the South's choices on free trade agreements, with a case study of Uruguay. Lily Ryan-Collins Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Dissertation Development Management

WP96 (PDF) Health Worker Motivation and the Role of Performance Based Finance Systems Africa: A Qualitative Study on Health Worker Motivation and the Rwandan Performance Based finance initiative in District Hospitals. Friederike Paul Joint Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Dissertation Development Management

WP95 (PDF) Crisis in the Countryside: Farmer Suicides and the Political Economy of Agrarian Distress in India. Bala Posani Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Management

WP94 (PDF) From Rebels to Politicians. Explaining Rebel-to Party Transformations after Civil War: The case of Nepal. Dominik Klapdor Winner of the Prize for Excellent Dissertation Development Management

WP92 (PDF) Guarding the State or Protecting the Economy? The Economic factors of Pakistan's Military coups. Amina Ibrahim Winner of the Prize for Best Dissertation Development Studies

WP91 (PDF) Man is the remedy of man: Constructions of Masculinity and Health-Related Behaviours among Young men in Dakar, Senegal. Sarah Helen Mathewson Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance Development Studies

Graduate programmes

134 Economics Thesis Topics: Ideas for Outstanding Writing

Writing a thesis is not an easy task. For most of the students, it can be even intimidating, especially when you do not know where to start your research.

Here, we have provided an economics thesis topics list. After all, everyone knows that choosing the right idea is crucial when writing an academic paper. In economics, it can combine history, math, social studies, politics, and numerous other subjects. You should also have solid foundations and a sound factual basis for a thesis. Without these elements, you won’t be able to master your research paper.

The issue is:

It is not always clear what could be seen as an excellent economics thesis topic. Our experts can assist you with this challenge. This list contains some outstanding examples to get you started.

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⭐ What Does a Thesis in Economics Look Like?

A good thesis in economics is a blend between an empirical paper and a theoretical one. One of the essential steps in choosing a topic in economics is to decide which one you will write.

You may write, research, analyze statistical data and other information. Or build and study a specific economic model.

Or why not both!

Here are some questions you can ask when deciding what topic to choose:

• What has already been written on this topic?
• What economic variables will my paper study?
• Where should I look for the data?
• What econometrics techniques should I use?
• What type of model will I study?

The best way to understand what type of research you have to do is to write a thesis proposal. You will most probably be required to submit it anyway. Your thesis supervisor will examine your ideas, methods, list of secondary and primary sources. At some universities, the proposal will be graded.

After you get the initial feedback, you will have a clear idea of what to adjust before writing your thesis. Only then, you’ll be able to start.

🔥 Supreme Economics Thesis Topics List

• Fast fashion in India.
• The UK housing prices.
• Brexit and European trade.
• Behavioral economics.
• Healthcare macroeconomics.
• COVID-19’s economic impact.
• Global gender wage gap.
• Commodity dependence in Africa.
• International trade – developing countries.
• Climate change and business development.

👍 Economics Bachelor’s Thesis Topics

At the U.S. Universities, an undergraduate thesis is very uncommon. However, it depends on the Department Policy.

The biggest challenge with the Bachelor’s Thesis in economics concerns its originality. Even though you are not required to conduct entirely unique research, you have to lack redundant ideas.

You can easily avoid making this mistake by simply choosing one of these topics. Also, consider visiting IvyPanda essays database. It’s a perfect palce to conduct a brainstorming session and come up with fresh ideas for a paper, as well as get tons of inspiration.

• The impact of the oil industry on the economic development of Nigeria. The oil industry is vital for the economic development of Nigeria. In this thesis, students can discuss the notion of the resource curse. Analyze the reasons why general people are not benefiting from the oil industry. Why did it produce very little change in the social and economic growth of the country?
• Sports Marketing and Advertising: the impact it has on the consumers.
• Economic opportunities and challenges of investing in Kenya .
• Economic Development in the Tourism Industry in Africa. Since the early 1990s, tourism significantly contributed to the economic growth of African countries. In this thesis, students can talk about the characteristics of the tourist sector in Africa. Or elaborate on specific countries and how their national development plans look like.
• Globalization and its significance to business worldwide .
• Economic risks connected to investing in Turkey .
• The decline in employment rates as the biggest American economy challenge .
• The economics of alcohol abuse problems. In this thesis, students can develop several essential issues. First, they can examine how poverty is connected to alcohol abuse. Second, they can see the link between alcohol consumption and productivity. To sum up, students can elaborate on the economic costs of alcohol abuse.
• Causes and solutions for unemployment in Great Britain.
• Parallel perspective on Global Economic Order: China and America. This thesis can bring a comparative analysis of the economies to a new level. China and The US are the world’s two largest economies. These two countries have a significant impact on the global economic order. So, looking at the set of institutions, policies, rules can be constructive.
• The new international economic order after COVID-19
• Financial stability of the banking sector in China.
• New Electronic Payment Services in Russia.
• The influence of culture on different entrepreneurial behaviors.
• The impact of natural cultural practices on entrepreneurial activity.
• The relationships between national culture and individual behavior.
• The main reasons for salary inequalities in different parts of the U.S.

😲 Economics Master’s Thesis Topics

Student life can be fascinating, but it comes with its challenges. One of which is selecting your Master’s thesis topic.

Here is a list of topics for a Master’s thesis in economics. Are you pursuing MPhil in Economics and writing a thesis? Use the following ideas as an inspiration for that. They can also be helpful if you are working on a Master’s thesis in financial economics.

• The impact of visual aid in teaching home economics.
• The effect of income changes in consumer behaviors in America.
• Forces behind socio-economic inequalities in the United States. This thesis can explore three critical factors for socio-economic differences in the United States. In the past 30 years, social disparities increased in the United States. Some of the main reasons are technology, trade, and institutions.
• The relationships between economic growth and international development.
• Technological innovations and their influence on green and environmental products.
• The economics of non-solar renewable energy .

• The economic consequences of terrorism . Terrorism not only takes away lives and destroys property but also widely affects the economy. It creates uncertainty in the market, increases insurance claims, slows down investment projects, and tourism. This thesis can address all of the ways in which terrorism can affect economies.
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) implementation in the Oil and Gas Industry in Africa.
• Use of incentives in behavioral economics.
• Economic opportunities and challenges of sustainable communities .
• Economics of nuclear power plants.
• Aid and financial help for emerging markets. This topic is very versatile. Students can look at both the positive and the adverse effects that funding has on the development. There are plenty of excellent examples. Besides, some theories call international help a form of neocolonialism.
• Multinational firms impact on economic growth in America .
• The effect of natural disasters on economic development in Asia.
• The influence of globalization on emerging markets and economic development.

📑 More Economics Thesis Topics: Theme

For some students, it makes more sense to center their search around a certain subject. Sometimes you have an econ area that interests you. You may have an idea about what you want to write, but you did not decide what it will be.

If that’s the case with you, then these economics thesis topics ideas are for you.

• An analysis of the energy market in Russia.
• The impact of game theory on economic development.
• The connection between minimum wage and market equilibrium.
• Gender differences in the labor market in the United States. This topic can shed light on gender differences in the labor market in the United States. In the past years, the overall inequality in labor in the markets decreased. However, there is still a lot of work that can be done.
• Economic reasons that influence the prices of oil .
• Relationship between the Lorenz curve and the Gini coefficient.
• Challenges of small businesses in the market economy.
• The changes in oil prices: causes and solutions . Universal economic principles do not always apply to the sale and purchase of the oil. The same happens with its cost. In the thesis, talk about what affects the prices. What are the solutions that can be implemented?
• The economic analysis of the impact of immigration on the American economy.

• Economic inequality as a result of globalization . Economic inequality becomes even more apparent on the global level. There is a common belief that globalization is the cause of that. Discuss what can be the solutions to these problems. This topic is vital to minimize the gap between the rich and the poor.
• The economic explanation of political dishonesty .
• Effect of Increasing Interest rates costs in Africa .
• The connection between game theory and microeconomics.
• Marketing uses in microeconomics.
• Financial liability in human-made environmental disasters.
• Banks and their role in the economy. Banks are crucial elements of any economy, and this topic covers why. You can explain how banks allow the goods and services to be exchanged. Talk about why banks are so essential for economic growth and stability.
• Inflation in the US and ways to reduce its impact.
• The connection between politics and economics.
• Income Dynamics and demographic economics.
• US Market Liquidity and macroeconomics.
• Macroeconomics and self-correction of the economy .
• The American economy, monetary policy, and monopolies .
• The importance of control in macroeconomics. One of the central topics in macroeconomics is grouped around the issue of control. It is quite reasonable that control over money and resources should become a topic of discussion.
• Analysis of Africa’s macroeconomics and its performance.
• Economics of education in developing markets.
• Problems and possible solutions for Japan macroeconomics .
• Comparative analysis of British macroeconomics concerning the US .
• Public policies and socio-economic disparities.
• The world problems through macroeconomic analysis. Indeed, macroeconomics is very complicated. There are many influences, details, and intricacies in it. However, it allows economists to use this complex set of tools to examine the world’s leading problems today.

• The connection between employment interest and money.

🤔 Development Economics

• Economics of development . This topic is very rich in content. First, explain what it is. Then pay particular attention to domestic and international policies that affect development, income distribution, and economic growth.
• The relation between development and incentive for migration.
• The impact of natural disasters on the economy and political stability of emerging markets.
• The economic consequences of population growth in developing countries.
• The role of industrialization in developing countries . The industrialization has been connected with the development. It promotes capital formation and catalyzes economic growth in emerging markets. In this thesis, you can talk about this correlation.
• Latin American economic development.
• Gender inequality and socio-economic development .
• Problems of tax and taxation in connection with economic growth.
• The economic impact of terrorism on developing markets.
• Religious decline as a key to economic development. Not everyone knows, but a lot of research has been done in the past years on the topic. It argues that decreased religious activity is connected with increased economic growth. This topic is quite controversial. Students who decide to write about it should be extra careful and polite.

