EducatingLatinAmerican

Economists
DavidColanderandHugoopo
*

Abstract
GraduateeconomicprogrammesinLatinAmericahaveevolvedalongthelinesoftwodifferenttraditions:
onecloselylinkedtothecurrenteconomicmainstream(beinginthatsenseglobal)andtheothermorelocal
andheterodox.Thispaperprovidesanoverviewofperceptions,interests,concernsandopinionsofglobal
LatinAmericangraduateeconomicprogrammes,comparingthemwithsimilarprogrammesinEuropeand
theUS.ItreportsthefindingsofasurveyofLatinAmericanglobaleconomicsprogrammesanddiscussesthe
debatebetweenglobaleconomicsandtraditionaleconomics,arguingthatthereisaroleforboth,with
globaleconomicsconcentratingonthescienceofeconomicsandtraditionaleconomicsconcentratingonthe
appliedpolicypoliticaleconomybranchofeconomicswhichismuchbroaderthantheappliedpolicy
trainingthatgraduatestudentsgetinglobaleconomics.
JELclassification:A11,A12,A23
1. Introduction
GraduateeconomicprogrammesinLatinAmericacanbeclassifiedintotwobroadgroupings.Onesetof
programmesteacheswhatmight,forwantofabetterterm,becalledglobaleconomics;whatistaught
inmainstreamgraduateeconomicsprogrammesintheUS,EuropeandAustralia/NewZealand.
1
Global
economicslinguafrancaisEnglish;itseesitselfasascience,anditisbecomingincreasinglytechnical.
Theothergroupingismorelikelytoteachnonmainstream,orwhatareoftencalledheterodoxideas,
andreflectlocalLatinAmericantraditions,beinginthatsensemorelocal.
2
Ittendstobemore
historical,moreleftistinitsideologicalleanings,lessmathematicalandlesswellfundedthanitsglobal
counterpart.
WhilethispaperfocusesonglobalpostgraduateeconomicsprogrammesinLatinAmerica,
3
towards
theendwediscusstherelationshipbetweenglobalprogrammesandthosewithamoretraditional

*
TheviewsexpressedinthisdocumentdonotreflectthoseoftheBanknoritsBoardofDirectors.EduardoLora
providedusefulcomments.
1
Wecallitglobal,notUSeconomics,toemphasisethatwhatitteaches(exceptforsomebiastowardUSstatistical
data)isnotperceivedasUScentricbythosedoingitanymorethanmodernchemistryorphysicsisperceivedas
UScentric.Itiswhatistaughtinthosesetsofprogrammesthatconsiderthemselvespartoftheglobal
mainstream.Japanisthedevelopedcountrythathasmostresistedtheglobalmovementineconomics.
2
Theheterodoxaspectsoftheprogrammeshaveinternationalconnectionsaswell,andthefacultyatthese
schoolsoftenhavecontactswithotherheterodoxprogrammesthroughouttheworld,suchastheregulation
schoolinFranceandprogrammesassociatedwiththeInternationalConfederationofAssociationsforPluralismin
Economics(ICAPE).
3
Forasimilaranalysis,alsoinspiredbyColander(2006),butfocusedontheundergraduatelevelseeLoraand
opo(2007).
InternationalReviewofEconomicsEducation

55
approach.Wedosobycomparingperceptions,interests,concernsandopinionsofstudentsinglobal
LatinAmericangraduateeconomicprogrammes,withthoseofstudentsintheUSandEurope.Inthis
way,thispaperprovidesbackgroundforconsideringthefutureofthesetwotraditions.
ThefindingsreportedfortheLatinAmericaneconomicsprogrammescomefromasixpageonline
survey,whichissimilartotheonethatColanderusedtostudyUSandEuropeanprogrammes
(Colander,2006,2009a).WhileourplanwasinitiallytofocusonlyonglobalLatinAmerican
programmestaughtinEnglish(whichiswhyweleftthequestionnaireinEnglish),wequicklyfoundthat
inLatinAmericaeventheglobalprogrammesarestilltaughtbothinthenativelanguageofthecountry
andinEnglish.
4
ThesurveywasaccessibleonthewebbetweenJuly2006andMarch2007,allowingfor
bothinsessionandvacationtimeintheprogrammesforboththenorthernandthesouthern
hemisphere.Thesurveytookanywherefrom15minutestoanhourtocomplete.
5

Wewerenotespeciallysuccessfulingettingparticipation,butafteracoupleofrequests,wedid
managetoget125respondentsfrom20schools,thethreelargestschoolsreportingbeingthe
UniversityoftheWestIndies,theUniversityofChileandIIades/GeorgetownUniversityAlbertoHurtado
UniversityinChile.Studentsgenerallyansweredallquestions.Some41%ofrespondentsweresecond
yearstudents,29%werefirstyearstudents,13%were3
rd
or4
th
yearstudents,and18%werefifthyear
orbeyondstudents.
Becauseofthelowresponserate,andthelackofrandomnessoftheresponses,theresultsofthe
surveyshouldbeseenasmostsuggestive,providinguswithaglimpseofLatinAmericangraduate
economics,andareferencepointtodiscussissuesrelevanttograduateeconomicseducationinLatin
America.
6

Thepaperisorganisedasfollows.Firstweprovideaprofileofoursurveyrespondents.Second,we
compareandcontrastLatinAmericanstudentresponseswiththosefromtheUSandEuropeansurveys
intermsoftheirattitudes,interestsandviewstowardstheprofession.Third,weusetheresultsasa
springboardforabroaderdiscussionoftherelationshipbetweenglobalandtraditionalgraduate
educationwithspecialreferencetoLatinAmerica.

4
25%ofourrespondentsstatedthatbetween70and100%oftheircoursesweretaughtinEnglish;17%said
between50and70%weretaughtinEnglish,22%saidthat30to50%weretaughtinEnglish,13%saidthat10to
30%weretaughtinEnglishand23%saidthatbetween0and10%weretaughtinEnglish.
5
Thesurveywasdistributedbysendingoutemailrequeststo56programmedeans,askingthemtosendthe
surveyouttotheirstudents.ThesurveywaslistedonSurveyMonkey;itallowedonlyoneresponseperIPaddress,
sounlessstudentsuseddifferentcomputers,theycouldonlyrespondonce.The56programmeswereselectedon
thebasisofpersonalconsultationswitheconomistsfromthesecountries.Wecraftedapreliminarylistof
institutionsintheregionfromtheprogrammesoftheMeetingsoftheLatinAmericanEconomicAssociation,the
CaribbeanEconomicAssociation(LACEA)andtheLatinAmericanMeetingsoftheEconometricSociety(LAMES).
Wealsodidanonlinesearchofprogrammesandaddedafewotherinstitutionsthatalthoughtheydidnot
participateatthemeetingsthatyearhadapostgraduateprogrammeandanonlinepresence.Webelievethatthe
resultinglistexhauststheinstitutionsthatwearelabellingasglobalbutwerecognisethatitalsoincludessome
moretraditionalprogrammes.However,sincethequestionnairewasinEnglish,wewouldexpectthatitcaptured
significantlymoreglobalstudentsthanitdidtraditionalstudents.
6
WehavereviewedtheresultswithknowledgeableLatinAmericaneconomiststoseeittheynoticedany
significantoutliersand,exceptwherenoted,thesurveyresultswereconsistentwiththeirviews.Thecomparison
groupsareroughlythesame,althoughbecauseLatinAmericanprogrammeshaveseparateMastersprogrammes
whereasmostUSprogrammescombinetheirMastersprogrammesintotheirPhDprogramme,thereareagreater
numberoffirstandsecondyearstudentsintheLatinAmericansurvey.
EducatingLatinAmericanEconomists

