Economics education and research consortium (EERC)

Kyiv School of Economics (KSE)

Progress Report on Peter Kennedy Memorial Scholarship

Summary The Economics Education and Research Consortium (EERC), Kyiv School of Economics (KSE), is pleased to report to the Peter Kennedy Memorial Scholarship contributors on a current status of the scholarship as on September 1, 2011. A call for donations to the Peter Kennedy Memorial Scholarship was announced in September 2010. So far, we have received contributions to the scholarship fun in the amount of $24,974. A list of contributors to the Peter Kennedy Memorial Scholarship can be found at http://kse.org.ua/aboutus/fellowship.htm. According to the EERC/KSE Scholarship and Financial Support Policies, in the 2011-12 academic year the Peter Kennedy Memorial Scholarship has been allocated to the KSE Teaching Assistant in Econometrics, Mykyta Bilyi. The scholarship funds in the amount of $13,380 will cover the cost of the student education at KSE during the current academic year, as well as his monthly salary as a TA during ten moths. The remaining scholarship funds in the amount of $11,594 will be shifted to the 2012-13 academic year. The 2011-12 Peter Kennedy Memorial Scholarship Recipient A second-year student, Mykyta Bilyi, has been enrolled to KSE in fall 2010. Before KSE, he received a bachelor degree from the National Technical University “Kyiv Polytechnic Institute.” At KSE, Mykyta has recommend himself as an excellent and motivated student (Rank: 1 out of 40; GPA: 4,22). From the 2011-12 academic year, Mykyta occupies a position of the KSE Teaching Assistant in Econometrics. In September 2011 Mykyta’s research proposal on _____________ has been recognized by KSE faculty as one of the best proposals of the Class, and Mykyta has been awarded with a one-week trip to Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE) held on October 22-30 and funded by the Swedish Institute. A letter of gratitude from Mykyta Bilyi to the Peter Kennedy Memorial Scholarship contributors is enclosed to this report. General Overview of KSE and of KSE activities in the academic year 2010-2011 The Economics Education and Research Consortium (EERC), the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE[1]) Master’s Program in Economics consists of a rigorous two-year academic curriculum, comparable to that of leading Western universities and taught in English by international faculty.

The program curriculum is a well-designed combination of applied and theoretical courses in the major areas of economics. The KSE Master’s Program is one of the four unique graduate programs in the region, training the new generation of economists according to international norms.[2] It is by far the only strong internal source of modern well-trained economists in the country of Ukraine. Since past 15 years, the EERC/KSE Master’s Program in Economics has:

· Graduated 482 M.A.s (thirteen classes)● Placed 68% of its graduates in the private sector (finance, banking, consulting,

investment, industry), 21% – in the public sector (international organizations, think tanks, and government), and 11% – in Ph.D. programs in the United States, Canada, and Western Europe, primarily in doctoral programs in economics

● 81 graduates who have already received a Ph.D. degree from Western universities. About 10 of those graduates teach at KSE on full- or part- time basis

● Established cooperation programs with foreign universities and think tanks (University of Houston, CERGE-EI in Prague, Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics, the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, and Norwegian School of Management BI)

● An international faculty team which includes reputed visiting scholars and Western-trained Ukrainian professors who are actively engaged in high quality research and publish in reputable western journals and local media (for a list of faculty and alumni publications please visit www.kse.org.ua)

● Coordinated a very successful student internship program and provided a variety of career services to KSE students and graduates

● Organized the KSE Open Lectures for Ukraine's academic and policy community, bringing world-known economists to Ukraine with the goal of enlarging professional expertise and discussions on different economic topics (for a list of recent speakers please visit www.kse.org.ua)

● Conducted numerous outreach activities through targeting students, policy-makers, business representatives, and media in the region (for a list of student Olympiads, conferences, Speaker Series, career presentations, workshops, seminars, and publications in local media please visit www.kse.org.ua)