👨‍💼 Behavioral Economics

• Risk Preferences in Rural South Africa.
• Behavioral Economics and Finance .
• Applied behavioral economics in marketing strategies. If you want to focus your attention on marketing, this topic is for you. Behavioral economics provides a peculiar lens to look at marketing strategies. It allows marketers to identify common behaviors and adapt their marketing strategies.
• The impact of behavioral finance on investment decisions.
• Behavioral Economics in Child Nutrition Programs in North Texas.
• Guidelines for Behavioral Economics in Healthcare Sector.
• Cognitive and behavioral theories in economics .
• Cross-cultural consumer behavior and marketing communication. Consumers are not only affected by personal characteristics, but also by the culture they are living in. This topic focuses on the extent it should determine marketing strategy and communication.
• Behavior implications of wealth and inequality.

• Optimism and pessimism for future behavior.

💼 Financial Economics

• Financial Economics for Infrastructure and Fiscal Policy .
• The use of the economic concept of human capital. Students can focus on the dichotomy between human and nonhuman capital. Many economists believe that human capital is the most crucial of all. Some approach this issue differently. Therefore, students should do their research and find where they stand on this issue.
• The analysis of the global financial crisis of 2020s. Share your thoughts, predictions, ideas. Analyze the economic situation that affects almost everyone in the world. This thesis topic will be fresh and original. It can help to start a good and fruitful conversation.
• The big data economic challenges for Volvo car.
• The connection between finance, economics, and accounting.
• Financial economics: Banks competition in the UK .
• Risk-Taking by mutual funds as a response to incentives.
• Managerial economics and financial accounting as a basis for business decisions.
• Stock market overreaction.

🌱 Agricultural Economics

• Agricultural economics and agribusiness.
• The vulnerability of agricultural business in African countries.
• Agricultural economics and environmental considerations of biofuels .
• Farmer’s contribution to agricultural social capital.
• Agricultural and resource economics. Agricultural and resource economics plays a huge role in development. They are subdivided into four main characteristics which in this topic, students can talk about: – mineral and energy resources; – soil resources, water resources; – biological resources. One or even all of them can be a focus of the thesis.
• Water as an economic good in irrigated agriculture.
• Agriculture in the economic development of Iran.
• The US Agricultural Food Policy and Production .
• Pesticides usage on agricultural products in California.

• An analysis of economic efficiency in agriculture. A lot of research has been done on the question of economic efficiency in agriculture. However, it does not mean there is no place for your study. You have to read a lot of secondary sources to see where your arguments can fit.

🤝‍Economic Sociology

• Theory, approach, and method in economics sociology.
• Economic sociology of capitalism. While economists believe in the positive effect capitalism has on the economy, the social effect is quite different. The “economic” part of the issue has been studied a lot. However, the sociology of it has been not. This thesis can be very intriguing to read.
• Political Economy and Economic Sociology.
• Gender and economic sociology .
• Progress, sociology, and economics.
• Data analysis in economics, sociology, environment .
• Economic sociology as a way to understand the human mind.
• Economic sociology of money.
• Economics, sociology, and psychology of security.
• Major principles of economic sociology. In the past decade, economic sociology became an increasingly popular field. Mainly due to it giving a new view on economics, human mind, and behavior. Besides, it explores relationships between politics, law, culture, and gender.

📚 The List of Ph.D. Topics in Economics

If you decide to go to grad school to do your Masters, you will likely end up getting a Ph.D. as well. So, with this plan in mind, think about a field that interests you enough during your Masters. Working with the same topic for both graduate degrees is easier and more effective.

This list of Ph.D. Topics in Economics can help you identify the areas you can work on.

• Occupational injuries in Pakistan and its effect on the economy. Injuries are the leading cause of the global burden of disability. Globally, Pakistan was ranked 9th populated country with a large number of unskilled workers. In this dissertation, consider the link between occupational injuries and their effects on the economy.
• The study of the Philippines’ economic development.

• Financial derivatives and climate change .
• Econometric Analysis of Financial Markets.
• Islamic Banking and Financial Markets .
• Health economics and policy in the UK.
• Health insurance: rationale and economic justification. In this dissertation, students can find different ways to explain and justify health insurance. Starting to philosophical to purely economic grounds. In the past years, there was a lot of discussion regarding the healthcare system for all. What are some of the economic benefits of that?
• Colombian economy, economic growth, and inequality.
• Benefits of mergers and acquisitions in agribusiness.
• Methods to measure financial risks when investing in Africa.
• The significance of financial economics in understanding the relationship between a country’s GDP and NDP.
• Network effects in cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrencies are not new anymore. However, it is still an original subject for a dissertation. Students can decide to choose several crypto coins and evaluate the importance of the network effect. This effect is particularly significant for Bitcoin. Explain why.
• The comparison of the Chinese growth model with the American growth model.
• An economic justification versus political expediency.
• Pollution Externalities Role in Management Economics .

📝 How to Select an Economics Thesis Topic

As your academic journey is coming to an end, it’s time to pick the right topic for your thesis. The whole academic life you were preparing to undertake this challenge.

Here is the list of six points that will help you to select an economics thesis topic:

• Make sure it is something you are genuinely interested in. It is incredibly challenging to write something engaging if you are not interested in the topic. So, choose wisely and chose what excites you.
• Draw inspiration from the previous student’s projects. A great place to start is by looking at what the previous students wrote. You can find some fresh ideas and a general direction.
• Ask your thesis advisor for his feedback. Most probably, your thesis advisor supervised many students before. They can be a great help too because they know how to assess papers. Before meeting with your professor, do some basic research, and understand what topic is about.
• Be original, but not too much. You do not want to spend your time writing about a project that many people wrote about. Your readers will not be interested in reading it, but your professors as well. However, make sure you do not pick anything too obscure. It will leave you with no secondary sources.
• Choose a narrow and specific topic. Not only will it allow you to be more original, but also to master a topic. When the issue is too broad, there is just too much information to cover in one thesis.
• Go interdisciplinary. If you find yourself interested in history, philosophy, or any other related topic, it can help you write an exceptional thesis in economics. Most of your peers may work on pure economics. Then, the interdisciplinary approach can help you to stand out among them.

Thank you for reading the article to the end! We hope this list of economics thesis topics ideas could help you to gather your thoughts and get inspired. Share it with those who may find it useful. Let us know what you think about it in the comment section below.

🔗 References

• Economics Thesis Topics List: Seminars Only
• How To Pick A Topic For Your Economics Research Project Or Master’s Thesis: INOMICS, The Site for Economists
• What Do Theses and Dissertations Look Like: KU Writing Center, the University of Kansas
• Writing Economics: Robert Neugeboren with Mireille Jacobson, University of Harvard
• Economics Ph.D. Theses: Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School, IDEAS_RePEc
• World Economic Situation and Prospects 2018: United Nations
• Undergraduate Honors Theses: Department of Economics, University of California, Berkeley
• Economics Department Dissertations Collection: Economics Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst
• Topics for Master Theses: Department of Economics, NHH, Norwegian School of Economics
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The dilemma I faced in getting Thesis proposal for my M Phil programme is taken away. Your article would be a useful guide to many more students.Thank you for your guidance.

Thanks for the feedback, John! Your opinion is very important for us!

I wants it for msc thesis

These are very helpful and concise research topics which I have spent days surfing the internet to get all this while. Thanks for making research life experience easier for me. Keep this good work up.

Thank you, Idris!

Glad to hear that! Thank you for your feedback, Idris!

Excellent research

For research

A very well written, clear and easy-to-read article. It was highly helpful. Thank you!

Thanks for your kind words! We look forward to seeing you again!

The Economics dissertation

In their final year of the Economics course , students write a dissertation on a topic of their choice. Here are some of the many questions that Christ's students have explored in their dissertations: 

• Does CEO pay structure push them to take more risks?
• Do longer-serving politicians get more 'pork' for their constituents? 
• Who do charities like Oxfam give their money to and why?   

Example dissertation

To see one example, click here for the work of Christ's alumnus Sajan Shah, who won the Faculty or Economics Adam Smith prize for Best Dissertation in 2018 for his work ' The price of free education: Extracting the school quality premium in housing using Brighton and Hove's school admission reforms '.  

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Economics Dissertation Topics

Published by Alvin Nicolas at January 11th, 2023 , Revised On April 16, 2024

The field of economics has changed entirely in recent times. Today, the field holds an extremely important place in every economy, with individual choices, spending, borrowing, production, occupations, markets, trading, employment, and a lot more being predicted and planned by economists.

Today, economists view economics from a modern and slightly different perspective than traditional economics. Different approaches in economics include perspectives like anthropology, sociology, geography, and various institutions.

Studying economics involving these perspectives provides a clearer view of the issues and problems related to the modern economic world. In contrast, focusing on the traditional economic approaches while selecting a topic will result in vague outcomes according to modern economics.

The most difficult task with respect to economics dissertations involves the  collection of data . Mostly the data required by the researcher must be in quantitative form. However, once data is collected, the researcher can focus on performing the analysis.

There are a number of economic perspectives that can be studied in detail. As your final project, you will want to select the most recent and relevant economics topic for your dissertation.

To help you get started with brainstorming for economics topic ideas, we have developed a list of the latest topics that can be used for writing your economics dissertation.

These topics have been developed by PhD-qualified writers of our team , so you can trust to use these topics for drafting your dissertation.

You may also want to start your dissertation by requesting  a brief research proposal  from our writers on any of these topics, which includes an  introduction  to the problem,  research question , aim and objectives,  literature review  along with the proposed  methodology  of research to be conducted.  Let us know  if you need any help in getting started.

Check our  example dissertations to get an idea of  how to structure your dissertation .

You can review step by step guide on how to write your dissertation.

Check our  example dissertation to get an idea of  how to structure your dissertation .

2024 Economics Dissertation Topics

Topic 1: the influence of price and brand on consumer preference during an economic recession: a case of the clothing market in greece.

Research Aim: The research will aim to examine the impact of prices and brands on consumer buying behaviour during an economic recession in Greece’s clothing market. During an economic crisis, not all types of products suffer the same consequences. During a recession, people are more sensible in their buying decisions, and they frequently continue to choose known product brands that meet their demands. The study will look at the impact of the recession on consumer purchasing preferences, taking into account variations in spending on various apparel brands based on price.

Topic 2: The financial and non-financial support of the family members in the growth of a successful entrepreneurship

Research Aim: The research will aim to investigate the importance of financial and non-financial support of family members in the growth of successful entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is a driving force in economic growth, social transformation, and organizational change. Private businesses (entrepreneurship) not only support a state’s social and economic growth but it also develops intellectual competition and innovation. Family members who are involved in business ventures can influence individuals’ goals to start new businesses, and they can also be considered as a means of economic and motivational strength.