56
2. ProfileofglobalLatinAmericangraduateeconomicsstudents
Theaverageageofourrespondentsisabout29years,whichisthreeyearsolderthantheaverageage
ofrespondentsintheUSsurvey.
7
Thepercentageofwomenwas41%,whichishigherthanthe29%of
theUSsurvey.AllbutoneofthestudentswerefromLatinAmericancountries.Asmallmajority(56%)
wenttograduateschooldirectlyfromundergraduatecollege;mostofthosewhoworkedbefore
enteringgraduateschooldideconomicsrelatedworkorresearchpriortostartinggraduatestudy.The
largemajorityofstudents(80%)arenativeSpanishspeakers(7%werePortugueseand13%were
other).
Moststudentscamefromuppermiddleclassbackgrounds;morethan60%oftheirparentswere
collegegraduates;7%ofmothersand16%offathershaddonegraduatework.Amajority(about60%)
didnotconsidergoingabroadtostudy;20%consideredstudyinginEuropeand10%considered
studyingintheUS.Theydidnotgoabroadforgraduatestudyprimarilyforfinancialreasons.Ofthose
studentssurveyedwhowereplanningtodoaPhDaftercompletingtheirMasters,40%plannedtodoit
inEuropeand60%plannedtodoitintheUS.NoneplannedtotransfertoanotherLatinAmerican
programme.ThisreflectsanimportantcharacteristicofglobalLatinAmericangraduateeducation;itis
toalargedegreeafeedersystemintotheUSandEuropeanPhDprogrammes,ratherthanasetofself
standingprogrammes.Onlyabout10%consideredanotherLatinAmericanuniversitythantheonethey
attended.(ThisisfarlowerthantheEuropeanandUSpercentages.)Mostofthestudentswereself
financingtheireducation,althoughtheprogrammetuitionissubsidisedbythegovernmentatmost
LatinAmericanuniversities.27%reportedsomegovernmentsupportbesidesthesubsidisedtuition,
and22%reportedreceivingauniversityfellowship.
Thelargemajorityoftherespondents(81%)consideredthemselvesMastersstudents;19%considered
themselvesPhDstudents.ThisreflectsadifferencebetweenLatinAmericangraduateeconomic
education,where,formanystudents,theMastersdegreeisaterminaldegreeattheuniversitythey
attend,andUSgraduateeconomiceducation,wherealmostallstudentsaredirectlyadmittedtoaPhD
programme.EvenfirstyeargraduateUSstudentsconsiderthemselvesPhDstudentswhogetaMasters
degreeonthewaytogettingaPhD;mostfirstyearLatinAmericanstudentsconsiderthemselves
MastersstudentswhomaygoontodoaPhDdegreeatanotherschool.
ThestandardcoursesequencethattheseMastersstudentstakeisessentiallyidenticaltothefirsttwo
yearsintheUSorEuropeanglobalprogrammes.Thefirstyearconsistsofcorematerial
(microeconomics,macroeconomicsandeconometrics),andsometimesincludesanintroductorycourse
onmathematics.Studentshavemorechoiceofcoursesintheirsecondyearandcantakearangeof
coursessuchaseconomicsofregulation,finance,economicdevelopment,projectevaluation,aswellas
specialtopicsinmicroeconomics,macroeconomicsandeconometrics,dependingonthespecialisation
ofthefaculty.MostprogrammesrequireaMastersThesis,writtenunderthedirectsupervisionofa
facultymember,asagraduationrequirement.ThetypicalMastersprogrammetakestwoyearsto
complete,butoftenadvancedundergradstakeMasterslevelcoursesduringtheirsenioryear,andcan
completetheMastersprogrammeinoneyear.
Forthemostpartthestudentsweresatisfiedwiththeprogrammesandwiththeeconomicstheywere
learning.Inresponsetoaquestionaboutwhethereconomistswererelevanttosociety,93%saidyes.
Thereasonstheygaveforeconomistsrelevanceincludedeconomicsinformspolicymakersof
consequences,andgoodeconomics=goodpolicy=wellbeingforsociety.Thepercentageswho
woulddoitagainweresimilartotheUS,with81%reportingthattheywouldgotogradschoolagain;

7
Theaveragewasraisedbysomeolderstudentsinthe50sthatwerenotpresentintheUSstudy.Itwaslowered
bythefactthatthereweremorefirstandsecondyearstudentsintheLatinAmericanstudythanintheUSor
Europeanstudy.
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57
5%saidtheywouldnot,and13%wereunsure.However,therewaslesssatisfactionwiththeir
programme60%saidtheywouldgotothesamegraduateschool;19%saidtheywouldnot,and21%
wereunsure.
Thestudentslevelofstresswasaboutthesameasstudentsatotherglobaleconomicsprogrammes,
although,notsurprisingly,giventhatsomanyofthemareselffinancedtheydidreportmorestress
relatedtofinancialconsiderationsthandidUSstudentswhooftenhavefellowshipsthatcovertuition
andprovidealivingstipend.Intermsofcoursework,20%ofthestudentsfoundcourseworkvery
stressful,28%considereditstressful,34%considereditmoderatelystressful,and17%considereditnot
stressful.
Inresponsetoanopenendedquestionaboutwhattheymostlikedaboutgraduatestudy,students
mentionedtheintellectualchallenge,thetoolstheyacquired,therealworldexpertiseoffacultyand
theirhelpfulness/interestinstudents,thefactthattheyweregettingaknowledgeoftheacademicfield
andtheeconomy,andthefreedomtheyhadtostudywhattheywant.Someofthestudentsdislikes
includedthelowqualityofsomeprofessors,thelackofjobprospectsupongraduation,theirdifficult
financialsituations,theshort,intensestructureoftheMastersprogrammes,theheavyfocusonexams
ratherthanonlearning,thelargenumberofmandatorycourses,thefactthatnoeconomicintuition
wastaught,onlymathandtheory,theincompatibilityofwhattheywerelearningwithincome
producingwork,andthelackoftimebothtostudyandtohaveanormallife.
3. InterestandviewsofLatinAmerican,USandEuropeanstudents
Letusnowturntostudentsinterestsandviews,andhowthesedifferfromotherglobaleconomics
studentsinEuropeandtheUS.In
Table1wereportthefieldinterestsofLatinAmerican,USandEuropeanstudents.
8
Itprovidesthe
percentagesofstudentswhoreportedthatthefieldswereofgreatinteresttothem.
Table1:Percentageofstudentswhohavegreatinterestinselectedfields

