Professor Susan Athey awarded honorary degree from Duke University

Professor Susan Athey of Harvard’s Department of Economics was one of seven recipients awarded an honorary degree from Duke University at the school’s May 10 commencement exercises this year, 2009.

Susan Athey received her bachelor’s degree from Duke University at age 20, completing three majors in four years: economics, mathematics and computer science. She received her Ph.D in economics from Stanford University at the age of 24.

Professor Athey’s research interests include mathematical methods and tools for theoretical modeling, auctions, industrial organization, econometric identification, and organizational design. Her recent theoretical work concerns dynamic games and contracts with hidden information; applications include collusion and competition among bidders at auctions, ongoing trading relationships among privately informed traders, and the question of how much discretion to give a privately informed central banker in setting monetary policy.  Her recent empirical work has focused on the effects of the design of timber auctions on the types of bidders who participate, revenue, and the prevalence of collusion.

Professor Athey, at the age of 36, was the first woman to receive the John Bates Clark Medal, awarded by the American Economic Association every other year to an American economist under the age of 40 who has made the most significant contribution to economic thought and knowledge.

For more information about Professor Athey: http://www.economics.harvard.edu/faculty/athey
For more news about the honorary degrees from Duke: http://news.duke.edu/2009/01/honorary.html