Economics Personal Statement Example

As an avid history lover, I have been fascinated by the development of our global society, from its ancient conquests to its modern shape. Whether it was the old conquests of the Huns making their way to Eastern Europe, or the rebirth of countries following WWII, these stories and their economic implications for trade and cultural exchange have always pushed me to discover the underlying economic mechanisms and rationales of the world we live in today.
 
As an IB Diploma Candidate in high school, my fascination with Economics has grown even more, especially due to my Economics HL course. Learning about concepts such as externalities has challenged me to consider the real and imaginary costs underlying the most pressing issues facing our world today. In particular, through projects like my Internal Assessment, I have become particularly interested in Environmental Economics and how the protection of natural habitats intersects with economic development. 
 
Notably, I’ve further expanded my Economics knowledge through competitions like Student Business Pioneer (SBP) powered by Harvard Business in grade 10 and National Economics Challenge (NEC) and International Economics Olympiad in this past year. With my teammates, we won the NEC National Gold Award amongst over 1,000 teams and National Second Place in SBP. Within these competitions, I wrote papers and led discussions on topics like China’s strategy dealing with world economic disparity and the technology company’s attitude toward purchasing IP, which underpinned my academic foundation and strengthened my leadership and cooperation skills.
 
While competitions were informative, I yearned to do research. After reading the book Smogtown, I sought opportunities to research environmental issues like that. Finding a summer camp hosted by Tsinghua University, I then spent the next eight weeks working alongside Professor Haifeng Jia and his graduate students. I was primarily responsible for data collection and statistical analysis; however, I also wrote several paragraphs commenting on social and economic factors. Our two papers were titled: ‘Research on the spatiotemporal characteristics of PM2.5 in Beijing’ and ‘Can Changes in Urban Form Affect PM2.5 Concentration?’. The latter was published in the international journal Sustainability (SCI). Frankly, I was absorbed in the college’s research atmosphere and couldn’t wait to have those experiences in my college.
 
This past summer, fortunately, I could do my independent research about the link between land, pollution, and economics using mathematical models. I narrowed my topic to the relationship between land-use carbon emission and economic development in Northeast China, by modifying the Tapio Decoupling Model and creating mine. My results showed that Northeast China was in a weak decoupled state, meaning the growth rate of carbon emissions is slightly lower than economic development. It’s meaningful that I introduced land use to the low-carbon economy and provided policy suggestions, including increasing the area of woodland and grassland and revitalizing tertiary industries, which contributed to the sustainable development of Northeast China. I submitted this research to the Shing-Tung Yau High School Science Award. I want to continue researching economic development under the global goal of sustainability.
 
In addition to competitions, scientific studies, and thesis contests, I challenged myself to choose 4 higher-level courses in IBDP, while keeping the top 2 GPA ranking in school. In Mathematics, I was promoted to AIME and also reached the top 5% worldwide in Euclid Competition. I’ve also established my school’s first campus business fund and enjoy running the school museum. I hope to bring my understanding of Economics and Mathematics to college and deepen my in-depth study where I wish to find the possibility of balancing economic development and other societal objectives of humans.