8
TheUSdatainthistableandthefollowingonescomesfromColander(2006),andtheEuropeandatacomesfrom
Colander(2009a).

LatinAmericans
gradstudents
European
gradstudents
USgrad
students
EconomicDevelopment 50% 37% 39%
PoliticalEconomy 50% 35% 24%
MicroeconomicTheory 48% 43% 35%
Econometrics 46% 40% 22%
MacroeconomicTheory 46% 35% 33%
InternationalTrade 43% 20% 19%
MoneyandBanking 38% 21% 21%
PublicFinance 36% 20% 24%
HistoryofThought 34% 15% 9%
LawandEconomics 29% 9% 15%
LabourEconomics 25% 25% 32%
ComparativeEconomicSystems 18% 12% 9%
UrbanEconomics 12% 6% 11%
EducatingLatinAmericanEconomists

58

Thereareanumberofthingstonoteaboutthistable.First,LatinAmericanstudentsseemtobemore
interestedineverything.Second,LatinAmericanstudentsarerelativelymoreinterestedinpolitical
economy,moneyandbanking,internationaltrade,andthehistoryofeconomicthought.Manyofthese
differencesarepossiblyexplainedbythegreaternumberoffirstandsecondyearstudentsintheLatin
Americansurvey.Firstandsecondyearstudentshavenothadachancetospecialiseyet.Another
possibleexplanationfortherelativelygreaterinterestinpoliticaleconomy,moneyandbankingand
internationaltradeisthatthesefieldsaremorerelevanttothepolicyproblemsfacingLatinAmerican
thantheyaretotheproblemsfacingEuropeandtheUS.Itisimpossibletochooseamongthese
explanations.
Theinterestinhistoryofeconomicthoughtmaybeexplainedinthatitprovidesaconnectiontoearlier
LatinAmericanwritings,whicharenowgenerallyonlypresentedinhistoryofeconomicthought
courses,andbecause,eventhoughwefocusedonthoseprogrammesthatweremostglobalised,even
theseprogrammesarenotfullyglobalised:theystillteachhistoryofeconomicthought(atleastatthe
undergraduatelevel),whereasmostUSgraduateprogrammesdonot.Infact,ameasureofhowglobal
aprogrammeismaywellbethedegreeofinterestinthehistoryofeconomicthoughtexpressedbythe
students.Themoreglobalaprogrammeis,thelessintereststudentswillhaveinthehistoryof
economicthought.
SomeofthemostremarkeduponresultsofthefirstUSstudy(ColanderandKlamer,1987)were
studentsresponsestothequestionofwhatcharacteristicswouldmostlikelyputthemonthefast
track.
9
Table2liststheresponsesofLatinAmerican,EuropeanandUSglobalstudents.
Table2:Perceptionsofsuccess

9
Studentscouldinterpretfasttrackastheywanted.Frominterviewswithstudentsinpreviousstudies,itwas
foundthatmostUSandEuropeanstudentsinterpreteditasadvancingwithinacademiceconomics.

Veryimportant
Moderately
important Unimportant
LA EURO US LA EURO US LA EURO US
Beingsmartinthesensethat
theyaregoodatproblem
solving 60% 61% 51% 37% 34% 38% 1% 6% 7%
Beinginterestedin,andgood
at,empiricalresearch 51% 38% 30% 41% 51% 52% 8% 9% 12%
Excellenceinmathematics 40% 40% 30% 51% 51% 52% 9% 9% 14%
Beingveryknowledgeable
aboutoneparticular 20% 35% 35% 65% 48% 42% 14% 14% 15%
Abilitytomakeconnections
withprominentprofessors 25% 30% 33% 43% 54% 40% 24% 11% 19%
Abroadknowledgeofthe
economicsliterature 25% 16% 11% 55% 53% 44% 16% 28% 35%
Athoroughknowledgeofthe
economy 40% 16% 9% 48% 39% 24% 11% 42% 51%
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59
Asyoucansee,LatinAmericanstudentsseeempiricalworkasmoreimportantthaneitherUSor
Europeanstudents,andtheyseebeingknowledgeableinaparticularfieldasbeinglessimportant,
althoughthatisprobablyexplainedbythegreaterpercentageoffirstandsecondyearstudentsinthe
LatinAmericangroup.However,thelargestdifferencehereisthatLatinAmericanstudentsconsidered
havingabroadknowledgeoftheeconomicsliteratureandhavingathoroughknowledgeofthe
economyasmuchmoreimportantthandidtheUSstudents.ThissuggeststousthattheLatinAmerican
studentsarenotassinglemindedlyfocusedontechniquesasisthecaseinUSprogrammes,andthat
theLatinAmericanprogrammesaregivingstudentsabroaderperspectiveofeconomicsthantheyget
attopUSschools,anotherpossiblereflectionoftheincompleteglobalisationoftheprogrammes.
10

Anumberofthequestionsinthesurveyexploredstudentviewsonwhateconomicswasandhow
studentsviewschangedovertime.Table3comparesthebeforeandafterviewsofLatinAmerican
studentswiththoseintheUSandEuropeanstudentsonanumberofpropositions.
Table3:Currentvs.earlierperspectivesoneconomics

LatinAmerican
students Europeanstudents USstudents
Strongagree Strongagree Strongagree

Before
Grad
school
Current
View
Before
Grad
school
Current
View
Before
Grad
school
Current
View
Thestudyofmainstream
economicsisrelevantforthe
economicproblemsoftoday
46% 61% 37% 34% 37% 44%
Economistsagreeonthe
fundamentalissues 19% 18% 11% 9% 11% 9%
Wecandrawasharpline
betweenpositiveand
normativeeconomics
15% 17% 10% 9% 15% 12%
Learningeconomicsmeans
learningasetoftools 29% 54% 23% 41% 26% 36%
Economicsisthemostscientific
disciplineamongthesocial
sciences
34% 37% 34% 36% 46% 50%

Asyoucansee,LatinAmericanstudentssaweconomicsasbeingmorerelevantbothbeforeandafter
beginningtheirgraduatestudies;theysawmoreagreementonfundamentalissues,whileUSstudents
saweconomistsasmorescientificbothbeforeandafter.
11
However,theLatinAmericanstudentshada
lowerbeliefthantheUSonesthateconomicsisthemostscientificdisciplineofthesocialsciences.

10
Wewanttomakeitclearthatwearenotclaimingthatthatinterestisbad.Wearesimplydescribingthe
differences.
11
Fortwoofthesequestions,thephrasingwasslightlydifferentintheEuropeanandLatinAmericanstudies,so
theresultsarenotcompletelycomparable.IntheUSstudy,thequestionaboutrelevancyandabouteconomic
learningfocusingontoolsreferredtoneoclassicaleconomicsintheUSstudyandmainstreameconomicsinthe
EuropeanandLatinAmericanstudy.
EducatingLatinAmericanEconomists

60
Therewasalsoafairlysubstantialincrease(from29%to54%)inthenumberofstudentsbelieving
learningeconomicsmeanslearningasetoftools.
Ourinterpretationoftheseresultsisthattheyarepartlyaresultofthedifferentcontentofthe
programme,andpartlytheresultofthegreaterconcentrationofLatinAmericanstudentsinthefirst
andsecondyear,duringwhichtheygetaMastersdegree.TheMastersportionoftheLatinAmerican
programmes,likethefirstyearsoftheUSprogrammes,ismorefocusedontoolcreation
(microeconomics,macroeconomicsandeconometrics)thanonideas.
Table4reportsLatinAmericanstudentviewsonpolicyissuesandcontraststhemwith
EuropeanandUSstudentsviews.
Table4:Viewsonpolicyissues

