Our values
First and foremost, we value our community members as human beings. Our ability to conduct meaningful, impactful, and relevant research and teaching hinges on our ability to create an environment that welcomes and supports groups that are currently underrepresented in our department and the field as a whole.
We recognize our responsibility to:
- Embrace and value diversity of experience, background, and opinion, particularly with respect to race, gender, and socioeconomic status.
- Create an inclusive, welcoming, and safe environment for all students, with an emphasis on students from underrepresented or underserved backgrounds.
- Acknowledge where we need to improve and invest in the dialogue and work necessary for progress.
We also recognize that the economics discipline, in particular, has much work to do to increase the representation and amplification of underrepresented voices. We are committed to making the study of economics and the economics discipline welcome to everyone.
Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) committee
Through training and education, the department’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion committee seeks to identify the biases, disparities, and cultural norms which inhibit our efforts to attract and retain the best faculty and students.
Each year, the committee engages in activities to foster these goals, including:
- Conducting implicit bias training for our faculty hiring and admissions committees
- Creating a student-led Application Assistance and Mentorship Program that connects prospective PhD students from underrepresented backgrounds with a graduate student mentor for advice and support
- Hosting periodic town halls focused on DEI
In an effort to be more accountable, we look to the results of MIT’s Quality of Life surveys and the reports of the Economics Visiting Committee. Additionally, students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to reach out to any of our committee members to share comments or concerns about the department’s DEI efforts.
Resources
MIT, the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences, and the Department of Economics offer a variety of resources for our students, faculty, and staff with the goal of creating a more inclusive and supportive environment. There are also a number of resources available outside of the Institute.