ECO-5006A – Introductory Econometrics

Assignment Brief – Project

● This brief provides information in relation to the Project assignment. Please read this document carefully before attempting the different tasks associated with this project.

● This is a summative assessment, accounting for 70% of the overall mark of this module.

● The deadline for this assessment is set for Thursday 21^st Jan by 3pm. You will need to submit your answers through the module’s BlackBoard (BB) page.

● Your answers must be typed in a word processor of your choice (e.g. Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, Latex, etc.). Please include your student number on the top of your document. DO NOT write your name at any part of your answers, as this assignment must be marked anonymously.

● The general topic of the Project is based on the following question:

“Does studying Economics pay off, relative to other subjects in Social Sciences?

Evidence using data of recent UK graduates"

● The analysis will need to be done in terms of two outcome variables:

o Self-reported salaries of graduates (before any deductions)

o A binary variable representing whether the graduate works in a managerial / professional position or not.

● The project will consist of several tasks. A document with all tasks is available in the module’s BlackBoard under the Project section, with title: “ECO5006A_Stata_Project_QUESTIONS_2020-21-FINAL”. Please read that very carefully, as the file also includes important instructions.

● Note that the allocation of marks to each task is also provided.

● This project’s tasks are designed to assess:

o your understanding of the taught material in the module, both in terms of Econometrics concepts and data analysis using the Econometrics software Stata.  

o your ability to present, interpret, reflect on and communicate your findings.

● All the data analysis must be done in Stata, using the data set Project_2020.dta available on the Project section on the BB. Please see next page for more information related to the data set.

● In tasks that require you to use Stata commands, make sure you clearly report these Stata commands within your answers.

● Note that presentation and clarity of your answers is important, so points may be deducted if your answers are not well-presented or are unclear. For example, use clear font and avoid typos and repetitions. Also, equations need to be presented appropriately, for example by using the available ‘equation tools’ in MS Word or Apple Pages.

● To report your Stata regressions output, you will need to create your own tables instead of copying-pasting the output as it appears in Stata.

● Please note that for most tasks of this project there is not a word count (there is a word count recommendation for some parts of task B). For the tasks with a word count, the University policy regarding word counts and penalties will apply. That is, your answer should not exceed the word count indicated +10%. If it does, there will be a 10% penalty for the part where you exceeded the word limit. The mark for the answers in all other questions/parts will not be affected, as long as your answers in these parts do not exceed the word count +10%.

● However, note that for Tasks A, C, D, E and F, there is a recommendation regarding how long an answer can be it terms of ‘how many pages’. For example, Part A and Part F need to be contained within 2 A4 sides (i.e. a full page). If this `page limit’ is exceeded, then there will be a 10% penalty for the task where you exceeded this page limit.

● Please also make sure that your answer to each part of the Project (i.e. part (a), part (b), etc.) starts on a new page.

● Another data set has been added to the Project section, titled ‘Sample Question – LFS.dta’, which includes data from the Labour Force Survey of 2017 and 2018, having a sample of about 66,000 UK employees. We will use this data set during the online sessions/workshops to investigate the topic:

“What is the relationship between work experience and wages, and does it differ across different sector? Evidence using data from the Labour Force Survey"

We will use this topic to cover issues similar to what you will need to do in your project.

● Please note that this is an individual assessment, and therefore you must attempt the project tasks independently. Collusion between students is not allowed and allegations in relation to this are taken very seriously by the university. Make sure you read the University policy on Plagiarism and Collusion following this link, if you are unsure about what this mean.

● Extenuating Circumstances (ECs): If there are issues or life events that have been impacting on your studies, and therefore on your potential performance in this exercise, you can apply for an EC Request via e:Vision. Please see more details here. Also, make sure you read the UEA regulations in relation to ECs. Here you can find info on how to submit ECs.

THE DATA SET

● The raw data set is provided by the HE Statistical Agency (HESA) Services Limited. It is based on the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) 2016/17 data, combined with other student records and demographic characteristics collected by HESA. The DLHE survey records employment related characteristics of university graduates 6 months after their graduation. The DLHE 2016/17 contains this information for those who graduated in the 2016/17 academic year (note this is the latest survey available). More information about the DLHE survey can be found here: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/news/28-06-2018/sfr250-higher-education-leaver-statistics 

● The data set for this assignment uses a subsample of the original raw data provided by HESA. That is, some variables have been removed, only social science subjects have been kept, and only people in full-time employment are considered.

● The variables’ labels in Stata provide explanations of what each variable represents. If you would like to find more detailed information for the employment-related variables please refer to: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/support/definitions/destinations and for the student characteristics, please refer to: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/support/definitions/students 

● Please note that the agreement between HESA and UEA states that the provided data set can only be used for this project and only by the teaching team and students in Introductory Econometrics. Thus, do not share the data set with any other students/staff in other modules/years/schools, or with any people outside UEA