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{{short description|Professional in the discipline of economics}}
{{About|the profession|the news publication|The Economist|other uses|Economist (disambiguation)}}
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{{globalize|article|the English-speaking world|date=May 2015}}
{{Update|part=United States|reason=the information about economist salaries in the United States is from 2006 and 2013|date=October 2024}}
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An '''economist''' is a professional and practitioner in the [[social sciences|social science]] discipline of [[economics]].

The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about [[economic policy]]. Within this field there are many sub-fields, ranging from the broad [[philosophy|philosophical]] [[theory|theories]] to the focused study of minutiae within specific [[Market (economics)|market]]s, [[macroeconomics|macroeconomic]] analysis, [[microeconomics|microeconomic]] analysis or [[financial statement analysis]], involving analytical methods and tools such as [[econometrics]], [[statistics]], [[Computational economics|economics computational model]]s, [[financial economics]], [[regulatory impact analysis]] and [[mathematical economics]].

==Professions==
[[File:Mvc-017x.jpg|thumb|Former [[chair of the Federal Reserve]] [[Alan Greenspan]], who obtained his Ph.D. in economics from [[New York University]], testifies before the [[U.S. House Committee on Financial Services]].]]
[[File:Chair Yellen and IMF Managing Director Lagarde 140702 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Former chair of the Federal Reserve [[Janet Yellen]] speaks with [[International Monetary Fund|IMF]] Managing Director [[Christine Lagarde]], 2014.]]

Economists work in many fields including <ref name="bls"/><ref>[https://www.aeaweb.org/resources/students/careers Careers in Economics], [[American Economic Association]]</ref><ref name="AEA"/> academia, government and in the private sector, where they may also "study data and statistics in order to spot trends in economic activity, economic confidence levels, and consumer attitudes. They assess this information using advanced methods in statistical analysis, mathematics, computer programming [and] they make recommendations about ways to improve the efficiency of a system or take advantage of trends as they begin."<ref>[https://www.princetonreview.com/careers/56/economist "Economist"], [[Princeton Review]].</ref> In addition to government and academia, economists are also employed in [[bank]]ing, [[finance]], [[accountancy]], [[commerce]], [[marketing]], [[management|business administration]], [[lobbying]] and non- or not-for profit organizations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.econ-jobs.com/|title=Economics Jobs and Economist Jobs|publisher= Econ-Jobs.com}}</ref>

In many organizations, an "'''Economic Analyst'''" is a formalized role.<ref>[https://www.bls.gov/audience/economists.htm "Economist or Economic Analyst"], [[Bureau of Labor Statistics]].</ref> Professionals here are employed (or engaged as [[consultants]]<ref>[https://www.aeaweb.org/resources/students/careers/econ-consulting Economic Consulting], [[American Economic Association]]</ref>) to conduct research, prepare reports, or formulate plans and strategies to address economic problems. Here, as outlined, the analyst provides forecasts, analysis and advice, based upon observed trends and economic principles; this entails also collecting and processing economic and statistical data using econometric methods and statistical techniques. 
* Economic analysts employed [[Investment banking#Research|in financial institutions]]<ref>[https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/economist.asp "What Is an Economist? Role, Duties, and Influence"], [[Investopedia]]</ref> and in other large corporates,<ref>[https://nabe.com/cbe_webinarseries Careers in Economics], [[National Association for Business Economics]]</ref> provide the (long term) [[economic forecast]]s used within their organizations. Relatedly, they consult to fund managers, risk managers, [[Corporate finance#Investment and project valuation|and corporate analysts]] re their [[investment strategy]] / [[capital budgeting]] decisions. Particularly in [[Technology company|the tech sector]],<ref>[https://hbr.org/2019/02/why-tech-companies-hire-so-many-economists "Why Tech Companies Hire So Many Economists"], [[Harvard Business Review]]</ref> the focus may be microeconomic, addressing pricing, competition, and customer behavior. Re. either perspective, ([[chief economist|chief]]) economists are also often included<ref>[https://hbr.org/2014/09/what-an-economist-brings-to-a-business-strategy "What an Economist Brings to a Business Strategy"], [[Harvard Business Review]].</ref> in [[business strategy|strategy formulation]]. (Well known chief economists are [[Mohamed El-Erian]], [[Hal Varian]] and [[Spencer Dale]].)
* In the [[public sector]],<ref>[https://www.aeaweb.org/resources/students/careers/govt-not-for-profit Central Banks, Government, and Not-for-Profits], [[American Economic Association]]</ref> analysts advise legislators and executives on economic policy, public works, and related; [[politician]]s often consult economists before enacting economic [[policy]]; and many statesmen have academic degrees in economics. A Federal Government Economic Analyst<ref>[https://economics.illinois.edu/node/758 "Federal Government Economic Analyst"], [[University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign]].</ref> conducts economic analysis of issues directly related to the function of their [[List of federal agencies in the United States|federal government agency]].