Agree
Agreewith
reservations Disagree

LA EURO US LA EURO US LA EURO US

Fiscalpolicycanbean
effectivetoolina
stabilisationpolicy
37% 21% 21% 59% 59% 58% 3% 9% 12%
Centralbanksshould
maintainaconstant
growthofthemoney
supply
8% 9% 7% 45% 28% 22% 42% 42% 50%
Thedistributionofincome
indevelopednations
shouldbemoreequal
45% 35% 32% 36% 43% 41% 15% 18% 18%
Aminimumwage
increasesunemployment
amongyoungand
unskilledworkers
27% 26% 33% 32% 38% 38% 32% 25% 23%
Tariffsandimportquotas
reducegeneraleconomics
welfare
47% 42% 51% 30% 43% 39% 16% 9% 7%
Inflationisprimarilya
monetaryphenomenon
30% 20% 34% 20% 38% 33% 23% 27% 20%

Note:ThesumofthepercentagescorrespondingtoAgree,AgreewithreservationsandDisagreeinsomecasesdo
notreach100%duetosomerespondentswithnoclearopinions.
Forthemostpart,theresponsesaresimilartoUSandEuropeanresponses.Tworesults,do,however,
standout.LatinAmericanstudentssawfiscalpolicyasmoreeffectiveinstabilisingtheeconomythan
eitherEuropeanorUSstudents,andtheymorestronglyfavouredequalityofincomeindeveloped
nations.Regardingdisagreementswiththepreviousstatements,LatinAmericanstendtobestronger
againsttheviewthatminimumwagesincreaseunemploymentamongcertainworkersthantheirUS
counterparts.
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Table5considerstheLatinAmericanstudentsviewsofeconomicassumptionsandcontraststhemwith
thoseofEuropeanandUSstudents.
Table5:Importanceofeconomicassumptions
Veryimportant
Importantinsome
cases Unimportant
LA EURO US LA EURO US LA EURO US
Theassumptionof
rationalbehaviour 41% 40% 51% 50% 53% 43% 7% 5% 5%
Economicbehaviour
accordingto
conventions
22% 14% 9% 51% 55% 55% 17% 12% 17%
Therational
expectations
hypothesis
33% 25% 25% 54% 55% 58% 8% 15% 13%
Imperfectcompetition
66% 49% 37% 30% 44% 58% 1% 2% 3%
Pricerigidities
30% 25% 14% 55% 61% 65% 11% 8% 11%
Costmarkuppricing
21% 16% 5% 56% 50% 47% 10% 9% 18%

Hereweseesomemajordifferences,especiallyinrelationtotheUS.Specifically,LatinAmerican
studentsseeimperfectcompetition,pricerigiditiesandcostmarkuppricingasmoreimportantthan
eitherEuropeanorUSstudentsdo,whereastheUSstudentsseetheassumptionofrationalbehavioras
moreimportantthandoeitherLatinAmericanorEuropeanstudents.Theresultsareconsistentwith
theotherfindingsinthesurveyandsuggestthattheeconomicsLatinAmericanstudentsarelearningis
somewhatmoregroundedintherealworldthaniswhatUSstudentsarelearning.
Wewillsummarisetheremainingresultsratherthanreportingthemintabularform.LatinAmerican
studentsresponsetoaquestionaboutstudentspoliticalviewsweresimilartotheUSandEuropean
students,withslightlymoreLatinAmericanstudentsthatUSstudentsseeingthemselvesinthecentre
ofthepoliticalspectrum.
12
Some19%ofLatinAmericanstudentssawthemselvesasconservative;35%
sawthemselvesasfallinginthecentre;13%classifiedthemselvesasleft,and19%classifiedthemselves
asother.
13
Whilethepoliticalviewsweresimilar,therewasnotthemovementtowardtherightas
studentsprogressedintheirstudiesthatonesawinEuropeanandUSstudents.Insteadtherewasa
slightleftwardshiftintheLatinAmericanstudents.Ofthe20%whochangedtheirpoliticalviewsin
graduateschool56%movedtotheleftand44%movedtotheright.However,aswasthecaseintheUS
andEurope,mostdidnotchangetheirviews,andsincethesurveysweredoneatdifferenttimes(2003

12
Becauseinterpretationsofthetermsliberalandconservativedifferamongregions,thewordingwaschanged
slightlyintheLatinAmericanandEuropeanquestionnaires.
13
Answersdifferedamongschools.Forexample,ofthethreeschoolsthathadthelargestnumberofrespondents,
conservativesdominatedattheUniversityoftheWestIndies,whileatIlades/Georgetown/AlbertoHurtado,there
wasawidediversityofviews,andattheUniversityofChile,moststudentswerecentre/left.

EducatingLatinAmericanEconomists

62
intheUS,2006inEuropeand200708inLatinAmerica),allwemaybecapturingisthechangeinthe
ideologicalmoodovertime.
Anotherquestionwasanopenendedquestionregardingwhicheconomist,deadoralive,they
admiredmost.WhileKeynesianeconomicsmayhavefadedfromimportanceinthemodern
macroeconomicsthatistaughtinglobalprogrammes,Keynesremainsthemostadmiredeconomistin
theUS,EuropeandinLatinAmerica.SixteenstudentslistedKeynesasthemostadmiredeconomist;the
nextmostlistedeconomists,AdamSmith,JuanAntonioMoralesandArthurLewis,werelistedbysix
studentseach.
4. GlobalGraduateEconomicsinLatinAmerica
ThesurveyhasprovidedaglimpseofglobalgraduateeconomiceducationinLatinAmericathatis
currentlydealingwithquestionsofhowitshouldchangetokeepupwithfastevolvingchanges
occurringineconomics.WhilemanyLatinAmericanprogrammeshavefoundtheirnicheasMasters
feederprogrammesforUSandEuropeanglobalPhDprogrammes,manyarealsodealingwiththeissue
ofwhethertheyshouldbecomeglobalPhDprogrammes(andhowtheyshouldbeintegratingthemore
technicalsideofeconomicsthatglobaleconomicsfocuseson)withthemorerealworldpolicysideof
economics(whichtraditionalLatinAmericaneconomicsprogrammesfocuson).Putanotherway,the
forcesthatseparatetheLatinAmericaneconomicsacademicinstitutionsintothetraditionalandglobal
divisionsseemtobealsooperativewithinthemoreglobalsetofschoolsinoursurvey.Thus,inthe
secondpartofthepaper,wereflectuponthestrugglebetweenthesetwotraditionsandwhatitmight
meanforLatinAmericangraduateeducationineconomics.Whilethesestrugglesbetweenthesetwo
traditionsareneithernewnoruniquetoLatinAmerica,andcanbeseenthroughouttheeconomics
professionshistory,theyareofparticularimportancetoLatinAmericangraduateeducation,andthe
surveyresultsserveasbackdroptosuchadiscussion.
14,15