Topic 3: The impact of transaction cost on economic development

Research Aim: The research will aim to explore the impact of transaction cost on the economic development of a country. The study will try to find the impact by using different methods and analyses. This article will investigate the difficulties of economic growth as they relate to transaction costs and how the latter produce various sorts of market failures. The study also explores several major contributions to the field of economic development, including market failure and growth barriers. Alternative perspectives on the failure of government and the market-government duality will also be examined.

Topic 4: What effect does oil price fluctuation have on business activity in oil-importing and exporting states?

Research Aim: The research will aim to find the influence of oil rate fluctuation on businesses of oil-importing and exporting countries. Change has a significant influence on the production costs of oil-importing countries and changes in pricing levels changes. At the same time, oil price variations have a significant impact on energy export profits and government budget revenues in energy-exporting economies.

Topic 5: The impact of gender inequality on work productivity and economic growth: A case study on developing countries

Research Aim: The research will aim to find the impact of gender inequality on work productivity and economic growth in developing countries. Gender inequality is not solely a concern in developing countries. Males earn more than women in practically every society. Differences in health, education, and negotiating power within marriage, on the other hand, tend to be bigger in countries with low Per capita income. Gender inequality in the office contributes to females’ lower socio-economic standing. Furthermore, such gender inequality may be associated with human resource rules and human resource related decision-making.

Topic 6: Research to identify the impacts of Coronavirus on the economy

Research Aim: This study will focus on identifying the impacts of coronavirus on the global economy.

Topic 7: Research to study the impacts of Coronavirus on the real estate sector

Research Aim: This research aims at identifying the impacts of coronavirus on the real estate sector. Is real estate a better option for investment during COVID-19?

Topic 8: Research to study the impacts of Coronavirus on the stock market

Research Aim: This research aims at identifying the impacts of coronavirus on the stock market.

Topic 9: Research to identify the impacts of Coronavirus on banking and the future of banking after the pandemic

Research Aim: This research aims at identifying the impacts of coronavirus on banking and the future of banking after the pandemic. What are the predictions? What challenges may come across? How to overcome those challenges?

Dissertation Topics on Economics 2023

Topic 1: economic expansion in bioenergy: a case study.

Research Aim: This research aims to conduct a case study on the economic expansion in bioenergy

Topic 2: Factors responsible for job creation and job destruction in the UK

Research Aim: This research aims to identify the factors responsible for job creation and job destruction in the UK.

Topic 3: Impacts of wars on the economy of both nations

Research Aim: This research aims to address how do wars impact the economy of both nations?

Topic 4: The role of banks in the economy of a country

Research Aim:  This research aims to highlight the role of Banks in the economy of a country. Students can choose any country to conduct the study.

Topic 5: Is an unhealthy country considered an emerging country?

Research Aim:  This research will answer the question: Is an unhealthy country considered a poor country?

Dissertation Topics Related to Economic Geography

Economic geography studies human economic activities with respect to various conditions such as location, distribution, production, consumption, exchange of resources, etc. Thus, studying the availability of all these resources, their development, and utilization is the main subject matter of economic geography.

In addition to studying these resources and their relationship with human economic activities, economic geography also helps study the interaction of these resources and variables with respect to nature and economic activities.

Economic geography is studied within different regions and localities in order to assess various human economic activities. Here are some economic geography dissertation topics to help you explore this field.

Topic 1: Role of local ethics and culture in shaping entrepreneurial economic development in various businesses.

Research Aim: This study will talk about the role of culture and ethics in shaping economic entrepreneurial attitudes in different fields of business.

Topic 2: Diversity in entrepreneurial approaches brought up by emigrants in the economics of a place: A critical analysis

Research Aim: This research will discuss whether entrepreneurial approaches be exported when emigrants move to a new place.

Topic 3: Assessing factors involved in facilitating knowledge transfer in a specific locality or place

Research Aim: This research will understand the various factors that play a role in transferring knowledge from one place or locality to another.

Topic 4: Economic opportunities provided within local boundaries. A case study of any specific area

Research Aim: This study will talk about the economic opportunities provided by local boundaries. This dissertation can be customised according to an area/region of your choice.

Topic 5: To discuss the role of the “European regional policy” in shaping or modifying places in the UK

Research Aim: This study will talk about the role of European regional policy in shaping and modifying UK places.

Topic 6: Location of top IT firms in the UK, the role of location on economics linked to a particular firm

Research Aim: This study will assess the economic geography of top IT firms in the UK that are linked to different firms.

Topic 7: Causes of regional diversity. Analysis and comparison between the richest and poorest places of the UK

Research Aim: This will be a comparative study between the richest and poorest places in the UK based on regional diversity.

Topic 8: Economics and expansion in bioenergy: A Case Study

Research Aim: This study will talk about economics and expansion in bioenergy, and a specific case will be under analysis.

Topic 9: Economic modifications faced by emigrants, causes and impacts

Research Aim: This research will talk about the various economic modifications that emigrants have to face and will also assess its causes and impacts.

Topic 16: A critical analysis of diversity in entrepreneurial attitudes in rural and urban areas

Research Aim: This will be a critical study that will assess diversity in entrepreneurial attitudes in both rural and urban areas.

How Can ResearchProspect Help?

ResearchProspect writers can send several custom topic ideas to your email address. Once you have chosen a topic that suits your needs and interests, you can order for our dissertation outline service which will include a brief introduction to the topic, research questions , literature review , methodology , expected results , and conclusion . The dissertation outline will enable you to review the quality of our work before placing the order for our full dissertation writing service!

Dissertation Topics on Microeconomics

This branch of economics deals with economic perspectives on an individual level. It takes into account the allocation of various resources that are limited in nature. Different theories of microeconomics can be applied to markets where different products are bought and sold out.

In order to complete your graduation program, you will have to select the right economics topic that not only interests you but is relevant in today’s world. The suggested topics for you to choose from are listed below:

Topic 1: Difference in consumer attitudes in the UK over the past 15 years – Critical analysis of customer behaviour trends.

Research Aim: This research will compare the consumer attitude in the UK over the past 15 years and will study the trends.

Topic 2: Understanding to what extent does the concept of oligopoly exists in markets of the UK – A critical analysis

Research Aim: This study will first talk about oligopoly, and will then build and critically discuss how this concept exists in the UK market.

Topic 3: Laws and their impact on British firms.

Research Aim: This study will talk about the various laws in the UK that have an impact on various industries as a whole.

Topic 4: “European regional policy” and its effects on British small and medium enterprises

Research Aim: This research will study the European regional policy and the impacts this has on SMEs in the UK.

Topic 5: To discuss specific traits of the UK innovation organisation

Research Aim:  This research will understand the various traits of UK organisations that innovate.

Topic 6: Study of the characteristics of the energy market in the UK – A microeconomic approach

Research Aim: This study will undertake a microeconomic approach in order to understand the characteristics of the energy market in the UK.

Topic 7: Common traits of the top internet technology firms in the US – Analysis of the approaches adopted by different successful technology firms

Research Aim: This research will talk about the various traits of leading internet firms in the US and will analyse their different approaches

Topic 8: How is the concept of “economic convergence” linked to salary levels in the United States? – A critical analysis

Research Aim: This study will critically discuss economic convergence and how it is linked to salary levels in the US.

Topic 9: A Discussion on the use and role of various “pricing models” in making investment decisions.

Research Aim: This research will analyze the various pricing models that companies use to make decisions with respect to their investment.

Topic 10: Analysing salary inequalities in the United States and the forces behind such inequalities? – A Critical analysis

Research Aim: This study will talk about an important issue, i.e., salary inequalities in the US, and will also discuss the various forces that drive such inequalities.

Dissertation Topics on Employment Economics

Employment is a very important aspect that is studied in economics. Employment is interconnected with other academic subjects as well and affects people’s finances, which further determines their type of relationship with their environment or society.

Moreover, with the passage of time, technological advancements in various fields have impacted the labor market, which directly influenced the employment rate.  Dissertation topics  related to the field of employment economics are listed as under:

Topic 1: Factors responsible for the job creation and job destruction in the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This research will talk about the different factors that are responsible for job creation and destruction in the United Kingdom.

Topic 2: Analysing to what extent the concept of self-employment prevails in the United Kingdom – Discuss the factors that determine it

Research Aim: This research will determine the extent to which the concept of self-employment prevails in the UK. Furthermore, the factors determining self-employment will also be explored.

Topic 3: Link between minimum wages and British employment. A critical analysis

Research Aim: This study will critically analyze the link between wages minimum wages and employment in Britain.

Topic 4: Understanding In what ways technological advancements have paved the way for a rise in British employment levels

Research Aim: This research will talk about the various ways through which technological advancements have helped increase employment in the British economy.

Topic 5: Exploring the value of labour in the United Kingdom– Skilled or unskilled labour? A Critical Analysis

Research Aim: This study will talk about the value of both types of labour, skilled and unskilled, in the UK. A critical analysis will be conducted as to which type of labour is more in demand in the economic system.

Topic 6: Analysing the levels and prevalence of self-employment in various parts of Europe. An Analysis of the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This research will discuss and analyse the levels and prevalence of self-employment in various parts across Europe. Special attention will be given to the UK in the study to understand the self-employment system.

Topic 7: In what ways does immigration affects British employment levels and productivity? Discuss

Research Aim: This research will talk about the various ways through which immigration affects British employment levels and productivity.

Topic 8: How can professional training impact British employment? Discuss

Research Aim: This study will talk about the impact of professional training on employment in the UK. The research will discuss if the impact was negative or positive.

Topic 9: Analysing the impact of gender inequality in employment on economic growth in the UK

Research Aim: This research will analyse the impact of gender inequality in employment on economic growth in the UK.

Topic 10: Economic productivity and Innovation – Are they both related? A study of the UK services industry

Research Aim: This research will help understand the relationship (if any) between economic productivity and innovation. The UK Services industry will be analyzed.

Dissertation Topics on Economic Sociology

This field refers to the study of sociological aspects from an economic perspective. Social networks are also one of the more important features in the economic world because they can contribute greatly to promoting a particular brand.

