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Economics

• All About Economics
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All About Economics

This article has been prepared by the Australian Productivity Commission and the Australian Government Treasury with the aim of providing information to economics students about career options in the public sector.

What is Economics?

Economics is a social science that is concerned with the study of how individuals, businesses and communities solve the problem of allocating their limited resources (where ‘resources’ is taken to mean time, money, labour, knowledge, capital and other ‘natural resources’) to satisfy their unlimited wants.

Since economics describes how people allocate scarce resources, economics explains why and how people trade for their mutual benefit. As economic behaviour most often takes place in the context of markets, economics is also a study of markets and the welfare consequences of market transactions.

Economics is of special interest to governments because they have the potential to greatly influence economic decision-making and therefore social welfare.

Economics is everywhere

Everywhere people are entering into voluntary exchange with each other. Economic behaviour is so widespread that there are very few aspects of our lives that cannot be analysed from the perspective of economics. The flexibility of economics and its breadth of application make it a very rich and rewarding area to study and work in.

Why should I study economics?

Economists have useful insights into a wide range of issues, which is why graduates are highly sought by organisations from a variety of sectors.

According to Graduate Careers Australia, students aged under 25 years graduating with bachelor degrees in economics or business and entering their first full-time job, earned $37,000 per annum in 2005 (not including superannuation). Starting salaries were higher ($41,900 p.a.) for those employed with the Australian Government.

Studying economics can lead to a well-paid job, but the kind of Economics degree you undertake will have an impact. Although what you make of your career is up to you, it is fair to say that your study choices can affect who you can work with and how much you will earn when you graduate.

Combining economics with other disciplines

An economics major, as part of a general degree (such as an Arts or Commerce degree), can provide you with an understanding of many contemporary world events and issues.  An economics major is particularly helpful if you wish to pursue a career in banking and finance, business analysis, law, journalism, public policy, diplomacy, environmental science, medical administration and international affairs.

You can even use your economics major as part of another course of study to give you a robust interdisciplinary degree. For example, if you are interested in environmental issues, you might find that majors in economics, environmental economics, and environmental sciences — depending on your preferences and what subjects are available at your university — will equip you with the skills to find work in various private sector consulting and environmental engineering firms, as well as government agencies. If you are interested in health issues, you will find that combining majors in economics, health economics, statistics or public policy will provide you with the skills and insights to be able to work in Australia’s growing health industry.

Postgraduate studies in economics

You can specialise in economics by undertaking a postgraduate economics degree — such as Bachelor Degrees with Honours, Masters, and Doctor of Philosophy. Whereas a generalist degree will provide you with the background to understand many contemporary events, specialising in economics will provide you with the tools to analyse complex economic problems and ultimately gain employment in a number of specialist economics organisations.

What sort of work do economists do?

As economics is a study about the welfare consequences of economic behaviour, economists are typically responsible for analysing either how markets are operating or how markets ought to be operating. For example, private sector economists often analyse developments in domestic and international markets to understand the ramifications for the firm or industry in which they operate. In contrast, public sector economists are concerned with analysing whether and how governments should intervene in the operation of markets in order to maximise social welfare. In many cases, the analysis involves making recommendations about how governments can better participate in and regulate markets.

Specialist economics employers

Many government departments and agencies employ specialist economists to:

• Assist with the development of government policy
• Undertake long-term economic-related research
• Monitor and enforce government regulation.

Government employers

Many Australian Government agencies recruit graduate and/or postgraduate economists. Some of the major recruiters of economics graduates include:

• The Australian Government Treasury recruits around 50 graduates every year, a number of whom are economists. Graduates are responsible for providing advice for sound macroeconomic policy, including monetary and fiscal policy, labour market issues, taxation, retirement income policies, and promoting competition in markets for financial services and other goods and services.
• The Reserve Bank of Australia recruits around 40 graduates every year, many of whom are economists. Graduates contribute to formulating and implementing monetary policy, maintaining financial system stability and promoting a safe, efficient payments system.
• The Productivity Commission recruits a number of economists every year. Graduates undertake research on economic and social infrastructure, competition policy and regulation, trade, environmental and natural resource matters, and general economic policy.
• The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics recruits about 50 graduates each year, a number of whom are economists. Graduates undertake research and analysis into Australia’s agricultural, fishing, forestry, energy and minerals industries.
• The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission recruits about 30 graduates every year, many of whom are economists. Graduates are responsible for monitoring
  and enforcing the Trade Practices Act 1974 and regulating national infrastructure services, to promote competition and fair trade for the benefit of consumers and business.
  
• The Australian Fair Pay Commission also recruits a number of economists. Graduates undertake research to set and adjust federal minimum wages to promote the economic prosperity of the people of Australia.

There are also many international opportunities for economics graduates. Economists can gain employment overseas throughout the world in a number of prestigious organisations, such as The World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

'Careers in Economics' is a joint initiative between the Australian Treasury, the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Productivity Commission, for the purpose of promoting the study of economics among prospective school and university students. If you are interested in finding more about the organisations, you can visit the following websites:

• www.treasury.gov.au
• www.rba.gov.au
• www.pc.gov.au

Australian Bureau of Statistics Graduate Program

At the Australian Bureau of Statistics, economic graduates work in a number of business areas including the Economic Statistics Group (ESG), Population Statistics Group (PSG) and the Methodology Division (MD). ESG graduates assist in the production of critical economic indicators like the quarterly GPD, CPI and balance of payments statistics. PSG produces social and labour statistics that provide a picture of the social and economic well-being of the Australian population, labour force participation figures, household income and expenditure statistics.The Methodology Division’s main activities include developing new ways of measuring socioeconomic concepts and developing better methods for detecting and displaying relationships between economic variables. The ABS also employs generalist graduates who have a major in economics.

The ABS provides economics graduates with real opportunities for learning and development, the flexibility to achieve a work / life balance and the opportunity to contribute to high profile economic issues.

For more information about the qualities ABS looks for in its graduate recruits visit: www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/corporate.NSF/home/Careers+Entry+Page?OpenDocument .