WhatpreviouslyprotectedthetraditionalprogrammesinLatinAmericawerethedifferentlanguages
andthediverseinstitutionalculturesofLatinAmericancountriesandthebeliefthatdevelopment
economicswasdifferentthanmainstreameconomics.ThesedifferencesshelteredtheLatinAmerican
programmesthatfocusedondevelopmentandallowedlocalconversationstodevelop.Thisledto
graduateprogrammesthathadadistinctLatinAmericanidentity,andwhichtendedtofocusonmore
policyorientedanalysisthatwasmorerelevanttolocalpolicymakersthantoglobalprogrammes.In
thesetraditionalprogrammesonepublishedajournalarticleonlyifonefeltlikeit;advancementdid
notdependonit.Advancementinsteaddependedononesteaching,onesabilitytoadvise
government,andonesabilitytoimpressothereconomistsinonescountryandintheinternational
economicscommunitydevotedtodevelopment,whichsawitselfasseparateandbroaderthanthe
economicsinmanyothersubfieldsofeconomics.
Thathasnowchanged.DevelopmentEconomicshasbecomeanimportantsubbranchofmainstream
economics,usingthesametoolsandapproachasotherbranchesofeconomics.Simultaneously,more
andmoregraduateprogrammesareshiftingtoteachinginEnglish.Additionally,giventheemphasisof
fieldworkintheproductionofmainstreamresearch,animportantnumberofresearchprojectsinvolve

14
Forexample,thefightbetweenthetwoapproachesunderliedthefamousmethodenstreit.Asenseofthefights
canbeseenbylookingatUStextbooksinthe1800sandearly1900s,whenthetextsreflectedanalmosttotal
dominationofthetraditionalapproach.Atthattime,theforerunnersoftheglobalmathematicalglobalapproach,
suchasManfeoPanteleonstextbook,PureEconomics,werehardlyused.(Colander,2006).
15
WhatisnowconsideredglobaleconomicsonlybecamedominantintheUSinthe1950saswhatmightbecalled
traditionalUSeconomics,(whichhadstrongInstitutionalistrootsandwhichplacedheavyemphasisoneconomic
literature,historyofideas,andheuristicappliedpolicy),wasreplacedbyamoreformal,technical,mathematical,
andstatisticalapproachthathasevolvedintomodernglobalscientificeconomics(LandrethandColander,2002).
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63
collaborationbetweenUSandEuropebasedresearcherswithothersbasedinLatinAmerica,dealing
withproblemsthatarerelevantforLatinAmerica.ThismeansthattraditionalLatinAmerican
economicswillhavetobemakingsomeimportantchoicesinthecomingdecadeabouthowmuchthey
wanttointegrateintoglobalmainstreameconomicsteaching.
WhilewefullyagreethatLatinAmericanprogrammescan,andshould,furtherintegratethemselves
intoglobaleconomics(wewillelaborateonthatinthenextsection),wealsorecognisetheproblemsof
globaleconomicstrainingforthemajorityofeconomistswhoexpecttobegoingintopolicyratherthan
intoglobalacademicresearch.Specifically,intermsofpreparingeconomicscientists,globaleconomics
traininghasmuchtobesaidforit.However,ithaslesstobesaidforitintermsofpreparingmore
appliedpoliticaleconomists/handson,policyorientedeconomists,whosejobistotransfereconomic
knowledgeintoworkablepolicies,andtoargueforthosepoliciestothebroadercommunityoutsideof
economics.LatinAmericaandotherdevelopingcountrieshaveagreatneedforthesepolicyoriented
economists.Theyhavefarlessneedfortheeconomicscientiststhatcurrentglobalprogrammesare
turningout.Searchingforworkablepolicysolutionsismoreengineeringlike.Ithasdifferentgoalsthan
purescience,whichisprimarilyinterestedinunderstanding,notapplication.Itcanbearguedthatpure
scienceshouldhavenothingtosayaboutpolicybecausepolicymustbebasedonvaluejudgements.
ThatwastheessenceofLionelRobbins'argumentinhisfamousbookonthescopeandmethodof
economics.
16

Therearemanysubtlepointsinmoralphilosophyrelevanttotranslatingtheinsightsofscienceto
policy,andsomeonetrainedasapoliticaleconomistwouldhavetraininginthosesubtleties.Most
currentglobaleconomicstrainingprovideslittletraininginsuchareasandthusisdeficientintraining
studentstobringeconomicinsightstopolicy.Eitherthestudentslearnitontheirown,ortheydont
learnitandbecomeideologues,arguingforviewsthataredependentonvaluejudgementswithout
admittingthatthatiswhattheyaredoing.Thetendencyforeconomiststodopreciselythatisoneof
thereasonsnoneconomists,andeconomistswhodonotagreewiththevaluejudgementsimplicitin
mainstreameconomicmodels,findeconomistssofrustrating.
Globallytrainedeconomistshavefitthetwotogetherbyconcentratingtheiranalysisonwhatmightbe
calledhandsoffpolicyanalysis.Suchanalysisiswrittenforothereconomistsoradvisorsmoresothan
itiswrittenforpolicymakers.Tothedegreetheanalysisactuallycomestopolicyconclusions,those
conclusionsarecontingentontheimplicitvaluejudgementsandgoalsinthemodels.Ifthepolicy
makeracceptsthesevaluejudgmentsandgoals,andiftheworldworkslikethemodel,thenheorshe
shouldfollowthispolicy,butknowingwhentodosoandwhennotisaspecialtythatscientistsarenot
trainedinsuchissuesaregenerallyconsideredoutsideofscience.Scientificeconomistsmustleaveit
totheintermediarybetweentheeconomicscientistandthepolicymakertodothetranslation.In
Robbinsview,developingmodelsthataremoreeasilytranslatedintopolicy,anddoingthetranslation,
istheroleofthepoliticaleconomist,andthustheappropriatetrainingforpoliticaleconomistswould
differfromtheappropriatetrainingforaneconomicscientist.Itrequirestraininginmoralphilosophy
thatiscurrentlynotpartofeconomistscoretraining.
Whatglobaleconomistshavemostshiedawayfromishandsonpolicyanalysis.Thishandsonpolicy
analysisisdifferentfromthetypicalpolicyanalysisdonebyappliedmicroeconomists,whichismore
econometricallysophisticated,andismeanttobeacontributiontothescientificdebate.Handson
policyanalysisisdesignedtocontributedirectlytothepolicydebatesinacountry.Whereashandsoff

16
Inhisbook(Robbins,1935)heprovidedthecurrentdefinitionofeconomicsusedinmosttexts.Robbinsalso
arguedthateconomistsshouldspeakoutonpolicy,buttheyshouldnotdoitintheirroleasaneconomicscientist,
butinsteadintheirroleasapoliticaleconomist,wheretheyexplicitlymakeclearthattheirpolicyadvocacyis
basedonvaluejudgementsaswellasoneconomicknowledge.(Colander,2009a).Thatseparationbetweenthe
scienceofeconomicsandpoliticaleconomy,whichwasacentraltenetofclassicalmethodology,hasbeenlost.
EducatingLatinAmericanEconomists

