Reflection

Because I will be going on study abroad in Scotland in the fall I think that the material which will be most applicable to me is the economics of standards as well as the exchange rate material. In the study abroad process with the CIP we go through a lot of the emotional, the social and cultural informational segments which address how life abroad will be significantly different from that in the US. However, what is not discussed of course is the economic variances that occur. While exchange rates and the various changes in standards are obvious factors that are country specific, they are two things that did not cross my mind in preparing myself for study abroad so I am very glad that I took this seminar.

Moving forward in life, I think I’ve learned a lot of material that will help me be more globally aware. I am not an economics student. The extent of my econ history traces back to Econ 101; my interests and strengths lie in business. Therefore, a lot of the material was unfamiliar to me as far as financial portfolios, foreign exchange markets and the specifics on interest rates, for instance. Therefore, now having an understanding of them and how they effect a national and global economies will help me understand more “economic language” and be a more informed citizen. 

With that said, I am probably most interested in learning more about governmental economic policies. With everything that has gone on in our country and throughout the world, and all of the economists speaking on the news channel and being quoted in the newspapers, I want to make sure that I understand the implications of the government’s actions and be able to make my own assertion of the justification of their actions based on brief understanding of economic policies. While of course I am not interested in becoming an economist or plunging deep into the study, I think that a lot is already more clear for me after we discussed the expansionary fiscal policy today in class. 

For students considering this class, I would definitely advise them to take it if they are planning to study abroad the following term or year. I would recommend to them that they invest in a planner and keep organized to remember all of the blog posts. Also, tell them that it’s important to keep up on the reading because of the material discussion which dominates class time. I would also recommend that they have taken at least Econ101 as a prerequisite; otherwise it may be difficult to initially comprehend the supply and demand material as it is addressed in a much shorter duration because of the class material in the seminar as compared to in Econ101.