IAP 2015 Activities by Category - Economics and Finance

Mark Porter '05, Certified Financial Planner

Jan/07

Wed

04:00PM-05:00PM

32-124

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Becoming a parent is a joyous and life altering event. It can also have a serious impact on your finances. How can you best protect your children? How can you best plan for their future? Come learn the essentials from Mark Porter '05, certified financial planner, and Brian Mahoney, Esq. on topics such as:

• Wills
• Emergency and Permanent Guardianship Provisions
• Trusts
• Education Savings Options
• Life Insurance
• Disability Insurance


The seminar itself will last 60 minutes and then Brian and Mark will be available for questions.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU

Mark Porter '05, Certified Financial Planner, Brian Mahoney, Esq.

Jan/15

Thu

12:00PM-01:00PM

32-124

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

10 Things Every Parent Should Know: Protecting and Planning for your Children

Becoming a parent is a joyous and life altering event. It can also have a serious impact on your finances. How can you best protect your children? How can you best plan for their future? Come learn the essentials from Mark Porter '05, certified financial planner, and Brian Mahoney, Esq. on topics such as:

• Wills
• Emergency and Permanent Guardianship Provisions
• Trusts
• Education Savings Options
• Life Insurance
• Disability Insurance


The seminar itself will last 60 minutes and then Brian and Mark will be available for questions.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98, 617-252-1143, ebyrne@mit.edu

Da Wang, Gregory Wornell

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions

[ Please sign-up by filling out the form at http://goo.gl/forms/AU12wpe7B3 ]

This is a hands-on short course that aims to answer the following questions:

1. What is quantitative investment management?
2. What is the research process for quantitative investment management?
3. How can one develop a quantitative investment strategy?

A few common quantitative investment strategies will be introduced, and examples are given via open data and open source tools. A key part of this course is the mini take-home project, for which feedback will be provided.

Pre-requisites:

1. programming: Python, MATLAB, R, etc.. 
2. basic knowledge of financial markets (stock, bond, etc.)
3. disbelief of the efficient market hypothesis (or don't know what it is)
4. curiosity

 

 

Contact: Da Wang, DAWANG@ALUM.MIT.EDU

---

Overview of quantitative investment

Jan/20

Tue

07:00PM-09:00PM

32-124

Da Wang

---

Quantitative research examples

Jan/21

Wed

07:00PM-09:00PM

32-124

Da Wang

Glenn Ellison, Professor

Jan/20

Tue

10:30AM-11:30AM

E17-139

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This lecture will discuss some of the basic models that economists use to think about the retail industry and apply these principles to help understand the development of Internet retail, Amazon's role in the industry, and why there have been large swings in Amazon's market value.

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Roberto Rigobon

Jan/07

Wed

01:00PM-02:30PM

E51-145

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This session will discuss how several kinds of economists (in fields such as IO, applied micro, applied theory, macro, and international) have found productive professorial careers in several kinds of faculty groups (including economics, strategy, political economy, and international management) within several kinds of business schools (from Chicago to HBS, and many in between). Of course, a professorial career includes both research and teaching, so we will discuss how both may be somewhat different than in an economics department, but also how in many business schools the differences compared to a department are greater in terms of teaching than research.

Sponsor(s): Economics, Academic Media Production Services
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Parag Pathak, Professor

Jan/13

Tue

02:30PM-04:00PM

E17-133

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

In Fall 2014, the Recovery School District in New Orleans became the first district in the United States to become 100% charter.  In this talk, I will review some recent research from MIT’s School Effectiveness and Inequality Initiative (SEII) on the effects of these reforms on student achievement.  

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Christopher Leighton, Assistant Professor, History

Jan/29

Thu

06:00PM-08:15PM

E51-275

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/27
Limited to 25 participants
Prereq: None

Over the last three decades, China's rapid growth has propelled millions out of poverty and captured the world's interest. Are there darker sides to this economic miracle?

Jia Zhangke, a director known for his documentary realism, takes up this topic in Touch of Sin (2013), which tells four interwined tales--all drawn from actual events--of China's contemporary gilded age. Censored in China, the bleak and ultra-violent movie shows a different vision of the "Chinese Dream" of prosperity recently invoked by President Xi.

Participants will watch and discuss the film over a shared Chinese meal. No prerequisites; all welcome.

Sponsor(s): History
Contact: Christopher Leighton, E51-288, 617 324-0541, CLEIGHT@MIT.EDU

Paul Gunning, Planning & Guidance Consultant

Jan/08

Thu

12:00PM-01:00PM

W20-307

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This workshop is designed to help employees who are ready to take their retirement savings to the next level, become more confident investors, understand how the markets may impact their investment strategy, and learn ways to establish and maintain a tax-sensitive savings approach.

