The Inside Job

Top Economist Puts Philosophy Degree to Work

By Liz Wolgemuth

Posted: September 16, 2008

Last month, I reported on a handful of unusual majors and the interesting jobs they might precede. While philosophy isn't technically a weird major, it's often a head-scratcher as to which careers might naturally follow.

When I heard that Alan Levenson, chief economist at T. Rowe Price, was a philosophy major, I asked him how his degree had prepared him for the wild world of economics. He had this to say about it:

Studying philosophy helped me to develop the ability to grapple with difficult texts and lines of reasoning, which have an analogy in economic research, where one is trying to discover how an economy works. I also think that it contributed to the development of what writing skills I have now.

You can find some of his insight into the most recent jobs report here.

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