64
policyanalysisconcentratesonthescientificaspectofpolicy,handsonpolicyappliesscientific
knowledgetopolicybyintegratingeconomicknowledgeandeconomicmodelsintoabroader
framework.Itdealsexplicitlywiththevaluejudgementsratherthanleavingthemimplicit.Itmakesthe
argumentwhyconsumersovereigntyisdesirable,andbetterthanthealternatives;itconsiderswhen
individualfreedomandmarketmechanismsarecompatibleandwhentheyarenot.
Therealityisthatglobalprogrammesprovidestudentswithlittletraininginthemoralphilosophy
aspectofpolicy,orinanyhandsonpolicytraining.Theproblemisthatsuchhandsonskillsare
neededbyappliedeconomists,andhenceareskillsthatprofessorsteachingstudentswhowillbecome
handsonappliedeconomists,needtohave.Itisnottrainingtheycurrentlyreceiveinthecore.The
centralfocusofcoretraininginglobalprogrammesistoteachstudentstobecomeacademic
researchers,nottobecometeachersorpractisingeconomistsworkinginaministryoranNGO.
Thedifferencebetweenthetwocanbeseeninthemeasuresoftheiroutput.Outputofglobal
economistsismeasurednotintermsofusefuladviceofferedtodecisionmakers,norinanymeasureof
howeffectivelystudentsaretaught,butratherintermsofacademicjournalarticleoutput.Anarticlein
EconometricaandtheJournalofEconomicTheorygetshighweightsintheseglobalrankings.Abook
(evenanenormouslyinfluentialonesuchasHernandodeSotosTheMysteryofCapital),policyadvice
giventogovernmentondesigningaworkingprogramme,orapamphletornewspaperarticlethat
introducesaneweconomicideaintothepoliticaldebateinacountrygetszeroweightinglobaloutput
measures,butwouldgethighweightinameasureofapoliticaleconomistsoutput.Globaleconomics
studentsarenottaughthowtodosuchwork,orhowtoteachit.
Theskillsnecessaryforhandsonandhandsoffpolicyeconomistsarequitedifferent.Forexample,to
contributetohandsonpolicyinLatinAmerica,Spanishisamuchmoreappropriatelanguagethan
English.Theabilitytoquicklystudydataandpulloutthecentralelementsismuchmoreimportantthan
formalstatisticalanalysisofheteroscedacity.Theabilitytowriteupatwopageanalysisthat
summariseswhateconomicshastocontributetoapolicyissueismuchmoreimportantthantheability
towriteajournalarticle.Theabilitytocommunicatewithnoneconomistsismuchmoreimportant
thantheabilitytocommunicatewithothereconomists.Thelistcanbeextendedsubstantially.
Bydesign,globaleconomicsprogrammesdonothavethegoalofpreparingstudentsforhandson
policy.Someglobaleconomicsstudentsnonethelessmayhaveanaturalabilityathandsonpolicy,and
thusmakegoodhandsonpolicyadvisors.Theirexpertiseinthosecasescomesfromtheirnaturalability
orfromseparatetraining,notfromtheirtrainingwithintheglobaleconomicsprogramme,although
someoftheskillscrossover,andahighlevelofknowledgeofthescienceofeconomicsisextremely
usefulforapolicyorientedeconomist.Thepolicyorientedeconomistneedsaconsumers
understandingofeconomictheory,notaproducersknowledge;thetwotypesofknowledgearequite
different.Whileaglobaleconomistisinterestedinpolicy,hisorherinputintopolicyisgenerallyasa
technicalexpertinterpretingdataandcreatinglongrununderstanding.Ahandsonpolicyeconomist
mustknowhowtouseeconomictheory,nothowtocreateit.
Inshort,politicaleconomygraduatetrainingwouldconcentratenotonpreparingstudentstobecome
economicscientists,withanabilitytousethelatesttechnical,statisticalandanalytictechniques,but
instead,wouldseeitsroleaspreparingstudentstobecomehandsoneconomicengineers,withthe
abilitytobringtheinsightsofeconomicsciencetopolicy,andpreparingprofessorsofeconomicswho
willtrainstudentsinhandsonpolicy.Thefocusofsuchabranchwouldthenbepolicydesignand
implementation.Thepoliticaleconomybranchwouldbemoresimilartoengineeringthantoscience,
andwouldbeappliedeconomicsnotinthesenseofbeingsophisticatedstatisticalanalysis,butinthe
senseofrelatingeconomicideastorealworldpolicy.Itwouldconsume,notproduce,informationin
economicscience.Whilethisbranchwillprobablyposenewquestionstoitsscientificcounterpart,it
willnottrytoprovidescientificanswerstothem.Iftraditionalgraduateprogrammestakeontraining
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65
studentsaspoliticaleconomists,andnotaseconomicscientists,theycancomplementglobal
economicsprogrammes,andnotbeinoppositiontothem.
Theneedfortwotypesoftrainingisnotuniquetoeconomics.Naturalscience,forexample,hasapure
sciencebranchandanengineeringbranch,andeachhasaseparatetraining.Thereare,ofcourse,
variouslevelsofimplementationthemorehandson,themoreremovedthetrainingwillbefrom
graduateeconomicstraining.Atsomepoint,thetrainingwillgobeyondeconomicsandfitinpublic
policy,notineconomics.Ourargumentisjustthatsignificantlymoretrainingonimplementationfor
futureappliedeconomistswithingraduateeconomicprogrammesiswarranted,andglobaleconomic
programmes,whatevertheirothervirtues,arenotprovidingthattraining.
5. PositioningLatinAmericaneconomicsinthefuture
InLatinAmerica,manyoftheissuesthatwouldbecomecentraltothestrugglebetweentheglobaland
traditionalapproacheswerediscussedalmost50yearsago,when,inawellknownarticle,Pintoand
Sunkel(1966)arguedthatLatinAmericaneconomicsshouldbeseparatefromU.S.economics,because
LatinAmericaninstitutionsandpolicyproblemsdiffer.ManyLatinAmericaneconomistssharedtheir
view,andadistinctLatinAmericaneconomicsdeveloped.Thisformsthebasisoftraditionaleconomics
inLatinAmericatoday.ThathistorymeantthatlargeportionsoftheLatinAmericaneconomics
professionwereslowtoadoptglobaleconomics.Instead,LatinAmericantrainedeconomiststrained
otherLatinAmericaneconomists,allowingtraditionalLatinAmericanprogramstodifferfromU.S.
programs.
ThisviewthatLatinAmericaneconomicsshouldbedifferentfromU.S.economicsremainsstrong
amongstudentstodayevenamongthegloballyorientedschoolsthatwesurveyed.Inanswertoa
questionShouldtheresearchagendasofLatinAmericanandU.S.economistsdiffer?students
overwhelminglyansweredyes.Thereasonstheygaveincludeddifferentproblemsandtheneedto
buildaneweconomicsystem,differentinstitutions,differentpolicyproblems,andageneralbelief
thatresearchshouldbespecifictoeachcountrysneeds.Onenegativecommentnoted,however,
thatsomeLatinAmericancountrieshavenoresearchagendasbecausetheydontdoresearchatall.
InanswertoaquestionShouldthegraduateLatinAmericaneconomiceducationalsystembe
structuredsimilartothegraduateU.S.economiceducationalsystem?therewaslessagreement.A
significantmajorityofthestudentsansweredno,sincetheyfeltthattheeducationalstructureshould
bedesignedtofitthespecificproblemsandinstitutionsofacountry.However,theminorityviewwas
thataunifiededucationalsystemmakessense,andsincetheU.S.educationsystemisthebest,Latin
Americashouldfollowit.TheseanswersdifferfromthoseinEurope,wherethestrongmajorityviews
werethattherewasonlyaglobalresearchagendaandtheireducationalsystemsshouldnotdiffer
amongcountries.
Whileweagreethatthereisonlyonescientificeconomictheory,webelievethatthetypeof
economistsdevelopedanddevelopingcountriesneedmaydiffer,andthattheLatinAmericanstudents
viewsmaybereflectingthatdifference.Specifically,developingcountriesmayneedeconomistswith
traininginhowtoapplyeconomicinsightsmorethaninhowtodevelopnewscientificinsights.As
opposedtobeingtrainedinpureresearch,whichwillbenefittheentireworld,LatinAmericanand
otherdevelopingcountriesneedtraininginthedevelopmentpartofresearchanddevelopment,
thatisinhowtotranslateeconomicinsightsintoworkablepoliciesinarealworldinstitutionalsetting.
DespitethisinfluxofLatinAmericanfacultytrainedintheUS,LatinAmericanprogramsarechanging
moreslowlythancontinentalEuropeanprogramsbothbecauseLatinAmericahasnocommon
educationalpolicy,andbecauseithaslessofaneedtorelyonEnglishsincemostLatinAmerican
countriesspeakSpanish,allowingSpanishtoserveasacommonlanguage.Thus,whereasallthe
coursesintheglobalEuropeanschoolsweretaughtinEnglish,aswestatedabove,intheLatin
EducatingLatinAmericanEconomists

