Below is the Sample SOP for MS in Economics, Canada
Modern economics is not just the distribution of goods and services; it is also a way of working towards human welfare. When we mention human welfare, we refer to the increased means of earnings and scaled-up compensation of the work done. A real-life example that helped me get clarity on the adversity in the absence of human welfare has time and again urged me to make things better. This was early when economics wasn’t even in a part of my syllabus, and my father had justified ‘stealing’, by stating how those laborers are poor and needed the money to survive. The brass utensils which were my grandmother’s prized possessions were stolen by the laborers who were renovating our house. My father dismissed this and attributed the thieves in the making to the economic conditions. As a part of a developing nation, underprivileged families are a common sight and this relentlessly urges me to bridge the disparity of wealth. Like physics helps in explaining the mysteries of the Universe and its working, Economics for me is a subject equally powerful which helps in making sense of human civilization and its progressive way of working. All in all, this has induced in me the need to obtain a Master’s in Arts, in Economics.
Comprehensive methodology with a mix of empirical and theory, I have reaped apt knowledge from the under graduation course in Economics. Theoretical and Applied Econometrics helped me in visualizing and applying the economic theory through real-world data. Subjects like Microeconomics, especially game theory helped me gain deeper insights on behaviors of economic units. Actuarial Science taught me about gauging, modeling, and mitigating risks. These subjects empowered me to make decisions and evaluate the pros and cons at the same time. Moreover, the confluence of technology such as R programming helped me perceive how technology remains present in analyzing econometrics and statistics.
To fathom more clearly the concepts learned, I worked on various research projects. “Modeling Indian Exports”, was one research that I did and tried to deduce the impact of independent variables and techniques that can make analysis more effective. My term paper titled, “Impact of transportation and power infrastructure on business: A study on Indian states” aimed to model and study the impact of transportation infrastructure on the per capita GDP at constant prices of 16 most populous Indian states using a panel data and compares the LSV and OLS techniques. From this, I learned the reasoning of the data sets and finding the benchmarks as well as the conclusion.
To add more color to my palette, I also researched Demonetization of India Currency notes in 2016: Qualitatively observed the impacts of demonetization of high valued Indian currency notes in 2016 using the ISLM model on the available data. All these researches have authorized me to research incessantly as the findings have been informative and intriguing at the same time.
The college projects and research papers proffered a gamut of concepts, but the internships were a platform to exercise those concepts. During my internship at Invest India, a national investment promotion agency under the ministry of commerce of the central Indian government, I explored the Public Policy domain. I have been working on the state startup ranking framework to rank the states based on their startup ecosystem. I have also worked on Porter’s framework to rank nations based on their competitiveness and created an index as a research assistant under Professor Trisha Nair from MDI Gurgaon to explore applications of macroeconomics. I have worked with The Nudge foundation and unraveled the side of Non-Profit organizations and the economic problems involved. Also, I have been a research assistant to professor Surya Rajan from Master’s Union to review the literature related to competition economics and the relationship between competition and innovation and present potential research gaps.
I have also interned with Policy 4.0 to explore the future of monetary and token economics and researched cryptocurrencies, new bridges for cross-border payments, the positive and negative impact of blockchain, with a focus on forensics. This has so far been the most rewarding experience as I worked to understand the impacts of DC/EP or the digital Chinese Yuan. And since then I developed a curiosity to dive deeper into understanding cryptocurrencies, DLTs, CBDCs, and smart contracts. Interning at this think tank has helped me catch up with the advancements and introduced me to the newer potential economic problems, opportunities, and risks that the world might face.
With a bent of mind to aid a better life for everyone, I volunteered for the Caring Hands Foundation. I collected extra food from restaurants and weddings to distribute among the colonies where the underprivileged lived. I have also volunteered with SPICMACAY which is engaged in the promotion of Hindustani classical music amongst the youth and helps in organizing online and offline classical music concerts. Owing to my interest in music, I am pursuing a diploma in Instrumental Indian classical music with the Prayag Sangeet Samiti. As the Vice President of the economics society, I convened the first-ever economics festival that was attended by 1000+ students. Other than this, I have accomplished my duties as a placement coordinator with ample relevant internship and placement opportunities for the students.
As a curious student, research has invariably been an omnipresent interest and collaborative research proffers the next level of excitement as two minds think and come to a convincing conclusion. This is what I look forward to from the MS course in Economics. Through this project, I expect to gain articulate research skills, Predictive modeling, complex quantitative analysis techniques, and in-depth knowledge of different schools of economics and their branches along with practical computational analysis techniques to perform analysis on computer programs. Learning all these will allow me to spearhead my goals confidently. My short-term goal is to become an economist and engage myself towards recalibrating the Indian society towards a more efficient setup to maximize resource distribution and reduce inequality preferably working for a government agency followed by Pursuing a Ph.D. and achieving the long term goal of engaging myself in core academic economic research supported by the practical experience and insights from the stint as an economist.
To steer with confidence into a direction that will bring me closer to my goals, I have zeroed in on Canada and UBC for my Master’s in Economics. I am influenced by the pragmatic methodology that will credit me right knowledge. At the University I am aiming to study Public Policy, transport economics, and Behavioral economics. With the plethora of these subjects, UBC is an ideal choice. Moreover, it has a great academic reputation among the student fraternity, inspiring me to become one.
Determination and grit to provide better living standards to the people of my country, the MA in Economics is imperative and UBC seems like the ideal choice.
