Laura Boyd

Laura Boyd

Associate Professor Emeritus
Position Type
Faculty
Service
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Biography

As an empirical labor economist, I love numbers, and I attempt to instill that same passion to all of my students. What I do in my own research and hope students are able to do after taking one of my courses is to not only test economic theories quantitatively with real-world data, but also make the numbers “tell a story.”

Degree(s)
B.A., Carleton College; M.A., Ph.D., Ohio State University

Learning & Teaching

Courses

Econ. 424: Labor Economics, Econ. 307: Introductory Econometrics, Econ. 407: Econometrics II, Econ. 102: Introductory Microeconomics.

Research

My area of specialty is labor economics, specifically analyzing the effects that investments in education have on labor market outcomes.
Details

My research focuses on the how education influences outcomes, in particular, earnings later in life. Most recently, using data from the American Community Survey, I have analyzed the differing impact that earning a GED has for immigrants compared to U.S. natives. Additionally, I continue to write pedagogical pieces that shares what works for me in the classroom, in terms of helping students understand the theories better.

Works

Publications

Selected Publications:

  • “The influence that Time Costs and Money Cost Have on Work Incentives: An Application of Childcare Subsidies,” forthcoming in the Journal of Economics and Finance Education.
  • “ The Economic Returns of a GED Certificate for U.S. Immigrants.” Under review.
  • “Analyzing Postsecondary Returns: Does Educational Loan Default Play a Role?” Contemporary Economic Policy.
  • “The Short- and Long-Run Marginal Cost Curves: An Alternative Explanation,” with David W. Boyd, Journal of Economic Education.
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