HOW TO BECOME A SUCCESSFUL ECONOMIST

Econometrics is a very important subject which finds applications in several fields. For example, econometrics can help one study how much of the gender pay gap is explained by one’s educational level and experience. However, the use of statistical techniques in econometrics to explain complex economic problems makes it difficult for a student to grasp the concepts especially if there are no guided and organized lectures. Under such a situation, a student needs a guide to econometrics which can be found online or an economics tutor to help solve econometrics problems.

Here are 8 ways to be successful in Econometrics:

1. Firstly, it depends on your prior Mathematics background. If you want to understand Econometrics and Applied Econometrics on a high level, you will first need to a pick up a book on mathematical Economics.

I will recommend introduction to mathematical Economics by Edward T. Dowling, fundamental methods of mathematical Economics by Alpha C. Chiang, Mathematics for Economists by Carlo Simson, Mathematical Optimization and Economic theory by Michael D. intrilligator. etc. If you are attending classes, then use whatever your teacher or instructor is using.

2. You with need to:

* Study probability & Statistics. I recommend Statistics, 4th Ed. By David Freedman & Robert Pisani is the place to begin. 
If you are attending classes, then use whatever your teacher or instructor is using.

* Learn Linear Algebra: Understanding econometrics theory is less tedious with matrix algebra. I recommend Gilbert Strang Linear Algebra Course at MIT Open courseware

* Study Econometrics theory. Pick a good introductory econometrics text books. Such as Jeffrey Wooldridge's Introductory Econometrics is an excellent book to begin with or Basic Econometrics by Gujarati etc. If you are attending classes, then use whatever your teacher or instructor is using.

* Choose a software to use. You need software programs that can do all the nitty gritty calculations for us.

I recommend whatever is being uses by your instructor.. Outside what your instructor recommend, you can get a statistical package... Strata is a package great for beginners. Also consider Reviews, Gretl, etc

3. Group Studying: Organized group studying.

The most important studying method is group studying. Look for a few classmates who are Studious and willing to work hard to succeed & Meet regularly to study.

A lot of introductory econometrics revolves around regression analysis. Study and read everything about regression that you can because you will need a comprehensive understanding of regression if you intend to pass. Regression is very intuitive, but it can be tricky to learn and tricky to get comfortable with the multiple uses of it.

Do the examples on your own. Memorize the process if you can. Do all the past questions.

4. Attend Every Class on Econometrics.

There is no substitute for classroom teaching. You’re going to want to attend every class you can, because there’s no better way to fall behind than skipping class. Everything will make sense in class, but if you go home and review your notes, it will seem like it is written in a foreign language.

As a student should pay attention in class and try and understand as much as you can. You should take down notes and ask questions wherever there is a doubt. While attending an Econometrics class, it is helpful to get an overall idea about what the class would cover over the next few weeks or months.

This will help you fit things in a broader framework and know the application of each concept learned in class. It is easy for a student to get lost in an Econometrics class with several concepts and formula.

Hence, the following is advisable to you while learning econometrics in class.

Utilize your professor as best you can. Come with questions and unapologetically ask every single one, because this is your course. They get paid regardless. Questions help you and your classmates.

Always question:

* Why am I learning this concept? How will it be useful?
* What tests can be conducted to test any real world hypothesis?
* What are the assumptions that I need to make? How are these assumptions crucial?
* How can I interpret the results? Does the result make sense intuitively and fit the broader perspective?

Understanding the overall picture of where the concepts fit in, taking notes, always being inquisitive and asking questions mentioned above and practicing econometrics problems can aid in a student’s learning of econometrics in class.

Consider an example where a professor is teaching the concept of “regression” in class.

* First ask, what is regression and why is it being taught? The answer is that a regression analysis helps to see what independent variables can cause a change in the dependent variable. If the topic of interest is what affects scores of students in an exam, then a regression analysis could be done to see what factors impact scores, like time spent studying, time spent watching television, attendance, etc.

