YEAR 13 STUDENTS ACHIEVE GREAT SUCCESS IN YOUNG ECONOMIST OF THE YEAR COMPETITION
23 September 2024 | Sven Wardle | Posted in: Academic, News, Sixth Form
Every year, A Level economics students are encouraged to enter the ‘Young Economist of the Year’ competition, run by the Royal Economic Society and sponsored by KPMG and the Financial Times.
The competition is designed to encourage students to think about current economic issues and to promote the study of economic science.
This year two Richmond Sixth Form College students, Fearn Wheatley and Ruby Mason, returned after their summer break to start Year 13 to an email from the Royal Economic Society informing them that their entry had been given ‘Commended’ status, one of only 25 entries out of nearly 3000 to achieve this.
Fearn and Ruby forwarded the email to Mrs Clish, their economics teacher, who then spread word of their amazing achievement to Richmond Sixth Form College staff.
We caught up with Fearn and Ruby to find out a little more about their success:
RSFC: Congratulations! Top 25 out of 3000 – that’s an amazing achievement. Tell us a little bit more about the competition and your entry.
F&R: It was part of our A Level economics work. We had to choose to answer one of five questions, then submit our entry to the competition by the middle of July.
RSFC: OK. What was the question you answered and why? And what format did you choose to submit your entry?
F&R: We chose ‘Should the government tax goods that are unhealthy?’, mainly because it felt like the most accessible, with the most information to research. We submitted our entry as a PowerPoint presentation – we wanted to include images as well as words and make it a bit more exciting than just an essay.
RSFC: Where did you get your information from and how long did it take to put together?
F&R: We got together in some of our study periods and probably spent about four hours in total working on the presentation. Researching the information was really interesting. We took some from our A Level economics lessons but did much more research online. We even contacted the Scottish Government!
RSFC: Really?! And they replied?
F&R: Yes! We asked them about the effects of the minimum pricing on alcohol that they have in Scotland. We’ve got the email here – Paul Cavanagh from the Alcohol Harm Prevention team replied to us. We also researched the ‘Five-a-Day’ initiative and looked into branding and labelling of tobacco products. There was plenty of information to work on and it obviously worked out OK – there were five finalists and then the ‘Commended’ list – we were at the top of that list.
RSFC: So you came sixth?!
F&R: Well, maybe! If the commended list was in order.
RSFC: I think we should assume it was! What about the future? You’re at the start of Year 13 and thinking about what happens next year – will economics play a part?
R: Possibly. I’m looking at university courses that focus on English Language at the moment, but it would be good to include some aspect of business or economics – I’m still doing my research.
F: I’m looking at following the business/accountancy route, hopefully finding a degree level apprenticeship in a related area. I know they’re competitive – things like this competition result should help me stand out, though, I hope.
RSFC: Congratulations again and thank you for taking the time to give us a bit more information about your achievements and your plans for the future. All the best with your Year 13 studies and be sure to keep us informed of anything else that we can celebrate!
To have a look at Fearn and Ruby’s entry to the competition, click the link below: