Economist

Job overview
Economics has been called “social psychology?”? - a perhaps cynical view of the subject - by someone at the very centre of an industrial nation's economy.

But at a more workaday level it can be described as being concerned with the question of how people's materialistic needs can best be satisfied with the aid of available resources.

These resources are labour, capital, technology, entrepreneurship and natural resources derived from nature.

Economists apply themselves to the problems of what is to be produced, how to produce it and for whom.

What do people do in this occupation?
Economists research, forecast, advise etc. ?on a wide range of topics such as inflation, participation in international trade, promotion of economic growth and development, income redistribution, taxation, monetary and fiscal policy problems and many other economic aspects of importance to individuals and society.

What kinds of people are suitable for this career?
Economists must have a broad interest in social and economic matters, together with a thorough knowledge of economic theory and policy.

They should have a creative, thorough, analytical approach to problem solving.

What qualifications are needed?
A university degree in economics, possibly with econometrics and banking as major subjects, is a good basic qualification, to which could be added postgraduate studies in specific aspects of the discipline.