In This Story
Forget candlelit dinners and heart-shaped chocolates—this Valentine’s Day a group of economists and policy experts celebrated in a different way: by diving into the complexities of labor markets, employment trends, and economic policies. It was a labor of love.
On February 14, George Mason University’s Mason Square saw more than 100 scholars, students, and researchers who gathered for a full day of idea-sharing at the seventh annual Washington Area Labor Economics Symposium (WALES). Hosted for the first time this year by Schar School of Policy and Government’s Center for Micro-Economic Policy Research (CMEPR), the event featured 22 in-depth presentations and nine research posters tackling big questions in the dynamic and multidisciplinary field of labor economics.
Eleven George Mason faculty members either chaired sessions, gave oral presentations, or adjudicated poster presentations. Five posters were from George Mason students.
Alongside the traditional deep dives into policy analysis, the event featured rapid-fire “lightning talks” that kept the energy high. PhD students, faculty members, and economists from top universities, think tanks, and federal agencies shared groundbreaking research and debated the hottest topics in labor policy.
“This conference really put the Schar School on the map among researchers studying labor issues in the Washington, D.C., region,” said John S. Earle, a Distinguished University Professor and director of CMEPR. “We had participants from nearly all the local universities, international organizations, and government research agencies.”
With nearly 40 PhD students in attendance—14 from the Schar School alone, with others representing the George Mason College of Public Health and Department of Economics—the event served as a powerful reminder that economic research isn’t just about numbers and theory. It’s about shaping policies that impact real people’s lives.
For graduate students, WALES wasn’t just about presenting research, it was a prime networking opportunity. Young scholars like Schar School PhD student Sungbin Park found it instrumental.
“It gave us a chance to see cutting-edge research, connect with experts, and build relationships with others working on similar topics,” Park said. “The symposium was really valuable for Schar School PhD students as it not only provided an extensive introduction to the wealth of local research on topics related to student research, but also the opportunity for students to grow their professional networks with other students and researchers with similar interests coming from other departments and institutions.”
The bottom line for the symposium, CMEPR, the Schar School, and the university?
“What an absolutely fantastic conference,” concluded Schar School associate professor Catherine Maclean, a health and labor economist who studies substance abuse and public policy and was an attendee. “WALES made the Schar School look great.”