
“May you live in interesting times.” It’s allegedly a translation of a Chinese proverb, but Wikipedia can’t even figure out who actually said it first. Regardless, an internship at the Federal Reserve Board should be extremely “interesting” over the next year (at the very least). With Bear Stearns almost falling into bankruptcy, and a lot of other investment banks in trouble, an internship in finance doesn’t look nearly as attractive as it did last semester. Still, if you’re interested in economics, finance, or a related field, a job at the Federal Reserve Board is a great alternative. Although connected to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Federal Reserve Board is a different entity. If you don’t already know, the Fed, which is led by Chairman Ben Bernanke, is responsible for crafting the monetary policy that supports the American economy. Continue reading about Federal Reserve Board…

The President’s Council of Economic Advisers is exactly what you’d expect it to be, a group of economists who advise the President on economic matters and drive the policy that the President pursues. The current Chairman is Edward Lazear (he wrote one of the more interesting economics textbooks that I encountered in college), and former Chairs include Ben Bernanke (current Chairman of the Fed) and N. Gregory Mankiw (a Harvard professor and one of my favorite bloggers). You can see that the council is a collection of the finest minds in economics; hence, an internship with the CEA is just what any budding economist needs to get started. Whether you’re looking to go into finance, government, or academia, there are few better opportunities. Continue reading about Council of Economic Advisers…