EERC/KSE M.A. Program Administration EERC/KSE is governed by its Board of Directors, which bears legal and fiduciary responsibility for the whole organization and oversees its activities. The Board is co-chaired by Anders Åslund, Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics, and Regina Yan, Vice President of the Eurasia Foundation. The Board includes several senior representatives of Western donor organizations, Ukrainian corporations, as well as senior officials from the Ukrainian government. The members of the Board meet every year and have separate discussions on successes and challenges in the EERC/KSE development.The academic quality of the M.A. Program is continuously overseen by the International Advisory Board (IAB) chaired by Dr. Paul Gregory, University of Houston.The program regular operations are supervised by the KSE Director and EERC President, Tom Coupé. EERC continues to maintain a legal address in DC. KSE has its own charitable foundation in Ukraine and a commercial entity – KSE LLC. All financial operations and relations with donors are conducted in Kyiv. EERC/KSE office consists of academic, administrative, development, and financial staff.M.A. Program Academic Curriculum

During the 2010-11 academic year, the Kyiv School of Economics has offered two MA programs: an MA in Economic Analysis and an MA in Financial Economics. The MA program in financial economics is designed to give the student a strong background in both theoretical and empirical work in financial economics. It provides both the strong quantitative skills and the economic theory on which most of the financial economics is based. This training typically leads to careers in the financial sector (banks, consulting companies, etc) but also opens doors to international organizations and Western Ph.D. programs. The MA program in Economic Analysis is designed to give the student a strong background in the economic analysis of public and private decision making. It provides both the strong quantitative skills and the economic theory necessary to analyze specific policy options. This training typically leads to careers in the analytical departments of major international companies, governments, think tanks, or international organizations, and is an ideal preparation for further study at Western Ph.D. programs. Both programs consist of a rigorous two-year curriculum, comparable to that of leading Western universities. The curriculum is a combination of applied and theoretical courses in major areas of economics and finance. Every academic year is divided into five two-month terms, each with seven weeks of instruction and one week of reading, review, and examination. In the second year, each student enrolled in either MA program must write a research paper that meets international quality standards. First-Year curriculumThe first-year curriculum is common for both MA programs and consists of year-long courses in the core fields of economics: Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Statistics & Econometrics and Mathematics for Economists. Second-Year curriculumFrom the academic year 2010-11, the second year students, for the first time, have had a choice between the MA in Economic Analysis and the MA in Financial Economics. Examples of second-year courses are given below. Courses vary from year to year, depending on the faculty available. MA in Financial Economics

● Monetary Economics● Issues in Financial Economics and Strategy● Theory of Corporate Finance● Financial Economics● Emerging Capital Markets● Issues in Financial Economics● Money and Banking● International Finance● Research & Economic Policy Analysis Workshop● Thesis Workshop

MA in Economic Analysis

● Public Economics● New Economic Geography● Issues in Financial Economics and Strategy● Economic Policy Analysis● Labor Economics● International Trade● Issues in Microeconomics: Information Economics● Advanced Macroeconomics● Industrial Organization● Economics of Europe● Game Theory● Demography and Transition● Research & Economic Policy Analysis● Thesis Workshop

The Kyiv School of Economics has an agreement with the University of Houston (USA) that allows KSE students to obtain, while studying at KSE, a Master's Degree in Economics of the University of Houston. Courses taken to receive the KSE certificate can simultaneously lead to a MA degree in Economics of the University of Houston, if the students meet the academic and administrative requirements of the University of Houston. Nineteen students (out of 20) of Class graduated in June 2011 will receive the Master’s Degrees from the University of Houston in fall 2011. The program of studies culminates in the defense of a thesis, written in English under the supervision of visiting faculty, on a topic related to the transition to a market economy. Twenty students successfully defended their theses in June 2011.Academic Staffing The KSE faculty hiring strategy is focused on attracting back Ukrainians with Western Ph.D. degree to teach at the M.A. program. Currently, a majority of our faculty is Ukrainians with a Western Ph.D. About 20% of the program faculty is composed of international ‘visiting faculty’. In addition, we have 2 Candidates of Sciences teaching at KSE – these faculty members are certified by the KSE International Advisory Board. KSE faculty members have published in reputable international journals and local press. The list of faculty publications can be found at www.kse.org.ua. Student Body In June 2011, the KSE M.A. Program graduated its thirteenth class. Twenty students successfully defended their theses, bringing the total number of graduates to 482. At the same time, 40 students completed their first year of studies and will begin their second