In contrast to regulated [[profession]]s such as engineering, law or medicine, there is not a legally required educational requirement or license for economists. In academia, most economists have a [[List of fields of doctoral studies in the United States#Social sciences|Ph.D. degree in Economics]].<ref name="AEA">[https://www.aeaweb.org/resources/students/careers/the-economics-profession Economics Profession], [[American Economic Association]]</ref> In the U.S. Government, on the other hand, a person can be hired as an economist provided that they have a degree that included or was supplemented by 21 semester hours in economics and three hours in statistics, accounting, or calculus.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0100/economist-series-0110/|title=Economist Series, 0110: U.S. Office of Personnel Management}}</ref> In fact, a professional working inside of one of many fields of economics or having an academic degree in this subject is often considered to be an economist;<ref name="bls">{{Cite web |title=Economists |url=https://www.bls.gov/ooh/Life-Physical-and-Social-Science/Economists.htm |access-date=2017-02-02 |website=[[U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics]] |language=en-us}}</ref> see [[Bachelor of Economics]] and [[Master of Economics]].

==By country==
[[Bachelor of Economics|Economics graduate]]s are employable in varying degrees depending on the regional economic scenario and [[labour economics|labour market]] conditions at the time for a given country. Apart from the specific understanding of the subject, employers value the skills of [[numeracy]] and analysis, the ability to [[communication|communicate]] and the capacity to grasp broad issues which the graduates acquire at the [[university]] or [[college]]. Whilst only a few{{quantify|date=July 2016}} economics graduates may be expected to become professional economists,{{citation needed|date=July 2016}} many find it a base for entry into a career in [[finance]] – including accounting, insurance, tax and banking, or [[management]].{{citation needed|date=July 2016}}

A number of economics graduates from around the world have been successful in obtaining employment in a variety of major national and international firms in the financial and commercial sectors, and in manufacturing, retailing and IT, as well as in the public sector – for example, in the health and education sectors, or in [[government]] and [[politics]]. Some graduates go on to undertake [[postgraduate studies]], either in economics, research, teacher training or further qualifications in specialist areas.

===Brazil===
Unlike most nations, the economist profession in [[Brazil]] is regulated by law; specifically, Law No. 1,411, of August 13, 1951. The professional designation of an economist, according to said law, is exclusive to those who graduated with a Bachelor of Economics degree in Brazil.<ref>{{cite act |type= |index= |date= |article= |article-type= |legislature= |title= LEI № 1.411, DE 13 DE AGOSTO DE 1951|script-title= |trans-title= LAW № 1,411, OF AUGUST 13, 1951|page= |url= https://www2.camara.leg.br/legin/fed/lei/1950-1959/lei-1411-13-agosto-1951-361899-normaatualizada-pl.pdf|access-date= May 10, 2024|via= |language= pt}}</ref>

===United States===
[[File:Economists salary.png|thumb|300px|Economist salaries by educational attainment<ref name = "Pay Scale, US income of Economists"/>]]
According to the [[United States Department of Labor]], there were about 15,000 non-academic economists in the United States in 2008, with a median salary of roughly $83,000, and the top ten percent earning more than $147,040 annually.<ref>[http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos055.htm#earnings/ US Bureau of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060430185238/http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos055.htm#earnings/ |date=April 30, 2006 }}</ref> Nearly 135 colleges and universities<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AEA/gradstudents/Schools.htm|title=Subscription Application}}</ref>{{verify source|date=June 2016}} grant around 900 new [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]]s every year. Incomes are highest for those in the private sector, followed by the federal government, with academia paying the lowest incomes. As of January 2013, [[PayScale|PayScale.com]] showed Ph.D. economists' salary ranges as follows: all Ph.D. economists, $61,000 to $160,000; Ph.D. corporate economists, $71,000 to $207,000; economics full professors, $89,000 to $137,000; economics associate professors, $59,000 to $156,000, and economics assistant professors, $72,000 to $100,000.<ref name="Pay Scale, US income of Economists">{{cite web|url=http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Degree=Ph.D._Economics/Salary|title=Pay Scale, US income of Economists|access-date=2013-01-14}}</ref>

===United Kingdom===
The largest single professional grouping of economists in the [[United Kingdom|UK]] are the more than 3500 members of the [[Government Economic Service]].<ref>{{cite web |title=About Us |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/civil-service-government-economic-service/about |website=Gov.uk |publisher=Open Government Licence |access-date=May 30, 2022}}</ref>

Analysis of destination surveys for economics graduates from a number of selected top schools of economics in the [[United Kingdom]] (ranging from [[Newcastle University]] to the [[London School of Economics]]), shows nearly 80 percent in employment six months after graduation – with a wide range of roles and employers, including regional, national and international organisations, across many sectors.{{citation needed|date=June 2016}}

==Notable economists==
{{See also|List of economists|History of economic thought}}