Different social gatherings are a source to highlight a particular industry, firm, and even a private setup. They can contribute greatly to building successful businesses. Following are some economic sociology dissertation topics for you to choose from:

Topic 1: Exploring Innovation Activities for the promotion of a particular firm/industry/brand

Research Aim: This research will talk about all the innovative activities that take place while promoting a brand or a company in an industry. This topic can be customised according to a brand/company of your choosing.

Topic 2: Understanding the role of families in funding a particular firm

Research Aim: This research will talk about the family funding of businesses, the whole process and how it takes place. You can choose an industry of your choice to base your dissertation on.

Topic 3: Can a blend of different cultures contribute to increasing the level of productivity? Evidence from a UK firm

Research Aim : This research will discuss how various cultures contribute to increasing productivity levels. A UK firm will be chosen for this research.

Topic 4: Social capital plays its role in the rural areas in the UK – A critical analysis

Research Aim: This research will talk about social capital and its role in the rural areas of the UK.

Topic 5: Youth as one of the biggest supports in the promotion of economic agents

Research Aim: This research will help understand the relationship (if any) between economic productivity and innovation. The UK services industry will be analysed.

Topic 6: Exploring the role of university networks in shaping entrepreneurial behaviours and actions

Research Aim: This study will help explore the role of university networks in shaping entrepreneurial actions and behaviours.

Topic 43: Role of social entrepreneurship in the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This study will talk about the role of social entrepreneurship in the UK and how it has emerged.

Topic 8: Diverse culture and productivity enhancement – How are the two related?

Research Aim: This study will talk about whether diverse culture has an impact on productivity enhancement in the UK or not.

Topic 9: Exploring the Impact of social networks on the success of Brands

Research Aim: This study will talk about the impact of social networks on the success of brands and how they impact businesses. You can choose a brand for this dissertation.

Topic 10: Understanding the ‘peer’ factor in setting up businesses

Research Aim: Setting up a business involves various factors, and an essential one is a support from peers. This research will explore this aspect of support when starting a business and the impact it has.

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Dissertation Topics on Institutional Economics

Institutional economics helps in understanding the role of institutions in shaping economic behaviour. Certain institutions promote certain values, beliefs and norms, and they impact the public in a certain way.

These institutions can affect the economics of a certain region and help shape economic life and behaviour. Institutional economics is still an emerging field. Following are some institutional economics dissertation topics that you can base your dissertation on.

Topic 1: Assessing the factors behind the power of a successful firm. How is it built?

Research Aim: This research will discuss the various factors that help companies build power in the industry and impact the economy.

Topic 2: Analysing the impact of cultural mix on the organisation of firms in the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This study will analyse the impact of diverse cultures on organisations in the UK.

Topic 3: Evaluating the role of bureaucracy in the productivity levels of the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This research will help in evaluating the role of bureaucracy on productivity levels in the UK.

Topic 4: Understanding various methods to ensure economic efficiency in the property markets of the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This study will understand the different ways through which economic efficiency is ensured in the UK property markets.

Topic 5: Impacts of transaction costs on economic development?

Research Aim: This research will evaluate how economic development is impacted by transaction costs.

Topic 6: Analysing the major forces operating behind the concept of control and ownership in the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This study will help analyse the major forces that control and own institutions in the UK and how they impact the economy.

Topic 7: Traits of British managers and investors. A Comparative analysis

Research Aim: This will be an interesting study as it will talk about the various traits of British managers and investors.

Topic 8: Role of educational aspects in entrepreneurship

Research Aim: This research will explore the role of education concerning entrepreneurship, i.e. how does education help build entrepreneurs, which in turn benefits the economy.

Topic 9: The concept of latent entrepreneurship – A comparison between the United Kingdom and Europe

Research Aim: This study will understand the concept of latent entrepreneurship by comparing the UK environment with that of Europe.

Topic 10: Is the profit of a firm dependent on its size? Evidence from the manufacturing firms in the UK

Research Aim: This research will help in understanding whether the profit of a company is dependent on the business’ size or not. The UK Manufacturing industry will be explored.

Dissertation Topics on Environmental Economics

Environment and economics share a unique and close relationship. The environment can affect economics in a good or bad way. There are various environmental economic issues that should be addressed. Following are some of the pressing issues pertaining to environmental economics that you can choose as your dissertation topic.

Topic 1: To what extent is the environment responsible for shaping business behaviours? A critical analysis

Research Aim: This research will talk about the extent to which the environment is responsible for building business behaviours.

Topic 2: Economics in relation to biodiversity and nature conservation. An evidence-based study

Research Aim: This research will discuss economics in relation to biodiversity and nature conservation.

Topic 3: Assessing the role of NGO’s and organizations to promote a healthy environment through fundraising programs

Research Aim: This research will help in assessing the role of NGOs and organisations in promoting healthy environments through various fundraising programs.

Topic 4: Willingness to pay for various recycling programs – A case study of the United Kingdom.

Research Aim : This research will help understand the different recycling programs by evaluating a UK-based case study.

Topic 5: Incentives regarding land and water management – A case study of the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This research will talk about various incentives relating to land and water management. A UK-based case study will be chosen.

Topic 6: Economic value of historical places: A critical analysis

Research Aim: This research will talk about the economic value of historical places and will present a critical analysis.

Topic 7: In which field is it cheapest to reduce or cut carbon emissions? Discuss.

Research Aim: This research will talk about the impacts of carbon emissions and will discuss in which field it will be cheapest to reduce or eliminate such emissions.

Topic 8: Ethanol production from an economic perspective. Discuss.

Research Aim: This research will help in exploring ethanol production with respect to economics.

Topic 9: Environmental improvements in regards to locational differences in communities Discuss in an economic approach

Research Aim: This research will present various environmental improvements with respect to locational differences in communities.

Topic 10: Climate change in relation to economics. Discuss

Research Aim: This research will talk about an important issue, i.e. climate change and the impact it has on economics.

Dissertation Topics on Regional Development

Economic growth can also be studied at a regional level. This field considers economic perspectives on a smaller level with a focus on trade between regions. Suggestions for dissertation topics in this field are listed as follows:

Topic 1: Evaluating the link between profit and regional development?

Research Aim: This research will evaluate the link between profit and regional development with respect to economics.

Topic 2: Assessing the “regional development policy” in the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This study will talk about the regional development policy in the UK.

Topic 3: Discussing the role of learning or knowledge gaining involved in regional development?

Research Aim: This research will explore the role of knowledge and learning that helps promote regional development.

Topic 4: Assessing the existence of location theories that contribute towards the development and understanding of regional development

Research Aim: This research will assess the existence of locational theories that help contribute towards the development and understanding of regional development.

Topic 5: Evaluating the role that technology plays in regional development? A UK case study

Research Aim: This research will evaluate the role that technology plays in promoting regional development.

Topic 6: Exploring entrepreneurship and its regional aspects in the United Kingdom

Research Aim: This research will help explore entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship network with respect to regional development in the UK.

Topic 7: Role of Institutional setups in regional development

Research Aim: This study will talk about the role of institutional setups in regional development.

Topic 8: Assessing the relationship between unemployment and entrepreneurship in the light of evidence from British relationship

Research Aim: This research will assess the relationship between unemployment and entrepreneurship in the UK.

Find 100s of dissertation topics for other research areas.

Topic 9: In what ways the UK and the European firms are different in terms of innovation – A critical analysis

Research Aim: This research will help in understanding the various ways in which the UK and European firms are different with respect to innovation.

Topic 10: Assessing the role of regional co-operation in developing sustainable advantage

Research Aim: This research will help in assessing the role of regional cooperation in developing sustainable advantage amongst regions

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Important Notes

As a student of economics looking to get good grades, it is essential to develop new ideas and experiment on existing economics theories – i.e., to add value and interest in your research topic.

The field of economics is vast and interrelated to so many other academic disciplines like civil engineering ,  construction ,  law , engineering management , healthcare , mental health , artificial intelligence , tourism , physiotherapy , sociology , management , marketing and nursing . That is why it is imperative to create a project management dissertation topic that is articular, sound, and actually solves a practical problem that may be rampant in the field.

We can’t stress how important it is to develop a logical research topic; it is the basis of your entire research. There are several significant downfalls to getting your topic wrong; your supervisor may not be interested in working on it, the topic has no academic creditability, the research may not make logical sense, there is a possibility that the study is not viable.

This impacts your time and efforts in  writing your dissertation  as you may end up in the cycle of rejection at the very initial stage of the dissertation. That is why we recommend reviewing existing research to develop a topic, taking advice from your supervisor, and even asking for help in this particular stage of your dissertation.

Keeping our advice in mind while developing a research topic will allow you to pick one of the best economics dissertation topics that not only fulfil your requirement of writing a research paper but also adds to the body of knowledge.

Therefore, it is recommended that when finalizing your dissertation topic, you read recently published literature to identify gaps in the research that you may help fill.

Remember- dissertation topics need to be unique, solve an identified problem, be logical, and can also be practically implemented. Take a look at some of our sample economics dissertation topics to get an idea for your own dissertation.

How to Structure your Economics Dissertation

A well-structured dissertation can help students to achieve a high overall academic grade.

• A Title Page
• Acknowledgments
• Declaration
• Abstract: A summary of the research completed
• Table of Contents
• Introduction : This chapter includes the project rationale, research background, key research aims and objectives, and the research problems to be addressed. An outline of the structure of a dissertation  can also be added to this chapter.
• Literature Review :  This chapter presents relevant theories and frameworks by analysing published and unpublished literature available on the chosen research topic, in light of  research questions  to be addressed. The purpose is to highlight and discuss the relative weaknesses and strengths of the selected research area while identifying any research gaps. Break down of the topic, and key terms can have a positive impact on your dissertation and your tutor.
• Methodology:  The  data collection  and  analysis  methods and techniques employed by the researcher are presented in the Methodology chapter which usually includes  research design, research philosophy, research limitations, code of conduct, ethical consideration, data collection methods, and  data analysis strategy .
• Findings and Analysis:  Findings of the research are analysed in detail under the Findings and Analysis chapter. All key findings/results are outlined in this chapter without interpreting the data or drawing any conclusions. It can be useful to include  graphs ,  charts, and  tables in this chapter to identify meaningful trends and relationships.
• Discussion  and  Conclusion: The researcher presents his interpretation of results in this chapter, and states whether the research hypothesis has been verified or not. An essential aspect of this section is to establish the link between the results and evidence from the literature. Recommendations with regards to implications of the findings and directions for the future may also be provided. Finally, a summary of the overall research, along with final judgments, opinions, and comments, must be included in the form of suggestions for improvement.
• References:  Make sure to complete this in accordance with your University’s requirements
• Bibliography
• Appendices:  Any additional information, diagrams, graphs that were used to  complete the dissertation  but not part of the dissertation should be included in the Appendices chapter. Essentially, the purpose is to expand the information/data.