66
Americanschoolswesurveyedonly25%ofthestudentshadbetween70%and100%oftheircoursesin
English,and25%hadnone.Only32%oftheLatinAmericanstudentsweregoingtowritetheir
dissertationinEnglishwhereasalmostalloftheEuropeanstudentsweregoingtowriteinEnglish.
BasedondiscussionswithLatinAmericaneconomists,andonourknowledgeoftheexperienceofother
areas,unlessaviablealternativeisdeveloped,itislikelythatLatinAmericaneconomicsgraduate
programsinthefuturewillbecomemoretechnicalandmoreglobalinorientationthantheycurrently
are.MoreandmorecourseswillbetaughtinEnglish;historyofthoughtandnontechnicalpolitical
economywilldecreaseinimportance,andglobalLatinAmericangraduateMAtrainingwillbecome
evenlessdistinguishablefromMAtrainingelsewherethanitisnow.
Inthinkingaboutthisfuture,itisimportanttonotethatthesedevelopmentsdonotmeanthatLatin
AmericaissuccumbingtoU.S.economics,whichwasaprimaryconcernofPintoandSunkel.Wesaythis
becauseglobaleconomicshastranscendedU.S.economics.Althoughthegeographiccenterofthe
economicsprofessionremainstheUS,thenationalitycenteroftheglobaleconomicsprofessionisno
longerAmericentric.
17
Modernglobaleconomicsismulticultural,nottiedtoanyparticularnationality.
AlargemajorityofPhDeconomiststoday(over60%)graduatingfromtopU.S.schoolsarenownonUS
citizens.
18
AsSebastianEdwards(2003)pointsout,manyLatinAmericanstudentsdowell,andLatin
Americaneconomistshaveastrongpresenceatalllevelsoftheglobaleconomicsprofession.
Modernglobaleconomicsis,however,tiedtoEnglish,andoneareainwhichLatinAmericanstudents
findthemselvesatacompetitivedisadvantagewithU.S.studentsinvolveslanguage.Sincetheirnative
languageisnotEnglish,andthelanguageofglobaleconomicsisEnglish,LatinAmericaneconomists
haveahardertimethanthosenativeEnglishspeakingstudents,orotherstudentswhohavehad
extensivetraininginEnglish.Inoursurveyweaskedstudentsaboutthesecosts.Inonequestionwe
askedstudentshowmuchEnglishreducestheirproductivity:47%saidthatitdidnotreduceitatall;
16%saiditreduceditby5%;16%saiditreduceditby16%;12%saiditreduceditbetween10and20%,
while10%saiditreduceditbymorethan20%.TotryandputabetterfigureonthecostofEnglishto
students,wealsoaskedthemhowmuchoftheirincometheywouldbewillingtogiveupiftheycould
changetheuseofEnglishinEconomicstotheirnativelanguage.33%werewillingtogiveupnothing;
16%werewillingtogiveup010%;14%saidtheywouldbewillingtogiveup10to20%;22%saidthey
werewillingtogiveup2050%oftheirincome,and16%werewillingtogiveupmorethan50%.
Combiningtheseanswers,andrecognizingthatthesearethestudentswhohaveselfselectedintoa
globalprogramthattheyknowisEnglishoriented,andwhorespondedtoanonlinesurveyinEnglish,
thecostsofusingEnglisharesubstantialtothestudents,andwilllikelybeconsiderablyhigherfor
studentsinmoretraditionalprograms.
6. EmphasizingtheNeedofaGlobalPoliticalEconomyBranchintheRegion
Ifouraboveargumentsarecorrect,whatLatinAmericanandotherdevelopingcountriesmostneedare
politicaleconomistseconomicengineers.Globaleconomicsdoesnotprovidesuchtraining;itfocuses
ontrainingpurescientists,andaslongasthatisthecase,tothedegreethatLatinAmericanprograms
becomeglobalized,LatinAmericanstudentsaregoingtobepulledawayfromhandsonapplying

