Awards and Prizes

The Solomon Barkin Graduate Fellowship Fund Award

This award was created by a donation from the family of the late Solomon Barkin, who taught labor economics in the Department for many years. Sol was a well-known labor economist, public servant, and long-time friend of the labor movement. Over the years, his wife, the late Elaine Barkin, continued to support the department and its students.

Nominations: Candidates for this prize are nominated by a member of the faculty.

Criteria:  The award is given to a graduate student in the Department of Economics whose dissertation research

    1) concerns problems faced by working people and/or trade unions, and

    2) has the potential to contribute to improving the conditions of working people.

Students who are nominated for this award by a faculty member are invited to submit a short written statement explaining how their dissertation research fits the above-described criteria.  The Graduate Program Committee evaluates nominees on the basis of

    (a) Conformance with the award criteria listed above;

    (b) Progress made in dissertation research; and

    (c) General academic performance in the program.

The winner is selected by the Graduate Program Committee, and the recipient is presented with a certificate, along with a cash award.

The 2023-24 winner of the Barkin award is Aaron Medlin.

The Galbraith Prize

The Galbraith Prize was created by a donation from Samuel Bowles, Professor Emeritus; Richard Edwards, formerly a Professor in this Department; and Geoffrey Shepherd, Professor Emeritus. It is awarded annually to a graduate student for “outstanding dissertation research dedicated to the use of economic reasoning and facts to enlighten the public discussion of economic issues in the interest of human betterment in the spirit of John Kenneth Galbraith.”

Nominations: Candidates for this prize are nominated by a member of the faculty.

Criteria: The prize is given to the nominee whose dissertation research best fits the criteria given in the quote above.

Students who are nominated for this prize by a faculty member are invited to submit a description of their dissertation research of 1-3 pages in length. The faculty nominator writes a letter evaluating the student’s dissertation research and commenting on how it fits the criteria for this prize given in the above quote. The Graduate Program Committee evaluates the nominees and makes a recommendation as to which nominee should be given the prize. The chair and graduate program director make the final selection.

The 2023-24 winner of the Galbraith Prize is Caitlin Kline.

Past winners