year of studies in September 2011.In the result of admission exams held in June 2011, fifty students have been admitted to study at KSE starting September 2011. Thus, the total enrollment now stands at 90.As in previous years, the newly admitted students came from all regions and represented the best Ukrainian, Belarusian, and Moldovan universities. They have undergraduate and master degrees in economics (53%), mathematics (33%), technical fields, and other disciplines. Forty-eight percent of the newly admitted class is women. Five students from Belarus and Moldova have been admitted for the first year of study with full scholarships from SIDA. Ten Ukrainian students (out of 54 newly admitted students) have received full scholarships to study at KSE. Twenty Ukrainian students (out of 54 newly admitted students) have received partial scholarships that cover half of the KSE tuition. The rest of the students have paid the full (Euro 3,000 per year) or partial (Euro 1,500) tuition fee tuition, or have been interviewed by the KSE administration in regards of their financial need. As the result of the interviews, some students have received full or partial deferred tuition and deferred housing support.Recent admission statistics can be found at http://kse.org.ua/news.htm?id=219.

Student Recruitment

The KSE recruitment campaign for the 2010-11 academic year targeted the best universities of Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova. KSE faculty, staff, students, and graduates conducted many recruitment trips to the regional universities, held numerous Open Lectures, Guest Lectures, KSE Olympiads, Open Houses, and student conferences. During the year, KSE produced necessary for recruitment purposes promotional materials (flyers and brochures), placed KSE banners to Internet, as well as widely promoted KSE in various social networks.

Graduation, Employment, and Graduate Placement

The employment of the EERC/KSE 482 alumni may be summarized as follows:

● 11% of graduates continue their studies in the United States, Canada, and Western Europe, primarily in doctoral programs in economics

● 21% of graduates occupy policy-related positions in Ukraine● 68% of graduates work for private sector.

Eighty-one EERC/KSE alumni have been awarded Ph.D.s abroad.

Enrichment Activities

In addition to an excellent economics curriculum and research, KSE students have opportunities that no other economics department in Ukraine can provide. These include: frequent interaction with representatives of the world community of economists, the Ukrainian international organizations and business; internships and assistantships; Open Lectures, academic seminars; research and conference participation. KSE Open Lectures. On a regular basis, the Kyiv School of Economics organizes the KSE

Open Lectures for Ukraine's students, academics, and media, bringing well-known economists. The list of recent Open Lectures can be found at http://kse.org.ua/events.htm?id_category=3.KSE Speaker Series. The Speaker Series is a forum for KSE students to meet outstanding professionals, including representatives of international financial institutions and corporations.A list of speakers during the reporting period can be found at http://kse.org.ua/events/speaker_series.htm. KSE Seminar Series. This activity helps to create a research environment at the school and around the school. During the research seminars, KSE faculty or invited researchers present their latest research. These seminars are open to the public and the target audience consists of KSE faculty and students, and researchers from other universities or think tanks. The list of the seminars organized during the reporting period can be found at http://www.kse.org.ua/eroc/seminars.shtml. Internships & assistantships. During the summer and the academic years, with KSE administration assistance, many students work as interns for international organizations conducting economic policy research in Ukraine, such as the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting, Bleyzer Foundation, the International Monetary Fund, the International Centre for Policy Studies, the Center for Economic and Social Research, and the World Bank. Among other organizations where KSE students had internships are: Citibank, Concorde Capital, Dragon Capital, Coca-Cola, KPMG, Phoenix Capital, Astrum Investment Management, GFK Ukraine, etc. The majority of the internships are on a paid basis. In the second year of study students have the opportunity to learn more about working in academia through participation in the Teaching Assistantships Program. Teaching assistants work closely with visiting faculty, assist in grading, checking and discussing homework assignments, and hold extra class sessions in their subject for first-year students. Teaching assistantships are offered in the following first-year courses: Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, Statistics & Econometrics and Mathematics for Economists. In addition, students have the possibility to work as research assistants to KSE faculty members, participating in various research projects. Such assistantships can lead to joint students/faculty publications in international economic journals, participation in international conferences and research grant applications. Annual student conference. The KSE student conference is a scientific forum where students, the winners of the national research papers and essay competition, have an opportunity to present their essays and research papers and compete for the monetary prizes. The conference participants are economic and finance students of Ukrainian, Belarusian, and Moldovan universities.The student conferences are dedicated to the topics relevant for Ukraine. Read more about the student conferences at http://www.kse.org.ua/NEW/conf.htm. KSE Olympiads. During the academic year, KSE organizes students Olympiads dedicated to Economics, Finance, and Mathematics. The goal of the KSE Olympiads is to create a platform to gather talented students and to provide them with an opportunity to demonstrate their skills in a scientific competition. The KSE Olympiad assignment consists of multiple choice questions. Problems will require combining knowledge of economics and finance theory, analytical skills, quick thinking and ability to apply basic mathematical and statistical concepts to economics and finance problems. The KSE Olympiad is a two-round competition. In the first round, students compete locally for the first three places in their city. The second (final) round is held in Kyiv.