17
Putintoabroaderhistoricalperspective,theglobalizationoftheeconomicsprofessionisnotsuchanovel
change.Inthelate1800stheeconomicsprofessionwasglobalandmultilingual;traininginlanguageswaspartof
graduatetraining,andtherewerecentersofeconomicsspreadthroughoutEurope,andlesssoinotherpartsof
theworld.Inthe1930sand1940s,thegeographiccenterofeconomicsshiftedtotheUS,astherewasanexodus
ofscholarsfromcontinentalEurope.ThesescholarswerecentralintheU.S.economicsprofession,sowhilethe
geographiccenteroftheglobaleconomicswasintheUS,itsnationalitycenterhasalwaysbeenmoreglobal.Other
areas,suchasIndiaorLatinAmericahadlessofarole,althoughtherewereimportantindividualcasesof
influence.
18
U.S.studentsactuallymakeupalargerpercentageofstudentsatlessprestigiousschools.(Colander,2007)
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67
economicsandtowardthecreationofscientificeconomicknowledge.Itisthattensionthatwebelieve
wasbeingcapturedinthestudentconcernsinthesurvey,andiscapturedbythedivisionbetween
traditionaleconomicsandglobaleconomics.
Thefailuretoprovidespecializedtraininginpoliticaleconomyis,inourview,aflawincurrentglobal
trainingofeconomists.Thattrainingfunnelsalleconomiststhroughasingletrainingdesignedforthe
creationofeconomicscientists.Ironically,economics,oneofwhosecentralinsightsistheneedfor
specialization,doesnottakeadvantageofitinitstraining.Thus,ourproposalisthatthereshouldbe
twotypesofglobaleconomicsoneaglobalscientificeconomicsverysimilartowhatcurrentlyexists,
andtheotheraglobalpoliticaleconomy,whichismorehandsonandapplied.Thisglobalpolitical
economywouldgrantPhDsinpoliticaleconomyratherthaneconomicscience,andsuchpolitical
economyPhDscouldbetherequiredcredentialforhandsonappliedpolicypositionsforeconomists,
andforundergraduateprofessorsofeconomics.Aglobaleconomicssciencedegreewouldbe
inappropriatetrainingforsuchjobsinthesamewaythataPhDinphysicsisanunacceptabledegreefor
anengineer.
TheseparationbetweenscientificandhandsoneconomicswithinLatinAmericaneconomicsPhD
trainingissomethingthatdefactohasbeenhappening,althoughthetraditionalandtheglobaltraining
areseenasmuchmoreinoppositionthantheyneedbe,and,inourview,astheyshouldbe.Thetwo
complementeachother;theydonotsubstituteforeachother.Alltoooftenthestudentsseeapplied
policyasafallbackjobforstudentstrainedinaglobaltradition.Amongthosetrainedintheglobal
tradition,thosewhosucceedintheirprogram,andwhohavenofinancial/fellowshipobligationtogo
backtotheircountries,generallystayintheU.S.(orEurope)andfocustheirresearchonscientific
economics.Eventhosewhoreturngenerallyhaveastrongdesiretodoscientificeconomicsresearch;
thatswheretheyhavetraining.Thosewhoendupinappliedpolicypositionsmanage,buttheydoso
withoutexplicittraining.
BecauseofLatinAmericasneedforeconomistswithhandsonappliedeconomicsskills,webelievethat
LatinAmericanprogramsshouldconsiderdesigningtheirgraduateprogramswithtwoseparatetracks
ineconomictrainingascientifictrack,whichisessentiallythetracknowbeingofferedinglobal
economicprograms,andapoliticaleconomicstrack,whichisdesignedtopreparestudentsforhands
onresearchandforteachingstudents.
Thispoliticaleconomytrackwouldbemorelikethetraditionaltraining;itwouldinvolvetrainingina
broaderrangeofeconomicsliterature,andbetterknowledgeofinstitutions,andofmoralphilosophy
thanisnowtaughtineconomicsprograms.Forexample,asopposedtowritingaMastersthesis,
studentsinpoliticaleconomywouldbebetterservedbywriting,say,fiveshortpapersonpolicyissues,
somewithatimelimit.Suchprogramsmaywellbegradedbypracticingeconomistsintheagenciesand
ministrieswheretheywillbeworkinginconjunctionwiththeprofessorsinthecourses.Theagency
economistscanpresenttheprofessorswithaproblem,whichbecomestheexercise.Thestudentswill
havetosurveytheliterature,compileavailabledata,anddoatenpagereportinaspecifiedtime
periodoffromtwodaystotwoweeks.AnotheroftheMastersdegreerequirementscouldbewriting
anopedpieceforanewspapertakingapositiononacertainpolicy.
Togetsomeideaofhowmanyexistingstudentswouldfitthepoliticaleconomyprogram,weasked
studentstwoquestionsaboutwherethestudentwillbeinthefuture.Inresponsetothefirst,61%said
theyplannedtopursueanacademiccareer,9%didnotknowand30%wereuncertain.Anothersimilar
questionaskedwheretheyhopedtobe15yearsfromnow?Inresponse,32%saidatauniversity,32%
saidatapolicyinstitute,22%saidintheprivatesector,and13%saidother,whichincludedthepublic
sectororinternationalorganizations.Finally,inresponsetoaquestionofwheretheywouldliketo
work,70%choseLatinAmerica.Sinceitislikelythataglobaleconomicscientistwouldmostlikelywant
tobeataU.S.graduateuniversity,ourviewisthataboutathirdoftheexistingstudentsinthe
EducatingLatinAmericanEconomists

68
programswesurveyedwouldbebetterservedbyaprograminpoliticaleconomyratherthanaprogram
inglobaleconomics.
ThestudentsoverwhelmingviewthatLatinAmericaneconomicsshouldhaveadifferentresearch
agendafromU.S.economicsisconsistentwiththeneedfortwodifferenttracks.TheLatinAmerican
politicaleconomytrackwouldbemorepolicyoriented,andwouldbethehandsonappliedtrack.We
believeeffortsshouldbemadetostrengthenthesetraditionalprogramswithoutlosingtheircurrent
appliedpolicyfocus.
Inoursurveystudentscertainlybelievedthatsomethingalongthatlinewasworthexploring.Aswe
statedabove,whenweaskedstudentsthequestionShouldtheresearchagendasofLatinAmerican
andU.S.economistsdiffer?Ifso,howandwhy?mostrespondedthatyes,itshouldbedifferent
becausetheissuesandeconomiesofdevelopingcountriesaredifferent,buttheyurgedcollaboration
withU.S.economistsduetotheirbettertrainingandfunding.Weagree.Wealsoagreethatcreating
theseprogramsinapoliticallychargedatmospherewilllikelybedifficult.Nonetheless,creatingthese
programsoffersasignificantopportunityforLatinAmericatoleadthewayinblendingtheglobal
scientificprogramswiththemoretraditionalappliedpoliticaleconomyprograms,makingthetraining
moreappropriateforappliedeconomists.

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(18301930).IlPensieroEconomicoItaliano.XIV.Pp.114.
Colander,David.2009a.TheMakingofaEuropeanEconomist.EdwardElgar:Cheltenham,England.
Colander,David.2009b.WhatWasItthatRobbinswasDefining?JournaloftheHistoryofEconomic
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Colander,DavidandArjoKlamer.1987.TheMakingofanEconomist.JournalofEconomicPerspectives.
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DeSoto,Hernando.2003.TheMysteryofCapital.NewYork:BasisBooks..
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Pinto,Anibal,andOsvaldoSunkel.1966.LatinAmericanEconomistsintheUnitedStates.Economic
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AuthorBiography
DavidColanderistheChristianAJohnsonDistinguishedProfessorofEconomicsatMiddleburyCollege.
In20012002hewastheKellyProfessorofDistinguishedTeachingatPrincetonUniversity.Hehas
authored,coauthored,oreditedover40booksand150articlesonawiderangeoftopics.Hisbooks
andarticleshavebeentranslatedintoanumberofdifferentlanguages,includingChinese,Bulgarian,
Polish,Italian,andSpanish.HehasbeenpresidentofboththeEasternEconomicAssociationand
HistoryofEconomicThoughtSocietyandis,orhasbeen,ontheeditorialboardsofnumerousjournals,
includingJournalofEconomicPerspectivesandtheJournalofEconomicEducation.
HugoopoisaLeadResearchEconomistonEducationattheInterAmericanDevelopmentBank,based
inBogota,Colombia.HereceivedhisPhDinEconomicsatNorthwesternUniversity.Beforejoiningthe
IDB,hewasanAssistantProfessoratMiddleburyCollegeandaResearchFellowatGRADE.Hehasalso
beenprofessoratdifferentuniversitiesinPeru.HeisaResearchAffiliateattheInstitutefortheStudyof
Labor(IZA,inBonn,Germany).Hehasservedintheeditorialboardsofdifferentjournalsandhis
researchhasbeenpublishedinjournalssuchastheReviewofEconomicsandStatistics,Economic
Letters,theReviewofIncomeandWealthandEconomicDevelopmentandCulturalChange,among
others.
Contactdetails

DavidColander
MiddleburyCollege
DepartmentofEconomics,MiddleburyCollege,Middlebury,Vermont05753
8024435302
Nofax
Colander@middlebury.edu

Hugoopo
InterAmericanDevelopmentBank
Carrera7ma7121,TorreB,piso19.Bogota,Colombia
Phone:(571)3257011
Fax:(571)3257050
Email:hugon@iadb.org