Matthew Sinclair

Hi all,

I just replied to a specific/topic-based EE question, and I'll repost my reply here as some of the hints/tips/advice/comments could be useful to others




Ok, so it's been over a year since I did my EE, but I'll try my best to give you some help/tips.

- Your topic is wayyyyyyyyyyy too broad for an EE. You should try and make it a local topic, even if it's from a broad origin. I did mine on the effect of falling economic growth (as measured by GDP) in Australia (very broad) on the residential property market of the Brisbane postal code of 4000 (extremely specific). Ultimately I didn't like my topic as there were too many variables, but I managed to still get an A because I did my best to discuss the variables, control them, use statistics/economic theory etc etc etc. I talked about this in the discussion/conclusion. Whereas if I had not made it a specific target, I probably would have gotten a C as there would be WAY too much to talk about and the essay would be too brief.
So yeah, I'd recommend maybe trying to look at the effect of reinvestment/recovery act on economic growth in your region? Perhaps like the Greater Toronto Area, or just the Metropolitan area (probably better). I say metropolitan is better because you could discuss that the metropolitan area has similar characteristics, which makes the data more valid or something like that. Or even just the Downtown area!

- You need to collect both primary and secondary data. Primary data is what you collect yourself first-hand. Like surveys and interviews etc. Try and survey local business owners or people who've been affected by the reinvestment/recovery etc. Perhaps hospitals, schools, and infustructure were a primary focus of the investment? Interview them if you can. Try and get lots of quantitative data as well so you can do graphs etc. This is mostly from secondary sources like government websites. This would be like employment statistics, GDP etc.
I got my data from a survey I did on residents in the city and two interviews with a real estate agent from the city. That was primary data. She also gave me access to some great databanks for secondary sources You get some marks for how much effort you put into the essay, and this is evidenced from the quality of it (overall), what the supervisor says, the sources used, and the effort that's gone into getting primary data....well that's what I interpret "holistic" to be (I think it's the last criteria). I think you get 4 marks for this which is a big deal.

- Don't forget that some data is lagging, leading, or coincident in economics (or something like that). So they illustrate the change BEFORE, AFTER, or WHEN it happens in the economy. You can talk heaps about this.

- I think it says somewhere that data can be no-older than 3 years or something. Check this. This is important. You're allowed some data from before hand, but make sure most of it is recent! You can also talk about this in the discussion as data from the last 3 years only shows a snapshot of the economy, and hence the validity is affected because of blah blah blah...

- Don't forget to use lots of economic theory and make sure that your essay is firmly in the area of economics, rather than say maths...this is the risk when using lots of data and doing graphs/statistics etc. Make sure you always bring it back to economics.

- Set yourself a timeline, stick to it, and make sure you allow at least a month between your deadline and when the essay is due. Revise it heaps, and get other teachers/supervisors/tutors to look at it for comments. Make sure you always look at the markscheme.

- Look at example essays from the internet/IBSurvival (pay to become a member for access to heaps of files...but don't cheat!). Your teachers should give you some samples I think?

Also, the abstract is really easy and important. Good way to get some marks

I put in an "acknowledgements section" to make it look more professional/I think the IB would like it.

DEFINE ALL OF YOUR ECONOMICS TERMS AND THEORY!! I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH!! I think I may have forgotten to define "market" in mine. i feel so stupid as it's practically one of the most important things in the essay, but I don't think it mattered as it's pretty basic and I defined everything else

-Get your EE done as soon as you can. Work on it now, do heaps!! Get it out of the way! (but don't submit it early as that's stupid because you may think of something to change later)