Sponsor(s): MIT Human Resources
Contact: Julienne Dean, E19-215H, 617 253-8979, JULIEK@MIT.EDU

Paul Gunning, Planning & Guidance Consultant

Jan/14

Wed

12:00PM-01:00PM

W20-307

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This workshop will help you recognize the importance of managing debt and provide guidance to develop a budget. Learn about steps to improve your financial fitness to help you reach your future goals.

Sponsor(s): MIT Human Resources
Contact: Julienne Dean, E19-215H, 617 253-8979, JULIEK@MIT.EDU

Richard J. Erickson, Certified Financial Planner professional

Jan/07

Wed

12:00PM-01:00PM

32-155

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

Join MIT Federal Credit Union and MITFCU Financial & Retirement Services for a no cost, no obligation seminar where you'll learn the basics of financial planning including:

• How to construct a budget and the importance of establishing an emergency fund
• Credit fundamentals
• Basic investment concepts, including risk tolerance and the difference between pre-tax, after-tax and tax-deferred investments
• Basic estate planning concepts

Click here to sign up.

Sponsor(s): MIT Federal Credit Union
Contact: Brandy Bernabe, 617-324-7492, bbernabe@mit.edu

Santosh Raikar, Managing Director, Seabron Adamson, Senior Consultant

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions

Have you ever wondered how the capital intensive energy projects are financed? What is non-recourse financing? What is meant by VPPs and tax equity financing? Please join to hear from industry experts about Energy Finance and learn about various aspects of Project Finance including technology choice, legal aspects, and recent market trends.

Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Initiative, Energy Club
Contact: Yichen Du, YCDU@MIT.EDU

---

	Jan/12	Mon	12:00PM-02:00PM	e19-319, Lunch served
	Jan/13	Tue	12:00PM-02:00PM	e19-319, Lunch served

Santosh Raikar - Managing Director, Seabron Adamson - Senior Consultant

Amy Finkelstein, Professor

Jan/27

Tue

01:00PM-02:30PM

E25-117

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This talk will describe the results from the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment: a randomized evaluation of the effects of covering low income uninsured adults with Medicaid. It will also discuss strategies and opportunities for increasing the use of randomized evaluations to study important questions in US health policy.

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Heidi Williams, Professor

Jan/26

Mon

01:00PM-02:00PM

E25-117

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This IAP talk with discuss how intellectual property rights -- like the patent system -- affect the rate and direction of research and development (R&D).  It will focus in part on reporting research findings that explore how variation in the length of patent protection for new drugs affects the allocation of R&D spending.

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Andrew Henwood MBA'07, Jonathan Piskorowski SM '07

Jan/29

Thu

12:00PM-01:30PM

E51-149

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Typically students are familiar with DCF analysis, but other approaches, such as multiple analysis, net asset value and sum-of-the parts valuation, are important techniques in providing a broader measure of equity valuation. An effort will be made to include several real world examples of how investment professionals value equities in the Energy and Financial sectors. If time permits, discussion of what can lead to a company into distress will also be considered.

Noon – 1:30 p.m. Introduction to Equity Valuation

*Due to the blizzard, Alumnus Andrew Henwood SM '07 can no longer travel to campus. The corporate credit analysis portion of this talk has been cancelled.

Please note the new start time for Introduction to Equity Valuation.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU

Sara Ellison, Senior Lecturer

Jan/14

Wed

10:30AM-12:00PM

E17-136

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This talk will cover economic issues in the used book market, in particular, changes in competition and consumer search facilitated by the migration of used book sales from brick and mortar stores to online markets.  The talk will be based on new research by Glenn Ellison and Sara Fisher Ellison.  It will be appropriate for undergraduate and graduate attendees.

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Benjamin Olken, Professor

Jan/21

Wed

01:00PM-02:00PM

E17-136

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

In this talk, we will examine how economists study corruption in the field, and how the tools of economics can help us understand how corrupt officials determine how much they can charge in bribes. We will study examples from Indonesia including village road-building, bribes paid by long-distance truck drivers, and illegal logging.

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Paul Gunning, Planning and Guidance Consultant

Jan/20

Tue

12:00PM-01:00PM

W20-307

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

Attend this workshop to learn about the importance of monitoring your portfolio, including how to evaluate your current approach.  Discover how to rebalance your investments to better meet your savings goals.

Sponsor(s): MIT Human Resources
Contact: Julienne Dean, E19-215H, 617 253-8979, JULIEK@MIT.EDU

Ning Wu

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions

This one-day course presents students with the investment analysis tool widely used within the oil and gas industry, mainly the upstream, or Exploration and Production (E&P), and teaches students how oil and gas companies make their investment decisions. The course aims to help students understand the core part of the oil and gas business, and assist them in learning more about the investment career in the oil and gas industry. It does not intend to cover every aspect of the deal making or investment in oil and gas.

