Faculty Advisor: Research economist, Central Bank of Mexico; Ph.D. in Economics, Washington University in St. Louis

Research Practicum Introduction

(Disclaimer: This program is purely for educational purposes. It is not to give financial advice on personal financial investments.)

In this program, students will learn the fundamentals of the stock market. What are stocks? What are indexes? How have stocks behaved during the last 70 years in the USA? Why do stock prices fluctuate? What are bull and bear markets? How does the Federal Reserve influence stock prices? How to make money in the stock market? Who were the most successful traders in history? What were their strategies? How to get a job at a trading firm? What types of jobs are there at trading firms? How to become a trader?

By the end of this program, students will feel comfortable talking about the stock market and learn whether this is a topic they would like to explore further. They will also complete an individual research paper using what they learned to analyze topics that match their interest and skills. 

Students will also learn general and subject-specific research and academic writing methods used in universities and scholarly publications and generate their own work products upon completion of the program.

Project Topics:

• Identify the bull and bear cycles in China and compare them with the ones in the USA. What were the main drivers explaining them? 

• Analyze the behavior of the S&P 500 index during the COVID-19 pandemic

• What has been the relationship between economic activity and stock market performance in the USA, China, and the EU?

• Key lessons from the book “Trade like a Stock Market Wizard” by Mark Minervini and “Market Wizards” by J. Swartz

• Why is risk management important? How to manage risk?

Program Detail

• Cohort Size: 3-5 students

• Workload: Around 4-5 hours per week (including class time and homework time)

• Target Students: 9-12th grade students interested in applied math, finances, economics, statistics, actuarial sciences, and data science.

• Schedule: TBD. Meetings will take place for around one hour per week, with a weekly meeting day and time to be determined one week prior to the class start date.