UROP Project
education statistics, economics, human capital
Research Mentor: Dr. Carl Kitchens,
Department, College, Affiliation: Economics, Social Sciences and Public Policy
Contact Email: ckitchens@fsu.edu
Research Assistant Supervisor (if different from mentor): Dr. Luke Rodgers
Research Assistant Supervisor Email: lprodgers@fsu.edu
Faculty Collaborators:
Faculty Collaborators Email:
Department, College, Affiliation: Economics, Social Sciences and Public Policy
Contact Email: ckitchens@fsu.edu
Research Assistant Supervisor (if different from mentor): Dr. Luke Rodgers
Research Assistant Supervisor Email: lprodgers@fsu.edu
Faculty Collaborators:
Faculty Collaborators Email:
Looking for Research Assistants: No
Number of Research Assistants: 3
Relevant Majors: Economics, History, Education, Demography, Sociology, Political Science, Finance, International Social Studies, Open to all majors
Project Location: On FSU Main Campus
Research Assistant Transportation Required: Remote or In-person: Partially Remote
Approximate Weekly Hours: 8,
Roundtable Times and Zoom Link: Not participating in the Roundtable
Number of Research Assistants: 3
Relevant Majors: Economics, History, Education, Demography, Sociology, Political Science, Finance, International Social Studies, Open to all majors
Project Location: On FSU Main Campus
Research Assistant Transportation Required: Remote or In-person: Partially Remote
Approximate Weekly Hours: 8,
Roundtable Times and Zoom Link: Not participating in the Roundtable
Project Description
During WWI, agricultural commodity prices spiked as Europe entered war. In the United States, this led to large increases in crop prices and wages. In this project, we want to understand how rising wages affect long term educational outcomes. For individuals nearing high school completion, high wages may result in students dropping out to enter the labor force. However, for younger children, higher wages mean that their parents have more resources to invest, possibly leading to increases in education for cohorts just beginning school.A key part of this project will involve the collection of enrollment and funding statistics from state boards of education prior to and after World War I. These data in combination with variation in local labor market conditions will make it possible to eventually estimate the statistical relationship.
Research Tasks: Data collection and data entry from historical publications from state department of education documents.
The tasks only requires access to an internet connection, computer, and shared storage (i.e., FSU OneDrive account).
Skills that research assistant(s) may need: No prior experience is required. We are looking for students who pay close attention to detail and are diligent.
Mentoring Philosophy
One factor that led me to graduate school was the interaction that I had with faculty outside of the classroom. Had I not experience those interactions, I would have never wound up where I am today, thinking that all faculty members did was teach. I had no idea that research and pushing to frontier of knowledge was in the job description. Therefore, I strive to incorporate undergraduates into research, to expose them to areas of the university they may not otherwise experience, cultivate curiosity, and develop hard skills.I also recognize that the time of a UROP project is much shorter than a broader research project. That is why I think it is important to highlight where one objective carried out in the UROP program fits into a broader research question or agenda.
While not everyone will decide research is for them, I am proud that one of my former mentees took a job at the Federal Reserve as a research assistant, and hopes to apply to Ph.D. programs in Economics this year.