The course starts with an overview of the oil and industry, and the competition landscape in the US. Then it elaborates on the investment decision system and deal makings in the oil and gas industry, and the decision tool used to conduct investment analysis. As the core part of this course, a case study, 2 Billion US dollars’ investment on shale gas by an international oil major, is adopted to showcase the investment decision analysis and process. This case study can be done by groups and with discussions. Finally, the course will close by open-ended discussion on investment risks and risk management in the oil and gas industry, as well as career in business or investment track in this industry.

Advance sign up at http://goo.gl/forms/ML7G41gFSS.

Sponsor(s): Urban Studies and Planning, Sloan School of Management
Contact: Ning Wu, ningwu30@gmail.com

---

Jan/21

Wed

09:00AM-05:00PM

E51-145

Ning Wu

Benefits Office Staff

Jan/06

Tue

12:00PM-01:00PM

W20-307

Enrollment: Limited: First come, first served (no advance sign-up)

Learn about the features of MIT's Retirement Plans in this workshop presented by a member of the MIT Benefits Office.

Sponsor(s): MIT Human Resources
Contact: Julienne Dean, E19-215H, 617 253-8979, JULIEK@MIT.EDU

Mark Porter '05, Certified Financial Planner

Jan/07

Wed

06:30PM-07:30PM

32-123

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

MIT has done a great job teaching students how to earn money. Unfortunately, no one teaches students what to do with it when they get it!

This hour-long seminar will offer the basics of a financial-planning approach. It will cover definitions and best practices regarding:

• Cash reserves
• Liability management
• Tax planning
• Insurance planning
• Savings vehicles
• Investments

The class will be most useful for those already working or graduating in 2015, but all are welcome.

Taught by Mark Porter ’05, certified financial planner.

Register today!

 

 

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU

Mark Porter '05

Jan/15

Thu

04:00PM-05:00PM

10-250

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

MIT has done a great job teaching students how to earn money. Unfortunately, no one teaches students what to do with it when they get it!

This hour-long seminar will offer the basics of a financial-planning approach. It will cover definitions and best practices regarding:

• Cash reserves
• Liability management
• Tax planning
• Insurance planning
• Savings vehicles
• Investments

The class will be most useful for those already working or graduating in 2015, but all are welcome.

Taught by Mark Porter, CFP® Class of 2005.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98, 617-252-1143, ebyrne@mit.edu

Michael Mak (makm@mit.edu), Postdoctoral Associate, Fabian Spill (fspill@mit.edu), Postdoctoral Associate

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/05
Limited to 35 participants
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions

Random forces appear in many seemingly disparate fields, from physics and biology to finance and economics.  This course introduces some of the fundamental mathematical tools used to describe the underlying stochastic processes that drive biology and finance.  A quantitative approach will be taken to illustrate how stochasticity plays a central role in generating the complex patterns we observe across many scales, including basic examples such as random walks of cells and molecules and elementary derivative pricing.  We will focus on key principles and allude to how understanding one of these systems may provide insights towards the other.  Basic knowledge of math and differential equations would be useful (as well as knowledge of some mathematical software such as Matlab or Mathematica).  Bring your laptop, preferably preinstalled with Matlab or Mathematica.  

 

Please email makm@mit.edu or fspill@mit.edu to register.

Contact: Michael Mak, makm@mit.edu

---

Schedule

	Jan/06	Tue	11:00AM-12:00PM	NE47-342, Bring your laptop
	Jan/07	Wed	01:00PM-02:00PM	NE47-342, Bring your laptop
	Jan/13	Tue	01:00PM-02:00PM	NE47-342, Bring your laptop
	Jan/14	Wed	01:00PM-02:00PM	NE47-342, Bring your laptop

Lecture and interactive activities.

Richard J. Erickson, Certified Financial Planner professional

Jan/14

Wed

12:00PM-01:00PM

32-155

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

Attend a valuable seminar on how to build a retirement income plan. In this seminar, you'll learn:

• How to get the most from your pension & Social Security
• How to invest to generate income during retirement
• How to make sure you can meet your health care needs
• What sources of income you should draw upon and when

Click here to sign up.