Some current well-known economists include:
* [[Adam Smith]], Scottish economist and philosopher. Known as "The Father of Economics".
* [[John Maynard Keynes]], English economist well known for forming the basis of [[Keynesian economics]].
* [[Jan Tinbergen]], Dutch economist known for developing and applying dynamic models for the analysis of economic processes, which led to the establishment of [[econometrics]]. He was awarded the first Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1969.
* [[Ragnar Frisch]], Norwegian economist who coined the term econometrics in 1926 for utilising statistical methods to describe economic systems. He was awarded the first Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1969.
* [[Joan Robinson]], English Keynesian economist.
* [[Karl Marx]], German philosopher and economist known for founding [[Marxist Economics]].
* [[Amartya Sen]] (b. 1933), [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] laureate and professor at Harvard University.
* [[Kenneth Arrow]], [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] laureate and professor at [[Stanford University]].
* [[Robert Aumann]] (b. 1930), Israeli-American mathematician, [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics]] in 2005.
* [[B. R. Ambedkar]], Indian scholar, jurist, economist, politician and social reformer. The [[Reserve Bank of India]] was conceptualized in accordance with the guidelines presented by Ambedkar to the [[Hilton Young Commission]] (also known as Royal Commission on Indian Currency and Finance) based on his book, ''The Problem of the Rupee – Its Origin and Its Solution''.
* [[Ben Bernanke]], [[Chairman of the Federal Reserve]] from 2006 to 2014.
* [[Esther Duflo]], [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] laureate and professor at [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]].
* [[Milton Friedman]], [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] laureate.
* [[Claudia Goldin]],  [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] laureate and professor at [[Harvard University]].
* [[Alan Greenspan]], Chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1987 to 2006.
* [[James Heckman]], 2000 [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences|Nobel Prize]] winner and Professor at [[University of Chicago]]; most cited economist as of 2018.
* [[Glenn Hubbard (economist)|Glenn Hubbard]], Dean of the [[Columbia University Graduate School of Business]]; Chair of the [[Council of Economic Advisers]] from 2001 to 2003.
* [[Thomas M. Humphrey]], American economist and historian of economic thought.
* [[Paul Krugman]], 2008 [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] laureate, [[public intellectual]], and advocate of [[Modern liberalism in the United States|modern liberal]] policies.
* [[Greg Mankiw]], American macroeconomist, academic economist, public intellectual, Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers from 2003 to 2005.
* [[Joseph Stiglitz]], 2001 [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences|Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics]] winner, critic of [[Economic inequality|inequality]] and the [[governance]] of [[globalization]], and former [[World Bank Chief Economist]].
* [[Dambisa Moyo]], Zambian-born international economist and author who analyzes the macroeconomy and global affairs.
* [[Thomas Sowell]], American economist and social theorist, Senior [[Fellow]] at the [[Hoover Institution]].
* [[Robert Lucas Jr.|Robert Lucas Jr]]., 1995 [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences|Nobel Prize in Economics]] winner.
* [[George Akerlof]], 2001 [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences|Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics Sciences]] winner, known for his work on markets with asymmetric information.
* [[Carmen Reinhart]], member of [[American Economic Association]],  2018 [[King Juan Carlos Prize in Economics]] winner.
* [[William F. Sharpe|William Forsyth Sharpe]], 1990 [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] winner.
* [[Christopher A. Pissarides|Christopher Antoniou Pissarides]], 2010 [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences|Nobel Prize in Economics]] winner.
* [[Arthur Laffer]], 2019 [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] winner.
* [[Jeffrey Sachs]], Professor of Sustainable Development at Columbia's [[School of International and Public Affairs]], 2015 [[Blue Planet Prize]] winner.
* [[Ludwig von Mises]], Austrian economist and philosopher, author of ''[[Human Action]]''.
* [[Friedrich Hayek]], Austrian economist, [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences]] laureate and author of ''[[The Road to Serfdom]]''.
* [[Thomas Malthus]] (1766-1834), English economist, cleric, and scholar influential in the fields of political economy and demography.
* [[David Ricardo]] (1772-1823), developed the classical theory of [[comparative advantage]] in 1817.
* [[Henry George]] (1839-1897), American economist, social philosopher, journalist, and leader of the [[single-tax movement]].
* [[Silvio Gesell]] (1862-1930), German economist, entrepreneur, and founder of [[Freiwirtschaft]] economic model.
* [[Jean-Baptiste Say]], developed [[Say's law]] stating that a free economy could not know economic crises.
* [[Ronald Coase]], founder of the concept of [[transaction cost]].

==See also==
{{portal|Business and economics}}
* [[Chief economist]]
* [[List of economists]]

== References ==
===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

=== Sources ===
{{refbegin}}
* [[Mark Blaug]] and Howard R. Vane (1983, 2003 4th ed.). {{Interlanguage link|Who's who in Economics|ru}}. Table of Contents [https://books.google.com/books?id=29U9GeQQnSUC&q=%22who's+who%22+blaug links.] Cheltenham & Edward Elgar Pub.
* [[Steven Pressman (economist)|Pressman, Steven]], 2006. ''Fifty Major Economists.'' Routledge,
* [[Robert Sobel]], 1980. ''The Worldly Economists'' .
{{refend}}

==External links==
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