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Home > BUSINESS > ECONOMICS > ECONOMICS_ETD

Theses and Dissertations

Dissertations from 2024 2024.

ESSAYS IN APPLIED ECONOMICS , Jiantao Ma

Essays on the Industrial Organization of Recreational Cannabis , Joshua Scott

Dissertations from 2023 2023

Essays on the Economics of Health and Education , Thao Bui

Dissertations from 2022 2022

Applications of Applied Economics Utilizing Geographic Information Systems Data and Regression Discontinuity Designs , Edward Powell Seyler

Dissertations from 2020 2020

Socio-Eonomic Impact of Immigration and Diversity in the U.S. , Peter Gingeleskie

Agricultural Policies and Economic Development in Vietnam , Kien Le

Essays on the Economics of Education , My Tra Nguyen

Three Essays on the Economics of Education , Tianheng Wang

Dissertations from 2019 2019

Essays on the Chinese Economy , Fan Duan

Essays on Education and Crime , Swarup Joshi

Effects of U.S. Financial Regulations on Labor Markets , Anindo U. Sarker

Essays on Interplay Between Economics and Culture , Ishita Tripathi

Dissertations from 2018 2018

Essays on Health Economics: The Impact of Public Policy on Health and Labor Market Outcomes , Grace Ellis Arnold

The Impact of Cultural Attitudes on Economic Outcomes and the Political Behavior of Blacks , Jhacova Williams

Essays on the Impact of Parents' Investment and School Curriculum on Educational Outcomes in China , Han Yu

Essays on Estimation for Nonlinear Spatial Models , Xiaoyu Zhou

Dissertations from 2017 2017

Essays on the Impact of Education on Economic Outcomes in a Developing Country , Omer Bahadir Dursun

Essays on Economic Growth In India , Sujana Kabiraj

Essays in Health and Public Economics , Sara Oloomi

Essay on Incentives, Economic Conditions, and Human Capital Formation , Masayuki Onda

Dissertations from 2016 2016

Essays on the Externalities of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act of India , Satadru Das

Essays in Economics of Institutions and Culture , Luiza Valeriyevna Pogorelova

Essays on Regional Economic Growth in China , Ting Wang

Dissertations from 2015 2015

Essays in Labor Economics , Sukriye Elif Filiz

Essays on Corruption , Chandan Kumar Jha

Essays on Sub-national Economic Growth: Evidence from A Global Sample , Dachao Ruan

A Bayesian Approach to Small Area Estimation of Health Insurance Coverage , Zhengjia Sun

Dissertations from 2014 2014

Essays on Poverty and Infant Health , Deokrye Baek

Economic inequality and marriage formation , Xue Li

Essays on technology and international trade , Xianliang Tian

Essays on incentives, economic conditions, and educational choices , Gregory Brian Upton Jr.

Dissertations from 2013 2013

Strategic interaction and social networks , Quqiong He

Essays on the impact of income on family and child well-being , Christian Werner Raschke

On contests with complementarities , Matthew Wiser

Dissertations from 2012 2012

Investigating the role of genetic variation in long run economic outcomes , Charles Justin Cook

Regional effects of monetary policy , Taehee Han

Assessing cost efficiency and economies of scale in the European banking system, a Bayesian stochastic frontier approach , Ana Maria Ichim

Essays on social networks , Emre Unlu

Dissertations from 2011 2011

Essays on the economics of crime , Duha T. Altindag

Essays in health economics and public policy , Colin Darren Cannonier

Monetary policy shocks: analyzing the quasi-narrative approach , Daniel Matthew Groft

The Economics of Discrimination in the Court System: Police, Technology, and Their Interaction , Sarah Marx Quintanar

Essays on risk and volatility , Junyue Xu

Essays on the Random Parameters Logit Model , Tong Zeng

Dissertations from 2010 2010

A kernel weighted smoothed maximum score estimator for the endogenous binary choice model , Jerome Krief

Productivity growth of US states , Bibhudutta Panda

Dissertations from 2009 2009

Appropriate technology, human capital, and economic development , Beatrice Farkas

Dissertations from 2008 2008

Essays on models for financial volatility , Mihaela Oana Craioveanu

Neglecting parameter changes in GARCH option pricing models and VAR , Burak Hurmeydan

Technology diffusion and total factor productivity growth , Subaran Roy

Dissertations from 2007 2007

The Hausman test, and some alternatives, with heteroskedastic data , Viera Chmelarova

The microeconomics of international price dispersion , Ozlem Inanc

The role of networks in labor markets , Nongnuch Soonthornchawakan

Dissertations from 2006 2006

Income inequality and economic growth , Nor Azam Abdul Razak

Essays on group lending: evidence from Jordan , Moh'd Al-Azzam

Essays on the Bayesian estimation of stochastic cost frontier , Xia Zhao

Dissertations from 2005 2005

Three essays in labor and health economics , Christopher K. Coombs

Health and Growth , Petia Stoianova Stoytcheva

Risk properties of a Stein-like estimator for multinomial choice models , Vera Alexandrova Tabakova

Dissertations from 2003 2003

An empirical investigation of tax policy in G-7 countries , Kerim Peren Arin

Empirical analysis of economic growth , Winford Henderson Masanjala

Marginal income tax rates and the U.K. economy: three essays , Eon-Seon Rym

Dissertations from 2002 2002

Essays on international trade and Bayesian forecasting , Dennis S. Edwards

An empirical analysis of the macroeconomic effects of government purchases , Eric Horent

Essays on the Bayesian inequality restricted estimation , Asli K. Ogunc

Theses/Dissertations from 2001 2001

An Economic Analysis of the Allocation of Research Funding at the National Institutes of Health. , Janet B. Daniel

Essays on Semiparametric Estimation. , Kang-sun Lee

Theses/Dissertations from 2000 2000

Three Essays on Political Economy and International Trade. , Far-tsair Lai

Theses/Dissertations from 1999 1999

An Empirical Examination of Maximum Entropy Estimation. , Randall Charles Campbell

Essays on Identification of Monetary Policy Shocks in Vector Autoregressive Models: Alternative Identification Schemes and Lag Structures. , Keuk-soo Kim

Theses/Dissertations from 1998 1998

The Effects of Fiscal Structure, Leviathan, and Interdependent Demands on Local Public Spending Behavior. , Rebecca J. Campbell

An Analysis of Reimbursement Methodologies and Cost Containment Policies in Medicaid Inpatient Hospital and Pharmaceuticals. , Etienne Elmer Pracht

Theses/Dissertations from 1997 1997

An Empirical Examination of the Grant Induced Price and Income Effects of Lump-Sum Intergovernmental Aid. , Peter Michael Mitias

Theses/Dissertations from 1996 1996

Bureaucrats, Bureaucracy and Utility Maximization: Empirical Evidence From Taiwan. , Chinkun Chang

The Effects of AMA Contributions in the United States Senate: An Analysis of Roll Call Votes, 1979--1992. , Karen Gutermuth

Three Essays on VAR Techniques. , Omer Ozcicek

Theses/Dissertations from 1993 1993

Forecasting the Economic Effects of Produced Waters Discharge Regulations on Oil and Gas Activity in Coastal Louisiana. , Allen Paul Dupont

Theses/Dissertations from 1992 1992

Three Essays on International Linkages of the Korean Economy. , Jai-ki Lee

A Regional Market Model for Construction Aggregate Materials. , Alicia Norma Rambaldi

Theses/Dissertations from 1991 1991

Three Essays in the Economics of the Physician Firm. , William David Bradford III

Three Essays on Sampling Techniques: Small Sample Performances of Estimators and Predictors. , Parisun Chantanahom

An Empirical Analysis of Ricardian Equivalence and Macroeconomic Interdependence in Korea. , Jang Cheon Jin

Theses/Dissertations from 1990 1990

Small Sample Properties of Estimators and Test Statistics in Nonlinear Regression: The Box-Cox Transformation. , Minbo Kim

Theses/Dissertations from 1989 1989

Toward the Inclusion of Environmental Factors in the Concept and Measure of National Income. , George Edward Foy Jr

Three Essays on the Determinants and Effects of Public Sector Bargaining Laws. , Melissa S. Waters

Theses/Dissertations from 1988 1988

Stein-Like Estimation and Inference. , Lee Chester Adkins

Three Essays on the Welfare Effects of Factor Immobility and Price Uncertainty for a Country Experiencing Growth, Entering a Customs Union and Giving or Receiving a Unilateral Transfer. , Carolyn Margaret Landry

Theses/Dissertations from 1986 1986

Effect of Ownership Structure on Efficiency: a Comparative Analysis of Various Organizational Forms (Stochastic Frontier, Allocative Efficiency). , Daniel Omer Cote

Theses/Dissertations from 1985 1985

An Empirical Inquiry Into the Variation of Interest Rates, 1959-1983 (Time Series Analysis, Spectral, Money Supply, Inflation Rate). , Umit Erol

Alternative Regimes of Common Property Exploitation for Manganese Nodules and Their Market Structure Impact. , Akbar Barzegar Marvasti

Determinants of the Money Supply in the United Kingdom, West Germany, and Canada (Central Bank, Reaction Function, Inflation, Fiscal, Monetary Policy). , Deep Shikha

Theses/Dissertations from 1984 1984

The Habitat and Cost of Production of Domestic Petroleum Resources. , John Daniel Grace

Stewardship of Creation: Some Implications for Economic Theory and Policy. , John Harlan Mcdonald

Female Labor Force Participation and Fertility in Nigeria: a Study of Lagos. , Amon Okechukwu Okpala

Theses/Dissertations from 1979 1979

A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis of the Relationship Between Fiscal Policy and the Money Supply. , William Douglas Mcmillin

Theses/Dissertations from 1976 1976

An Economic Evaluation of Vocational Rehabilitation in Louisiana. , Robert Charles Brown

A Disaggregate Model of the Automobile Market: the Demand for Cars of Different Sizes. , Rodney Lee Carlson

Frictional, Structural, and Cyclical Factors in Louisiana Unemployment. , Jeffrey Alan Reed

Theses/Dissertations from 1975 1975

An Economic Analysis of Interregional Migration in Louisiana and Its Policy Implications for Population Distribution. , Koong-lian Kao

Theses/Dissertations from 1974 1974

An Economic Analysis of Governmental Exchange. , Ralph William Lange

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• Dissertation Example

A dissertation shows the student's capability and academic skills which they have learned throughout the course of their academic history.