Sponsor(s): MIT Federal Credit Union
Contact: Brandy Bernabe, 617-324-7492, bbernabe@mit.edu

Mark Porter '05, Certified Financial Planner, Andrew Percey '95, MNG '96, Founder, Prometheus Internet Marketing

Jan/15

Thu

06:30PM-07:30PM

32-144

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Starting and growing your own business can be tremendously rewarding. But it involves much more than just offering a product or service. How do you manage your personal finances if you haven’t received significant funding? What do you need to know about employees and taxes? How do you create an online presence that will drive revenue and growth? Come learn the essentials regarding:

• Taking advantage of changing tax brackets during start-up
• Efficient use of your personal funds
• Managing payroll and taxes
• Determining your best online marketing strategy
• Building the optimal website for your business
• Attracting your target customers to your website 
           
The first half of this seminar will focus on small business finances and is taught by Mark Porter '05, certified financial planner. The second half will focus on promoting your business online and is taught by Andrew Percey '95, MNG '96 founder of Prometheus Internet Marketing and advisor to the MIT Venture Mentoring Service (VMS).  The seminar will last 60 minutes with Mark and Andrew available afterwards for additional questions.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU

Mark Porter '05, Certified Financial Planner, Andrew Percey '95, MNG '96, Founder, Prometheus Internet Marketing

Jan/07

Wed

12:00PM-01:00PM

32-124

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

Starting and growing your own business can be tremendously rewarding. But it involves much more than just offering a product or service. How do you manage your personal finances if you haven’t received significant funding? What do you need to know about employees and taxes? How do you create an online presence that will drive revenue and growth? Come learn the essentials regarding:

• Taking advantage of changing tax brackets during start-up
• Efficient use of your personal funds
• Managing payroll and taxes
• Determining your best online marketing strategy
• Building the optimal website for your business
• Attracting your target customers to your website 
           
The first half of this seminar will focus on small business finances and is taught by Mark Porter '05, certified financial planner. The second half will focus on promoting your business online and is taught by Andrew Percey '95, MNG '96 founder of Prometheus Internet Marketing and advisor to the MIT Venture Mentoring Service (VMS).  The seminar will last 60 minutes with Mark and Andrew available afterwards for additional questions.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU

Richard J. Erickson, Certified Financial Planner professional

Jan/21

Wed

12:00PM-01:00PM

32-124

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

Regardless of when you plan to retire, Social Security will likely be an important part of the road ahead. How can you get the most out of your benefits?

Join MIT Federal Credit Union and MITFCU Financial & Retirement Services for a no cost, no obligation seminar that can help you set your financial direction and answer more of your questions:

• What are the rules for starting Social Security benefits?
• How do spouses coordinate their benefits?
• Are there different routes to take that could potentially increase your benefits?
• How do you decide where Social Security fits within your retirement plans?

Click here to sign up.

Sponsor(s): MIT Federal Credit Union
Contact: Brandy Bernabe, 617-324-7492, bbernabe@mit.edu

Peter Diamond, Institute Professor Emeritus

Jan/12

Mon

01:00PM-02:30PM

E17-136

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

Debates about higher structural unemployment occur whenever unemployment has stayed high.   Consistent with the academic literature, a shift in the Beveridge curve, as in the current recovery, has been viewed as a structural change, suggesting a limited role for stimulus. But a shift has occurred in 8 of the 9 recoveries since 1954.

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Pol Antras, Professor

Jan/15

Thu

01:00PM-02:30PM

E17-133

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

This session will discuss how world production processes have been sliced across borders. An emphasis will be placed on how economists have attempted to systematically  document this phenomenon and how they have attempted to understand it through theoretical models

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Richard J. Erickson, Certified Financial Planner professional

Jan/28

Wed

12:00PM-01:00PM

32-155

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

Join us for a no-cost, no-obligation seminar where you will learn:

• Medicare "basics" and the differences between Parts A, B, C, and D
• Tips for choosing your coverage and enrolling in Medicare
• How to consider health care costs when planning your retirement income

Click here to sign up.

Sponsor(s): MIT Federal Credit Union
Contact: Brandy Bernabe, 617-324-7492, bbernabe@mit.edu

Seema Jayachandran, Associate Professor

Jan/22

Thu

01:00PM-02:30PM

E17-133

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

Gender gaps in education, legal rights, life satisfaction, etc. are smaller in high-income countries than low-income countries. This talk discusses how the process of economic development narrows gender gaps, as well as why gender equality might be good for economic growth.

Sponsor(s): Economics
Contact: Linda Woodbury, E18-201D, 617 253-8885, LWOODBUR@MIT.EDU

Paul Gunning, Planning & Guidance Consultant

Jan/22

Thu

12:00PM-01:30PM

W20-307

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

In this workshhop you will learn about:

• How much higher education might cost and ways to pay for it
• The differences between the various savings plan options
• How federal tax laws affect college savings and the MEFA U.Fund College Investing Plan or your 529 plan, in particular

Sponsor(s): MIT Human Resources
Contact: Julienne Dean, E19-215H, 617 253-8979, JULIEK@MIT.EDU