The winners are awarded with the monetary prizes. The Olympiad is taken places in key Ukrainian regions, as well as in Minsk and Chisinau. Cooperation with Foreign Universities and Institutions. The Kyiv School of Economics has an agreement with the University of Houston (USA) that allows KSE students to obtain, while studying at KSE, a Master's degree of the University of Houston. Courses taken to receive the KSE certificate can simultaneously lead to a MA degree in Economics of the University of Houston, if the students meet the academic and administrative requirements of the University of Houston. Up to 3 students can, after the first year, be invited by the University of Houston to start their Ph.D. degree in Houston.The Kyiv School of Economics has launched a cooperation program with CERGE-EI, a Western-style doctoral program in Prague. The Kyiv School of Economics has coordinated its course content with this program, giving a possibility to graduates of the KSE M.A. Program to start immediately in the second year of the doctoral program of CERGE-EI. Moreover, CERGE-EI allows the KSE students, after they finish the second year of Ph.D. studies, to return to Ukraine to finish their doctoral research at the Kyiv School of Economics.Every year, a group of KSE students visit the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics of the Stockholm School of Economics for a one week internship tour. During the tour students have an excellent opportunity to investigate the PhD program at the Stockholm School of Economics, to meet with the economic faculty and SITE researchers, and to participate in the school’s activities.KSE has established a close relationship with the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI). The cooperation includes the joint organization of international conferences, faculty exchanges, and joint research projects. Every academic year a group of top KSE students funded by the Norwegian Government has a short internship tour to NUPI. It is an excellent opportunity for students to meet with NUPI experts, to use the library resources at NUPI and the universities in Oslo and to establish research contacts with Norwegian researchers. It is also a great possibility for students to familiarize themselves with various postgraduate opportunities that exist at Norwegian universities, and learn more about Norway in general.Program Resources: Library and IT The KSE Library is an advanced highly-specialized information center that supports teaching, research and outreach functions of the School. The collection includes graduate- and post-graduate-level textbooks, monographs and reference materials in theoretical economics, finance, business and mathematics. The Library has a rich collection of regularly updated electronic resources, including CDs with electronic versions of economic journals and statistical data. It offers access to online sources and full-text article databases such as JSTOR, EBSCO, Science Direct electronic journals databases. It also contains statistical databases from OECD, WIIW-WIFO, Eurostat, Derzhkomstat, etc. All Library resources are available to applicants to the KSE, who are encouraged to use them to prepare for entrance exams to the School. The KSE computer facilities consist of one student computer laboratory with modern workstations equipped with the necessary licensed software, such as EViews, Stata, Matlab, Econlit, and Internet browsers. Each computer has an access to the program electronic library resources. KSE students have free access to library and IT resources.

[1] KSE is founded by EERC and the Victor Pinchuk Foundation. EERC comprises of the Eurasia Foundation, Global Development, Government of Norway, Government of Sweden, SIDA and Open Society Institute.[2] The other centers are the Center for Economic Research and Graduate Education in Prague, the Central European University in Budapest, and the New Economic School in Moscow, each of which enrolls a small number of Ukrainian students.