Writing a good economics dissertation can be difficult, requiring a deep knowledge of economic theory, empirical research methods, and analytical procedures.

University students use various approaches for their final economics thesis, which depends on the dissertation topic they select. You can find an interesting economics dissertation topic below;

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Also, our qualified writers and researchers can provide economics dissertation help to get the best grades.

Example: 1   Analysing Implications of the Most Economically Advantageous Tender Meat

Example: 2   Intervention of Online Banking in Traditional Banking

Note : Below is a complete guide with some more examples and tips for you to ace the skill of dissertation writing in economics.

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Economics Dissertation Examples

If you're struggling to locate the greatest economics thesis examples of 2023, here are a few suggestions.

PhD Economics Dissertation Examples

• An Econometric Analysis of the Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Economic Growth in the United Kingdom
• A Comparative Study of the Effectiveness of Fiscal and Monetary Policy in Managing Inflation in Developed Economies
• The Role of Innovation in Economic Growth: A Case Study of the Biotechnology Industry in the United Kingdom and Europe
• The Determinants of Income Inequality in Advanced Economies: A Cross-Country Analysis Using Panel Data

Masters Economics Dissertation Examples

• The impact of International Trade on Economic Growth in Developing Countries: A Case Study
• An Analysis of the Determinants of Healthcare Spending in the United Kingdom Using Econometric Techniques
• The Economic Implications of Income Inequality in the UK: A Study of Regional Disparities and Policy Solutions
• The Impact of Brexit on the UK Economy: An Analysis of the Trade and Investment Implications

Undergraduate Economics Dissertation Examples

• An Econometric Analysis of Unemployment in the UK: A Case Study of The Post-Financial Crisis Period
• A Study of the Relationship Between Education and Economic Growth in the UK: An Analysis of Regional Disparities
• An Analysis of the Impact of Immigration on the UK Economy: A Case Study of the Hospitality Industry
• The Economic Implications of Climate Change in the UK: An Analysis of Policy Responses and Their Effectiveness

Economics Dissertation Example: A Case Study

Topic:  An Analysis of the Impact of Immigration on the UK Economy: A Case Study of the Hospitality Industry

This study examines the impact of immigration on the UK economy, specifically the hospitality industry, using a case study approach. The connection between immigration and the economy undergoes investigation using data from surveys, interviews, and industry reports. According to the findings, immigration benefits the economy by boosting labour availability, filling skill gaps, and contributing to economic growth. However, it also has negative consequences, such as putting downward pressure on salaries for low-skilled workers. The paper finishes with policy implications and future research directions.

Primary Aims & Objective

This study aims to review existing literature on immigration and the UK economy, with a focus on the hospitality industry. It collects and analyzes data on the impact of immigration on the labour market, wages, and economic growth. The findings of this study inform policy decisions and future research in this area.

Literature Review

The literature review shows that immigration has both positive and negative impacts on the economy. In the hospitality industry, it has been found that over 40% of the workforce is made up of non-UK nationals due to a shortage of domestic workers and the willingness of migrant workers to take on low-skilled jobs. Studies have found that migrant workers are more flexible and adaptable than domestic workers, helping to address labour shortages and improve the quality of service provided. However, there are also potential drawbacks, such as downward pressure on wages for domestic workers in the industry, which can lead to a race to the bottom in terms of wages and conditions. It is important to consider the pros and cons of immigration when conducting a comprehensive analysis of the impact of different economies.

Methodology

This study used a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis methods. A systematic review of the literature on immigration and the UK economy was conducted, followed by quantitative data collected through a survey of businesses operating in the hospitality industry. Qualitative data is collected through in-depth interviews with key stakeholders such as business owners, employees, and industry experts. The data collected is analyzed using a thematic analysis approach, with themes and patterns in the data identified and the findings used to draw conclusions about the impact of immigration on the US economy and the hospitality family, as well as any implications for policy and practice.

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Why is economics dissertation so important.

A dissertation in economics is a major piece of work for any student of economics. It is often authored by university students obtaining a degree in economics. It allows students to exhibit their knowledge of the subject area and their capacity to do original research.

Below are some of the important aspects to be noted;

A dissertation in economics provides an opportunity to contribute to the field of economics. Research enables students to identify knowledge gaps and contribute insights. This also contributes to the optimization or evolution of the global economic structure.

A well-written economics dissertation can improve professional academic prospects by displaying research and critical thinking abilities. It can also lead to additional academic studies such as a PhD or employment in various professions such as the public sector, non-profits, and international organisations, as well as in academic roles.

Tips & Techniques for Writing a Quality Economics Dissertation

As a result, creating a high-quality economics dissertation needs meticulous planning, research, and writing.

Here are some pointers and approaches to help you write a high-quality dissertation:

1.   Choose a Focused Research Topic in Economics

An excellent economics dissertation requires a specific research topic . More specific subjects can help you find the best results and increase your chances of standing out in the best dissertation. As a result, the study topic must be specialized, relevant, and significant to the discipline of economics.

2.   Conduct an In-Depth Economics Literature Review

A thorough literature review is required to establish a basis for your research topic and hypothesis. It should be thorough and up-to-date and critically assess the available research on your issue.

3.   Use Appropriate Research Methods for Economics Dissertation

The economics research methodologies can help you decide which approach suits your dissertation. Your research methodology should be relevant to your study issue and hypothesis. You should carefully analyse each method's strengths and shortcomings before selecting the approaches that are most likely to deliver valid and trustworthy findings.

4.   Analyse and Interpret Economics Research Data

Analyzing and interpreting data is a crucial step in writing a quality economics dissertation. For this, you have to organize data, interpret results, consider any limitations, and use visuals such as graphs or charts to draw conclusions. These tips can help you organize data in a meaningful way, run regression analyses, calculate descriptive statistics, and test hypotheses.

Learn How to Use Primary and Secondary Data for Research

5.   Write a Clear and Concise Economics Dissertation

Effective academic writing is clear and concise. Avoid unnecessary technical terms and ensure your writing is simple enough for the best research paper.

Several approaches might be taken when writing an economics dissertation. Every writing style is determined by the method and research used.

You can choose any relevant methodology for your dissertation based on your topic. Yet, it is understood that each topic has planned research, analysis, and techniques. You can browse our various topics and choose any of them. Writing the methods section, in particular, can be difficult. But, examining how students addressed this area will help you understand what's required and how to arrange your ideas.

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Economics Dissertation Topics: 25+ Examples You Can Explore

by  Antony W

June 28, 2024

If you’re looking for some economics dissertation topics to help you brainstorm your topic idea, this guide is for you.

Popularized by the likes of Adam Smith as far back as 1770, Economics is a subject that deals with making the right decisions in the face of uncertainty and scarcity.

As much as it dates back to the medieval scholastics, economics still focuses largely on human choices, borrowing habits, markets and trade, assets’ pricing, human behavior in relation to economic decisions, taxes, and consumption.

Existing literature on economics attempt to give the best possible explanations to problems human beings face. Still, there’s need for more research in this field because new areas continue to emerge in economics, especially since technology continues to advance enhance transformation and increase the rate of globalization.

Given how wide this field is, there are dozens of economic dissertation topics that you can choose to explore in your research project. This guide is a list of some of the topic ideas that you might want to consider for the project.

25+ List of Economic Dissertation Topics

Economics is a wide field with different areas of exploration. This guide looks at some of the areas economics, each with a few examples of dissertation topics that you can investigate.

Dissertation Topics on Regional Development

Your focus on regional development is to study regions as small economies with the aim of understanding their circumstances and outcomes. You’ll examine how internal regional economies operate and evaluate how they relate to other regions.

Some interesting topics that you can investigate in your dissertation in this area are as follows:

• Business development and profitability in the region What are the underlying variables in this relationship?
• Natural resource comparative advantage and regional development
• There are differences in the forms and levels of entrepreneurship and unemployment across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
• The impact of regional policy on start-ups on regional development: more new enterprises or better existing ones?
• Entrepreneurial networks’ contribution to regional development.

Also Check: Custom Economics Dissertation Writing Help

Dissertation Topic Ideas on Economic Sociology

Examine the sociological aspects that affect economic indicators and explain how they relate with the social outcome.

Some great topics that you might want to consider for your dissertation project if you choose to focus on this area include:

• The function of social networks in facilitating innovation in mature sectors.
• How can universities take advantage of social networks to induce entrepreneurial action among their students?
• Exploring the disparities between trust and power in local productive systems.
• Is there a straight line between economic and social development?
• In the United Kingdom, traditional industry development is fueled by social contracts and peer pressure.
• Family support, both financial and non-financial, in the development of successful entrepreneurship.
• The convergence of economic systems as a result of globalization and its implications for social development in developed, emerging, and developing economies.

Related: Technology Dissertation Topics

Economic Geography Topics for Dissertation Project

This area focuses on economical outcome in relation to geographical location. You’ll evaluate patterns and trends in activities and human behavior to explain what shapes the cultural and economic landscapes.

Here are some topic ideas to consider if you want to write a dissertation project in this area:

• The influence of local and regional cultures on entrepreneurship and economic growth.
• Is there a link between established enterprises that dominate small towns and local cultural factors?
• The likelihood impact of Brexit on policy outcomes that shape the local economy in UK cities.
• The economic geography of recession. Difference between regional and city economics in the UK.
• Understanding educational progression at the local level: A comparison of cities in the UK’s north and south.
• How COVID has influenced house price volatility in various UK cities.

Institutional Economics Dissertation Topics

This area deals with social entities linked to production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Given that this is a broad area, you might have to study related disciplines such as psychology, economic history , management and business studies cognitive and brain science, and behavioral economics and finance. 

• Here are some dissertation topic ideas that you should consider:
• How can transaction costs economics account for inter-firm collaboration?
• Economic freedom institutions and policies have different effects on income and growth.
• How does the cultural mix affect the organization of enterprises in the United Kingdom?

