My job market

This year I have been wrapping up my PhD at the University of Maryland, so I went on the infamous econ job market. I have a post about that experience that I'll put up later. For now I'll just announce that I accepted a job at the Federal Reserve Board, and I am ecstatic about it. I will join the Industrial Output section; they produce the monthly Industrial Production data that get covered in financial press. They also contribute to the FOMC forecast. I have a somewhat uncommon background for a macroeconomist due to having worked a lot in Census Bureau firm microdata while also doing standard macro modeling; I think the IO section is an excellent fit for that background. In fact, long before the job market started I had my eye on IO.

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Over the years I've received lots of questions from friends and family about what economists do when (if) they grow up. In particular, why do I want to work at the Federal Reserve Board? Working at the Board has been a dream of mine for many years. I will be helping with economic analysis and forecasting so that the people who make monetary policy have decent information about what's going on in the economy. Lots of businesses also rely on the Fed's analyses. The Board currently employs more than 300 economics PhDs. That density of economists and the Board's many high-quality visitors make it an unparalleled place to learn and become a better economist. There is nothing like it. Several years ago one of my mentors told me, "The Fed turns people into economists." When I talk to people at the Board or veterans of other similar central banks (eg, Claudia Sahm, Tony Yates), I can see the evidence for that claim. Moreover, while I've never known what "real-world experience" actually is, my best guess is that working on the forecast is a pretty good way to learn practical skills in macroeconomics. Finally, they have granted me a generous amount of time to keep doing economic research, which I find very valuable. The Fed is serious about having staff be on the knowledge frontier.

I think most people outside of the econ profession aren't aware of the unique space occupied by the Fed. A few days ago Justin Fox wrote:

[The Fed is] one of the last islands of technocratic, largely nonpartisan policy making in Washington. . . . The tone of discourse within the Federal Reserve System stands out as a refreshingly civil and thoughtful exception [to the standard partisan fights].

There are some ways in which the Board is in DC but not of DC. More broadly, probably few fields outside of economics have organizations with such a high density of PhDs working on immediate problems. It's an opportunity I couldn't pass up.

I am a pretty anxious person generally, and as my wife and I worked on my job market decisions I benefited immensely from discussions with my family and professional mentors (including some names you'd recognize from the econ blogosphere). I'll just say that there were many of them, that they put up with multiple emails or long phone calls that disrupted their busy schedules, and that I found their help invaluable. In some cases they had a stake in the outcome but gave me unbiased feedback regardless. You know who you are, and I won't forget it. Obviously, my adviser and committee members were particularly helpful. I must also mention the brilliant, hardworking people at the Center for Economic Studies who have played a huge role in my grad school experience.

I must also thank the people I interacted with on the job market. Lots of people gave me a chance, and for that I am grateful. I had great experiences presenting my research, receiving feedback, and getting to know people. I hope to interact with them again in the future.

It will be nice to stay around DC, which is a great city and a great place to do economics. I will be continuing my research agenda in microdata-based macro and firm dynamics, which I am just biased enough to believe is one of the most interesting things happening in macroeconomics these days.