Biography

I was awarded my PhD in Economics from Keele University in 2010 (doctoral study scholarship award), and prior to that I obtained a BA in Economics (2001) and an MA in Economics for Business Analysis (2003 - postgraduate study scholarship award) from Staffordshire University. I also hold a postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education from Keele University (2009).

Before joining Keele University as a lecturer in economics in January 2012, I held lecturing positions in economics at the University of the West of England, Bristol and the University of Swansea. I have worked as a Research Associate with the Learning and Skills Council for Staffordshire and as a Teaching & Learning Technology Assistant at the University of Birmingham.

I am a member of the European Association of Labour Economists and the Royal Economic Society. In 2018 I was awarded a Senior Fellowship with the Higher Education Academy.

Research and scholarship

Teaching

ECO-10027 Quantitative Methods II

This module develops students' understanding of basic mathematical techniques used in economic analysis and introduces students to fundamental concepts of mathematical statistics (thus departing from the realm of descriptive statistics introduced in ECO-10026 Quantitative Methods I) in preparation for studying ECO-20042 Introduction to Econometrics in year 2 (level 5). In the first part of the module, we discuss how linear and non-linear equations are used to build simple models describing economic behaviour and how to derive fundamental theoretical results. The concept and economic interpretations of differentiation are then presented, followed by an exposition of optimisation - constrained and unconstrained - in the context of economic analysis. The second part of the module focuses on fundamental concepts of probability and probability distributions and their applications in empirical analysis. We discuss sample and population quantities, the concept of random sampling and the sampling distribution, and how the latter is used in inferential statistics.

ECO-30032 Labour Economics

This module develops students' understanding of the labour market and the interactions of economic agents (individuals, firms and the government) with each other and with institutional factors. Theoretical models of labour market behaviour underpin the discussions but focus is on empirical application and policy considerations. The module takes a microeconomics perspective on issues of labour demand and supply, human capital investment decisions, migration and discrimination. Labour market institutions such as trade unions and minimum wages are discussed and the issue of unemployment is explored in both the micro and macroeconomic dimensions.