Also Check: Social Work Dissertation Topics

Dissertation Topics That Deals With Employment Economics

Given that employment is a key concept in the production of goods and services, it’s important to study the rate at which organizations hire talents and the compensations offered.

Below are some topic ideas that you can explore in this area of economics: 

• The influence of gender disparity in employment on economic growth and labor productivity.
• What effect does technological innovation have on British unemployment? Evidence from the industrial industry.
• The impact of economic cycles on employment, workforce productivity, and innovation: a case study of the manufacturing sector

Macroeconomics Dissertation Topics

Macroeconomics is an interesting field that examines an economy as a whole. In this division, the focus is on how markets interact with each other to generate aggregate variables. You’ll study national income, gross domestic product, employment, inflation, global economy, and financial markets.

Here are some interesting topics that you can explore in your dissertation if you’re studying macroeconomics:

• COVID and the economic downturn: Will the impact be as severe as the 2007 financial downturn?
• The global economic downturn and the causes that lead to it.
• How will the Greek financial crisis affect the EU economy in the long run?

Microeconomic Dissertation Topics

In microeconomics, the focus is on the interaction between demand and supply in different markets. You’ll study and interpret how economic agents behave in different settings and identify the incentives they’re more than likely to face by building modes and using data to conduct your research and experiments.

Here are some interesting topics to cover in this area:

• Does the size of a company impact its profits? Evidence from UK telecommunications companies.
• Are UK corporations more inventive than their European counterparts?
• Is the retail industry in the United Kingdom becoming less oligopolistic? An examination of the effects of new supermarkets.
• The development of household consumption in the United Kingdom during the previous decade: Consumer behavior trends.

About the author 

Antony W is a professional writer and coach at Help for Assessment. He spends countless hours every day researching and writing great content filled with expert advice on how to write engaging essays, research papers, and assignments.

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Economics Dissertation Topics

Microeconomics.

• To what extent does the concentration in the industry determine individual firm profitability?
• How does competition in the market determine corporate strategies for growth?
• Impact of the covid pandemic on the market entry modes practised by corporations.
• How do models of funding of non-profit organisations affect their sustainability?
• Privatization of Public Enterprises and its implications on economic policy and development
• Fraud and Abuse in Non-profit Organizations
• Antitrust Practices and Market Power in the UK
• Effect of antitrust regulations on the performance of the IT sphere in the UK
• Antitrust regulation of horizontal mergers
• Challenges for the industry from digitalisation
• How changes in industrial structure affected economic growth in China?
• How can Brexit change industrial policies in the UK?
• Effect of covid on the entertainment industry
• Perspectives of the alternative energy industry over the world
• Contribution of smart materials to the development of the construction industry
• Transformation of consumer tastes over the last two decades
• How do local culture and mentality affect entrepreneurial behaviour and inclination to running a business?
• How does the behaviour of single-person households differ from the behaviour of couple-based households?
• Product life cycle in the era of digitalisation
• Influence of IT on product development
• Crowd funding as a driver of product development
• How did Covid-19 affect economic inequality?
• Dynamics of the Gini index as an indicator of income distribution
• Forces behind income inequality in the UK
• Is economic equilibrium attainable in the modern world?
• How will equilibrium change after the covid-19 pandemic
• The effect of trade liberalisation on general economic equilibrium
• Impact of the informal sector of the economy on welfare
• Potential consequences of the unconditional income introduction
• Effect of covid-19 on income distribution in the UK
• Collective decision-making in social networks
• Collective decision making on mergers and acquisitions
• Analysis of decision making on tourism destinations
• How uncertainty affects decision making?
• Career perspectives in the knowledge economy
• The effect of covid on uncertainty in a particular market
• Job search from the perspective of behavioural economics
• The role of emotions in personal investing strategies
• What drives customers to change mobile operators?

Macroeconomics

• How do demand and supply control market forces in the UK?
• Should the neoclassical growth model be revised in conditions of the modern world?
• How does covid affect aggregate spending in the UK?
• Do interest rates affect consumption in the UK?
• Does consumption depend on the country’s currency exchange rate?
• What industries were hit by covid most of all in terms of production?
• Do consumer prices move synchronously in EU countries under the regime of inflation targeting?
• What counter-cyclical measures can help to mitigate economic turmoil?
• How do oil prices affect business activities in oil importing and oil-exporting countries?
• How do interest rates affect investment activities?
• Analysis of money supply in developing and developed economies
• Is interest rates an effective instrument of inflation control in developing countries?
• Forward Guidance as an Instrument of Monetary Policy: Experiences and Prospects
• Does money supply influence rates of economic growth?
• Is austerity an appropriate instrument of reducing national debt?
• Influence of political situation on macroeconomic regulation in the UK.
• How do macroeconomic policies affect capital structure of firms?
• How do recommendations of international organisations (WB, WTO, IMF) affect macroeconomic policies of developing countries?
• The use of big data in behavioural economics at the macrolevel
• Public policy formulation through the lens of behavioural economics
• How to bridge the gap between the theory and practice of behavioural macroeconomics?

International Economy

• International trade as a factor of growth of developing economies
• The effect of IT on restructuring international trade
• How IT progress changed international value chains
• How did covid affect international business activities?
• The most prospective developing markets for international business
• Tendencies in international factor movements over the last decade
• Are there preconditions for creating new currency unions anywhere in the world?
• Latest tendencies in international finance: liberalisation or restrictions?
• Is the current global financial system viable?
• The most prospective regional trade unions
• What are the most attractive destinations for FDI right now?
• The impact of FDI on economic growth in developing countries
• How will the inauguration of Joe Biden change the US-China relations?
• Macroeconomic drivers of local armed conflicts
• Comparison of macroeconomic structure of the US and China
• The impact of globalisation on poverty
• Does IT affect poverty in the global scale?
• How does globalisation influence corruption in the global scale?

Financial Economics

• Reaction of financial markets to covid-19
• How mutual funds change their risk-taking strategies depending on different incentives
• How did financial markets react to the Biden win?
• How FinTech companies affect the sphere of financial services
• The latest accomplishments in the sphere of financial engineering
• How IT changes competition in the sphere of financial services
• Has covid changed corporate governance practices in the UK?
• The effect of corporate governance procedures on capital structure in developing countries
• Does IT progress influence companies’ investment in R&D?
• Behavioural finance and its influence on investing decisions
• Is behavioural finance able to completely explain investment decisions?
• How personal characteristics of an investor explain their investment decisions
• Patterns in spending of single-person households and couple households
• Has covid changed inclination to saving among households?
• The role of mediators in the mortgage market

Labour and Demographic Economics

• Economic effects of changes in demographic structure
• The relationship between the number of children and family wellbeing in developing countries
• Does the child-free movement have a real impact on demographic situation in the UK?
• Does Affirmative Action Reduce Gender Discrimination in the Labor Market? Recent Evidence for Developing Countries
• Has covid changed the demand for labour in the EU?
• Digitalisation and changes in labour market
• The influence of marital status on income
• How does marital status impacts labour force structure?
• What are the reasons behind regional wage inequality in the EU.
• Influence of uberisation on labour force structure.
• The demand for refugee labour force in the EU.
• Benefits and disadvantages of being self-employed
• Strategic HR management and trade unions
• A critical analysis of collective bargaining in the context of the UK
• Do all participants of the single market have the same collective bargaining conditions?
• The influence of regional disparity of income on labour mobility
• How has covid changed unemployment patterns in the UK?
• What is the contribution of immigrant workers to GDP of the UK?
• Differences in labour standards between top-5 European football leagues
• An overview of labour laws in the tourist sector across EU countries
• UK labour regulations: drawbacks to be amended in the future

Development Economics and Innovation

• What are the most relevant indicators of economic development?
• The influence of population growth on developing economies: case study of India.
• Exploring the relationship between migration and economic development
• How do land regulations affect the pace of development in developing countries?
• Ecovillages: regulation and development prospects
• What are the residential location preferences of the new generation of millennials?
• Instruments of funding innovations
• Issues of protecting intellectual property rights of start-ups
• Impact of technological change on productivity in the manufacturing industry
• How does trade openness affects aggregate productivity of the economy? On the sample of Australia
• What affects productivity in the long run?
• The impact of structural change on productivity in developing economies
• Economic development in Russia: effects of privatisation
• Economic implications of climate change in developing countries
• Economy wide effect of free trade agreements: the case of developing countries

Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics, Environmental and Ecological Economics

• The effect of technology on productivity of the agricultural sector in developing countries.
• How do labour force flows affect agricultural sector performance in an emerging economy?
• Managing livestock farm as a business: issues and benefits
• Sustainable management practices in fish industry
• Benefits and methods of energy conservation
• Influence of renewable energy sources: economic, social and environmental aspects
• Management of non-renewable sources in the context of Germany.
• How does depletion of resources affect the UK economy?
• Methods of monitoring and control of non-renewable resources
• What is the potential of the solar energy in the world market of energy?
• Opportunities, benefits and drawbacks of alternative energy sources
• What are the main sources of risk in the sphere of renewable energy?
• Water management and conservation policies: A comparative study of the UK and Malaysia.
• The influence of climate policies on economic development.
• How can innovations contribute to the development of an eco-friendly economy?

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Dissertation examples

Listed below are some of the best examples of research projects and dissertations from undergraduate and taught postgraduate students at the University of Leeds We have not been able to gather examples from all schools. The module requirements for research projects may have changed since these examples were written. Refer to your module guidelines to make sure that you address all of the current assessment criteria. Some of the examples below are only available to access on campus.

• Undergraduate examples
• Taught Masters examples

Harvard University Theses, Dissertations, and Prize Papers

The Harvard University Archives ’ collection of theses, dissertations, and prize papers document the wide range of academic research undertaken by Harvard students over the course of the University’s history.

Beyond their value as pieces of original research, these collections document the history of American higher education, chronicling both the growth of Harvard as a major research institution as well as the development of numerous academic fields. They are also an important source of biographical information, offering insight into the academic careers of the authors.

Spanning from the ‘theses and quaestiones’ of the 17th and 18th centuries to the current yearly output of student research, they include both the first Harvard Ph.D. dissertation (by William Byerly, Ph.D . 1873) and the dissertation of the first woman to earn a doctorate from Harvard ( Lorna Myrtle Hodgkinson , Ed.D. 1922).

