Behind the Scenes to Success with MA in Development Economics Alum

Henry Schneider, from Louisiana, United States, completed his MA in Global Development Economics in January 2024 and took coding and data science extension courses at Harvard in Spring 2024. He is currently working part-time as a tutor and a research assistant at Boston University. We sat down with Henry to take a deep dive into his journey and get his advice to fellow GRS students in this exclusive Q&A session.

What initially drew you to this field? How did your experiences (academic or professional) solidify your passion for this area of study? 

“I had always loved mathematics; economics came later. During my undergrad I worked as a math tutor and TA. I always wanted a job that could make a positive impact, so I initially planned to become a math teacher. But I found that my interests and abilities pulled me more towards research in a social science field, where the research could still have that same kind of positive impact on the world. I chose economics due to the encouragement of Professor Rodney Andrews at the University of Texas at Dallas, an absolutely amazing academic and educator who is sadly no longer with us. With him, I felt like economics really cohered for me. It went from this disparate series of facts-needing-to-be-memorized, into this beautiful and powerful analytic frame for analyzing why our world works the way it does. By the end of my undergraduate studies, I had geared myself towards development economics – the study of how economies transition from lower to higher levels of general productivity – with a focus on macroeconomic policy and global poverty reduction.”

Could you describe a time where you encountered a significant academic challenge in your graduate studies? How did you approach this obstacle and what did you learn from the experience? 

“The Economics MA at BU is a really compact program, so I came into it with a real drive to make the most of it. My greatest challenge was balancing all I had wanted to do: TA work, RA work, my own research, student government, student clubs, classes, and an independent study. During my second semester, I overburdened myself and mental health took a hit. I just felt incredibly swamped and constantly stressed. And the more I overworked, the less efficiency and verve I approached the work with. Ultimately, I did pick up some new habits that helped me sharpen my productivity and focus. But the real takeaway was accepting the limitations of my time and energy, and being more conscious in prioritizing what I really want to be doing.”

What is one thing you believe is crucial for academic/professional success but is overlooked by many? 

“I wish I knew. Maybe I can read about it in the other interviews! 

I think most of us recognize it really comes down to being dedicated and having discipline, alongside knowing how to do the basic networking. Loving what you do is a great starting point, but there is more to it than that. I absolutely love mathematics, for example. I’m reading some books on statistical theory during my free time at the moment. But taking that and fitting it into the daily structures of a job? Enthusiasm alone can’t carry you through all that needs to be done. It comes down to be willing to do work that is difficult, and sometimes tedious, for far off rewards. And what motivates people through that can be very individual. 

I think the closest I’ve come to an answer is to practice having more temporal bandwidth. I don’t know if the term was coined in Gravity’s Rainbow, but that’s where I read it. Temporal bandwidth there refers to the spectrum of time, both in your past and foreseeable future, that your thoughts regularly inhabit. So trying to always be somewhat conscious of the future consequences of my work and long term goals usually encourages me to make the most productive use of time. And taking moments out to reflect on the past helps me from lapsing on important details and lessons learned. Being mindful in that way has just been generally good in other areas of life too.”

What are some opportunities and resources at BU that you’ve utilized and would recommend others to leverage during their time at BU that will benefit them in the future too? 

“For economics majors, if you have any interest in getting research skills –  which should be the majority of you – please take advantage of the RA Mentorship program. During the second semester, all Global Development Economics students are assigned to professors within the department to serve as part-time Research Assistants for their projects. It’s a great way to fit research experience into an otherwise compact program, and it’s completely arranged by the school to boot. Spots are limited and assigned by GPA ranking, which makes it even more important to do well in those initial classes.”

How did graduate school at BU prepare you for professional life?

“I received a great amount of concrete research experience, more so than I would have gotten at most other programs. That includes both my own research and RA work under the really incredible professor Martin Fiszbein. Both those experiences gave me tangible experience with the fundamentals quantitative and qualitative you’d learn in class. Getting the chance to help lead a research project myself has given me a lot of insight into those key logistical hurdles: writing proposals, creating project timelines, effectively coordinating teams, and communicating results. As someone with hopes for a PhD in the near future, that’s an incredibly helpful thing to be able to point to.”

Could you share a strategy or a technique you implemented that helps you achieve an efficient work life balance during graduate school?

“In addition to what I’ve said before; I’ve always liked Eisenhower’s ‘urgent/important’ grid. It’s helpful as a focal point and allows me to sort all the panicked morning thoughts into a tidy prioritized list. It also serves as a small ritual that anchors my mornings. I think small rituals like that are important anchors that give focus and direction to a day.”

Did you have a mentor, professor, or colleague who significantly impacted your success? How did their guidance shape your path?

“I sincerely want to thank Professor Rachel Brule, Professor Dillip Mookehrjee, and Professor Martin Fiszbein for their guidance in research. For our student team’s capstone research, Professor Brule and Professor Mookherjee were the teachers who oversaw our work and gave us continual guidance. We were extremely lucky to have such experienced researchers and educators helping us at every step. I’ve enjoyed working with them so much that I’ve continued to work part time under professor Brule for her own research. Professor Fiszbeinwas my professor under the RA mentorship program. It was so helpful to see his research process, and he went above and beyond to make sure I felt supported too.”

A supportive network is crucial for success. How did you build your support network during your studies or professional life? What advice do you have for other students in building theirs?  

“Talk to your professors. Talk to your professors. Talk to your professors.

Being a TA really made me realize how few students, even at the graduate level, really take advantage of being in proximity to their professors! So much of what you are paying for in graduate school, beyond what you learn in class, is being in a community with these incredible academics. On top of having so much to offer in terms of personal knowledge and networking connections, they are also just intelligent, thoughtful, and interesting people to talk to. That’s not as common as you’d hope for in life!

So much of what went well in my program stemmed from having good connections to professors. It helped me get selected for as the MA GEA leader, it helped me find research opportunities, and it even just gave me a better sense of what was happening on campus. And that starts with going to class every day, sitting in the front, being engaged, taking a little time outside of class to pursue your subjects further, and then corresponding with them via office hours and email based on what you need help with and what in the subject you want to learn more about.”

What were some of the research or internship opportunities you experienced while at BU that helped shape your future career? 

“My degree program in Global Development Economics is centered around our capstone research project. Over the span of half a year, you are grouped with a small team of other students and, with support from professors, are given the resources to a complete economics / political science research project. I’ve already spoken to what an incredible opportunity it was in terms of building skills. But it also felt great to finally be helping lead my own research on a project I thought was making a positive impact. 

For our team’s project, we did an analysis of gendered election quotas within the Khasi tribal areas in India. The Khasi people are a recognized tribal group that partially reside in Northeastern India. They are pretty unique in India, and in most of the world, in that they traditionally practice exclusive matriliny. So typically, this means all generational wealth passes directly from mothers to daughters. However, despite that massive economic advantage, village level leadership is still held entirely by men. An elected council of chieftains called the Dorbar make nearly all day-to-day administrative and judicial decisions. Thus in practice, Khasi self governance is patriarchal despite customary matrilineal practice. In 2020, Khasi villages were asked by the federal government to elect 50% of the leaders on their local employment council to be women, but I think only ~30% of villages complied initially.

Our research project was to theorize what social and economic factors may correlate / explain why some villages comply while others did not. This included developing a literature review, constructing a survey, coordinating with local government, personally administering the survey across 12 different villages, and analyzing the results to better understand the scope of women’s local political leadership, and barriers preventing further engagement.”

About the Author:

Doğa Sevgi

Marketing & Communication Assistant, GRS

Bachelor of Science, Psychology