Paper

The term paper assignment is to carry out and write up an empirical investigation of an economic topic (very broadly defined) using the methods studied in class. It is highly recommended that you pick a topic of personal interest using original data. Stuff out of textbooks rarely turns out to be interesting. Think small - like can I do something which will get me promoted on the job - rather than large - can I estimate ISLM curves. Really good projects in the paper have involved estimating what kind of personals ads get a strong response, forecasting church attendence, modelling occupancy rates in UW residence halls, forecasting the demand for lift tickets at Snoqualmie, studying cable deregulation, forecasting box office revenues, and estimating the density of Douglas fir trees.

Good papers usually do more than just describe how an outcome is different between two categories. There is no hard and fast rule about this, but in general think multiple regression.
One way to frame your thinking is as follows: "I'm going to estimate the following parameters. If the parameters look like this, I will conclude A. In contrast, if the parameters look like that, I will conclude B." In this way, the framework of your paper is set out before you begin. (You just have to do all the hard work to fill in the details.)

A variety of past papers can be found at Fall 2006, Fall 2004, Fall 2003, Fall 2002, Spring 2002 and previous years.

The paper must begin with a one-page Executive Summary, which explains everything one will learn from the paper. The paper proper can be no more than five pages. (The paper should be double-spaced and in a reasonable font size.) You may include technical appendices if you think it necessary - but you cannot assume that I will read past the five pages. The paper proper must be self-contained. You must include an appendix with computer output for all results presented in the paper so I can look at it if I'm curious. This doesn't count against the five page limit. You must have an EViews file containing your data available to give me, although I don't generally request them.

A word about the Executive Summary: an Executive Summary is just that - a summary. It is not an introduction. The summary should state what question you asked and tell the answer you found, briefly describing your method. (So it should be redundant to someone who reads the whole paper.) Think of the summary as one page going to your boss. Your boss trusts your work and wants a summary of what she needs to know and no more. Here are two rules about Executive Summaries:

It should be possible to understand the paper by reading the Executive Summary and never reading anything else in the paper.
Nothing should be lost if the reader skips the Executive Summary and reads the paper instead.

You are strongly encouraged to discuss your paper topic with me as early as possible. (You can't do this one in an all-nighter.) The proposal paragraph you turn in must identify the question you plan to work on AND identifiy specifically the data source you are going to use.

It is okay with me if this paper is part of a project for another class as well, provided you let me know (in advance and by email explaining the extent of overlap. Verbal permission doesn't count. You need to be able to give me a copy of the email from me. Obviously, you have to clear it with the instructor of the other class as well.

I will post some of the submissions for future students to see. (If for some reason you are unwilling to have yours posted you need to tell me that - by email.)

Do it three times:

Note that you have to turn in:

A one paragraph proposal. Identify a very specific question you plan to answer, identify the source of your data, and to the extent possible explain what statistical technique you plan to use.
A "first version." This should be a complete paper. Don't think of it as a "draft."
A "final version." Just like the first draft, except ever so much better.

No sports topics

Although I might make an exception for an activity you participate in personally.

Writing style:

Remember that this is a research paper. Do not write about your personal perspective. In general do not write about motivation, unless it's extremely relevant-or really, really funny.

Technical requirements:

The paper needs to be double-spaced and submitted using the Catalyst Collect It facility by 5 pm on the due date. The submission must be a Microsoft Word file, because I will enter comments directly in the file. The file name must begin with your last name followed by your first initial. And on the front page please include your complete email address.

Grading:

Both analysis and writing are taken into account in the grade. Grading is, obviously, subjective. I tend to grade up for interesting topics, for extra effort going the data collection, and for imaginative topics. I tend to grade down for technical errors, even if they are minor, and for less than professional writing. (Surely, you'll have a friend read your paper for clarity, grammar, typos, etc., before you turn it in!)

Citations and plagarism:

It is assumed that you wrote every word in the paper, except for quoted material which is properly cited, and that the ideas are yours. Unless you collected the data personally, you need to cite your data source. Material from web sites, books, etc. must all be properly cited. If you aren't sure if you need to cite something - ask! If you turn in material that you didn't create and isn't properly cited, you'll receive a ZERO on the paper and will be turned over to the University authorities.

(98 percent of people reading the preceding paragraph are offended at the suggestion that they would cheat - and rightly so. Unfortunately, the other 2 percent are offended that they're going to have to do their own work.)

The grade for the paper depends roughly equally on substance and presentation.

Working with data takes longer than you think. Honest! Get started early.