Other highlights include:

• The collection of Mathematical theses, 1782-1839
• The 1895 Ph.D. dissertation of W.E.B. Du Bois, The suppression of the African slave trade in the United States, 1638-1871
• Ph.D. dissertations of astronomer Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin (Ph.D. 1925) and physicist John Hasbrouck Van Vleck (Ph.D. 1922)
• Undergraduate honors theses of novelist John Updike (A.B. 1954), filmmaker Terrence Malick (A.B. 1966),  and U.S. poet laureate Tracy Smith (A.B. 1994)
• Undergraduate prize papers and dissertations of philosophers Ralph Waldo Emerson (A.B. 1821), George Santayana (Ph.D. 1889), and W.V. Quine (Ph.D. 1932)
• Undergraduate honors theses of U.S. President John F. Kennedy (A.B. 1940) and Chief Justice John Roberts (A.B. 1976)

What does a prize-winning thesis look like?

If you're a Harvard undergraduate writing your own thesis, it can be helpful to review recent prize-winning theses. The Harvard University Archives has made available for digital lending all of the Thomas Hoopes Prize winners from the 2019-2021 academic years.

Accessing These Materials

How to access materials at the Harvard University Archives

How to find and request dissertations, in person or virtually

How to find and request undergraduate honors theses

How to find and request Thomas Temple Hoopes Prize papers

How to find and request Bowdoin Prize papers

• email: Email
• Phone number 617-495-2461

Related Collections

Harvard faculty personal and professional archives, harvard student life collections: arts, sports, politics and social life, access materials at the harvard university archives.

Measuring well-being and progress

GDP is a well-established tool for measuring economic output, but it does not tell us whether life as a whole is getting better, and for whom. The OECD Well-being Framework helps to monitor societal progress “beyond GDP” and is informing people-centric and integrated policy making across the many dimensions that matter for people, the planet and future generations. The Framework provides a compass to understand how human well-being is evolving in the context of the ecological and digital transitions, and what key actions are needed to support it.

• Well-being frameworks for people-focused policies
• OECD World Forums on Well-being

Select a language

Key messages, improving people’s well-being requires balancing economic, social and environmental objectives and focusing on relationships and social connectedness.

Assessing the well-being of individuals, communities and societies requires looking at multiple aspects that matter for people’s lives. This holistic perspective is even more relevant in a context of fast societal changes. The OECD Well-being Framework considers current well-being outcomes – and inequalities in these – to capture the material conditions that shape people’s economic options, their quality of life, and their relationships. The Framework also includes the systemic resources that are needed to sustain well-being in the future and within planetary and social boundaries. The Framework can support governments and other actors to design policies that promote synergies between economic, social and environmental goals and that put a primary focus on promoting mental health at individual and community level.

The OECD collects statistics on the key components of well-being to monitor people’s quality of life and relational well-being in the context of the digital, demographic and green transitions and to help countries understand whether life is getting better and whether the benefits of progress are being shared equally.

Countries have started to collect internationally harmonised statistics on well-being and should expand this practice further

Frequent, timely and high-quality data on well-being is essential to inform policy decisions. The OECD is advancing the statistical agenda by supporting data producers with methodological guidance on new frontiers of well-being measurement, including subjective well-being, trust, mental health and social connectedness. Although more work remains to be done, this has helped to close data gaps, especially in dimensions of life where internationally harmonised well-being data is most scarce.

The OECD is continuing to update its advice to reflect the latest evidence. For instance, the 2013 Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being are currently being expanded to include guidance on child subjective well-being as well as more globally inclusive measures. 

A well-being lens can bring a more integrated perspective to policy challenges, such as mental health

Mental health affects every aspect of life and is influenced by people’s economic, social and environmental living conditions. However, despite mental health’s strong interactions with factors such as income, education, employment and the environment, integrated approaches across government departments remain limited or small-scale. Reasons include inter-departmental task forces often being time-limited and without decision-making power and resource constraints remain a challenge.

The OECD uses a well-being lens to underscore the reciprocal relationships between mental health and socio-economic outcomes and shows how policies to promote mental health can contribute to achieving other social, economic and environmental policy goals.

OECD governments are increasingly using well-being evidence to inform their policy practices

The real pressure test for well-being initiatives is whether they will be able to graduate from “yet another report” to tangibly influencing government decision-making, and ultimately, people’s quality of life. Multidimensional well-being frameworks and concepts are increasingly being employed by OECD countries in budgeting, policy appraisal and evaluation, strategic coordination, and performance management. Mainstreaming well-being in policy is not a simple add-on to existing practice: it requires and supports new ways of thinking and acting that are more people-focused, more long-term and more joined-up across economic, social, and environmental policy objectives.

In 2023, the OECD launched the Knowledge Exchange Platform on Well-being Metrics and Policy Practice to provide a space for sharing experiences and solutions and to support governments interested in developing policy-focused well-being initiatives. 

How’s life in your country?

The OECD has developed innovative data visualisations that help to illustrate each country’s relative well-being strengths and weaknesses across themes like income, work and job quality, housing conditions, health, safety, social connectedness and civic engagement. The longer a bar in the “well-being wheel”, the better the outcomes in a specific area of well-being, compared to other OECD countries.

Mental health shapes many aspects of life

The OECD used the dimensions of its Well-being Framework to illustrate how economic, social and environmental outcomes intersect with mental health. People experiencing worse mental health tend to fare far worse in most other aspects of their well-being. For example, compared to the general population, those at risk of mental distress are nearly twice as likely to be at the bottom of the income distribution, to be unemployed, or to be unhappy with how they spend their time; their risk for feeling lonely is more than four times greater.

Related content

• Tool OECD Better Life Index There is more to life than the cold numbers of GDP and economic statistics – This Index allows you to compare well-being across countries, based on 11 topics the OECD has identified as essential, in the areas of material living conditions and quality of life. oecdbetterlifeindex.org
• OECD Data Explorer data-explorer.oecd.org

Related publications

Related policy issues

• Well-being and beyond GDP To understand whether policies are improving lives we need to look "beyond GDP" and consider a broader range of economic, social and environmental outcomes for people. This also allows to understand what matters to people and what drives their behaviours, providing another channel of action to policies. The OECD is leading efforts to develop indicators that measure the well-being of individuals, families, society, future generations and the planet at a time of deep changes and transformations. Learn more

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US economic growth for last quarter is revised up slightly to a 1.4% annual rate

FILE - 2024 Ford F-150 trucks are assembled at Ford’s Dearborn Truck Plant on April 11, 2024, in Dearborn, Mich. On Thursday, June 27, 2024, the government issues the third and final estimate of economic growth – the gross domestic product – in the January-March quarter. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The American economy expanded at a 1.4% annual pace from January through March, the slowest quarterly growth since spring 2022, the government said Thursday in a slight upgrade from its previous estimate. Consumer spending grew at just a 1.5% rate, down from an initial estimate of 2%, in a sign that high interest rates may be taking a toll on the economy.

The Commerce Department had previously estimated that the gross domestic product — the economy’s total output of goods and services — advanced at a 1.3% rate last quarter.

The first quarter’s GDP growth marked a sharp pullback from a strong 3.4% pace during the final three months of 2023. Still, Thursday’s report showed that the January-March slowdown was caused mainly by two factors — a surge in imports and a drop in business inventories — that can bounce around from quarter to quarter and don’t necessarily reflect the underlying health of the economy.

Imports shaved 0.82 percentage point off first-quarter growth. Lower inventories subtracted 0.42 percentage point.

Picking up the slack was business investment, which the government said rose at a 4.4% annual pace last quarter, up from its previous estimate of 3.2%. Higher investment in factories and other nonresidential buildings and in software and other types of intellectual property helped boost the increase.

After growing at a solid annual pace of more than 3% in the second half of 2023, consumer spending decelerated sharply last quarter. Spending on appliances, furniture and other goods fell by a 2.3% annual rate, while spending on travel, restaurant meals and other services rose at a 3.3% rate.

Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for the Independent Advisor Alliance, called the downshift in consumer spending “a cause for concern.’' Consumers account for around 70% of U.S. economic activity.

“The economy remained resilient in the first quarter,” said Gregory Daco, chief economist at the tax and consulting firm EY. But ”private-sector demand growth was cooling, led by more consumer prudence. Importantly though, the economy is not retrenching, with business investment retaining moderate momentum.”

Many economists have been expecting growth to strengthen in the current April-June quarter. But an Oxford Economics forecasting model — based on economic statistics that have been reported so far — points instead to a tepid 1.3% growth rate this quarter.

The U.S. economy, the world’s biggest, has proved surprisingly resilient in the face of higher interest rates. The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark rate 11 times in 2022 and 2023, to a 23-year high, to try to tame the worst bout of inflation in four decades. Most economists predicted that the much higher consumer borrowing rates that resulted from the Fed’s hikes would send the economy into a recession.

It didn’t happen. The economy has kept growing, though at a slower rate, and employers have kept hiring. In May, the nation added a strong 272,000 jobs , although the unemployment rate edged up for a second straight month, to a still-low 4%. At the same time, overall inflation, as measured by the government’s main price gauge, has tumbled from a peak of 9.1% in 2022 to 3.3% , still above the Fed’s 2% target level.

The state of the economy is sure to be a central topic Thursday night when President Joe Biden will debate Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. Though the economy remains healthy by most measures and inflation is way down from its peak, many Americans say they’re frustrated that overall prices are still well above their pre-pandemic levels. Costlier rents and groceries are particular sources of discontent, and Trump has sought to pin the blame on Biden in a threat to the president’s re-election bid.

A measure of inflation in the January-March GDP report showed that price pressures accelerated at the start of 2024. Consumer prices rose at a 3.4% annual pace, up from 1.8% in the fourth quarter of 2023. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, so-called core inflation rose at a 3.7% annual clip, up from 2% in each of the previous two quarters.

In light of the still-elevated inflation pressures, the Fed’s policymakers earlier this month collectively predicted that they would cut their benchmark rate just once in 2024, down from their previous forecast of three rate cuts. Most economists expect the first rate cut to come in September, with possibly a second cut to come in December.

Thursday’s report was the third and final government estimate of first-quarter GDP growth. The Commerce Department will issue its first estimate of the current quarter’s economic performance on July 25.