* Once you know the broader perspective, ask what tests can be conducted or how you can carry out a regression analysis? The answer is that data will be collected first and then an ordinary least squares regression would be run using Excel or some other software which is based on the idea of minimizing the square of the errors. You can also test if a particular variable is significant or not use t-tests.

* Next, the question about any assumptions you make. You will immediately get a list of assumptions made in an ordinary least squares regression (OLS) . This set of assumptions includes no multicollinearity, homoscedasticity, errors terms to be normally distributed, no autocorrelation, etc.

* Lastly, interpret the results. Ask questions like how much will the score be impacted if I study one more hour or how much will the score be impacted if my attendance increase by 1 percentage point?

The above is the way to crack econometrics problems. It can be treated as a guide to econometrics.

5. Resources for Reviewing Key Concepts

As a student would often find that classroom teaching has to supplement by some materials. There are several online and offline resources that can be used for both reviewing key concepts and also practicing econometric problem.

In Econometrics, it is extremely important to be structured and organized to be able to grasp the concepts better and make sense out of them. Hence, picking up the right resources is crucial.

First, there are several books by famous authors which are used globally. Their global presence in itself speaks about the quality and structure of the content. Some of the important books are listed below;

* Econometrics by Damodar Gujrati – 
* Econometrics by Example: Damodar Gujrati 
* Introductory Econometrics: A Modern Approach by Woolridge 
* Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data by Woolridge 
* Mostly Harmless Econometrics: An Empiricist’s Companion – by Angrist-Pischke. 
* An alternative to the book mentioned above is a book titled “A Guide to Econometrics“.

Sometimes it may not be possible to purchase books. In such cases, the scanned copy or an electronic version of these books can be found online. It is better to go through a book rather than random content online because books will ensure that you learn concepts in the order in which you should know. It makes a student more planned and organized.

Also, it may be the case that one has passed school with major in some other field and later in life one wants to learn econometrics . There are two ways to do this. First, one can enroll in online courses which are offered by several schools. This will give you a passing degree too once you complete the course.

The other option is to go through videos on Khan Academy or Coursera. These videos are made by some of the best professionals across the world and will help you understand concepts with examples. Moreover, these websites organize the videos in such a way that a student would feel that he/she is actually in a class.

6. Potential Tutors

Sometimes as a student might not be able to grasp all the concepts in the class where 40-50 students are present. Moreover, the student might also face difficulties in understanding what is described in the book. Under such a situation, you might desire an econometrics tutor – a private tutor who would be a guide to econometrics and would help you understand questions. Since tutoring would be one-on-one, the student would receive greater attention from the econometrics tutor.

There are several options for econometrics tutoring which can be found on the campus where the student studies or elsewhere.

First, the student can contact the teaching assistant of the econometrics professor and schedule doubt clearing sessions.

Moreover, as i have mentioned earlier, you can resort to peer-to-peer learning that is where your classmates can tutor on some of the concepts which are difficult to understand.

Alternatively, You can seek an econometrics private tutor online through freelancing websites. The econometrics tutor can be from anywhere in the world and hence you can ensure to get the best tutor to suit his/her requirements.

7. Online Practice

Advanced coursework generally has fewer students than introductory courses overall, and as a result there are fewer resources available online. Some university webpages include problem sets such as this 2009 Introductory Econometrics course or these sample econometrics exam questions.

8. Think Analytically.

Lastly, Econometrics is a data analytics course. When in doubt, think analytically. Everything can be simplified back to a few simple rules, just make sure to know them. Fully understanding the first few weeks of instruction is imperative for success throughout the whole semester.

In conclusion, econometrics is an extremely important field which finds several applications in real life. It is required for analyzing data pertaining to almost everything – medicine, economics, policy making, etc. Since it is such an important and versatile area of study, it is essential that a student achieves mastery in it.

This is possible through organized content learning and clarity of basic concepts along with sufficient practice of econometrics problems . The books, resources, online materials, tutoring and that have been described in this article can go a long way in helping an econometrics student learn the concepts and be able to solve complex econometrics problems.

All the above provides a guide to econometrics which is almost indispensable while learning econometrics.

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