ESDS International provides real-world economic data for a wide range of researchers, analysts and decision-makers. Today, this data is also being used in learning and teaching, bringing considerable benefits to students, teachers and society as a whole.

Here, we focus on how Nick Weaver of The University of Manchester and Paul Turner of Loughborough University are using this data to teach applied econometrics to undergraduates and Masters students.

Learning from early exposure

The main benefit for students using real-world data, as opposed to fictional or pre-configured, is that they learn how economics data looks in its raw state. They have to extract the data themselves, and so experience first-hand the complexities and difficulties of working with it.

Nick Weaver expands on this:

"I suppose it's connected with getting your hands dirty and looking at the real world. Lots of the standard courses have got data that's already in some senses cleaned and used to show an econometrically interesting point of view, whereas when you actually start to investigate the world you often find that things aren't straightforward."

One particularly useful lesson students need to learn is that often there simply isn't enough data for some of the advanced techniques economists want to use. As Nick says:

"Exploring what data's there can help people realise this."

As well as letting students discover for themselves the problems of working with real-world data, Nick also encourages them early on to take a scientific approach to econometrics.

So, they don't just use data extraction and analysis skills – they also document the data they use, where it's from, and the techniques they use to manipulate it, in a way that makes their work replicable.

Studying realistic scenarios

With real-world data, learning activities can be based on real-life situations, which makes them all the more relevant and interesting for students.

At Loughborough University, Paul Turner combines topics such as consumption, investment and imports, giving his undergraduates different projects, which they can change each year.

Nick Weaver's Masters students at The University of Manchester receive assignments that mimic a real workplace research task. They can choose their own topic, as they're certain to find their choice within ESDS International's broad range of data.

Gaining essential skills – and improving job prospects

Working through projects in labs, students can extract, then re-extract data any number of times. They can try out different methods and learn from their mistakes, without worrying about losing data.

It's a risk-free way to gain statistical, computer and information skills, which are directly applicable to the workplace. Students also have the opportunity to develop a portfolio of realistic project work, which they can use to demonstrate their skills and experience to prospective employers.

So, in an area that's often seen as dry and difficult, using real-world economic data from ESDS International makes study more enjoyable – and enhances employability.

As Paul Turner explains:

"Econometrics is not a popular subject, because we have loads of students who find it technically hard. But the feedback I get is that they actually quite enjoy doing the project, because it is something practical and they can see that there may just be an application for this that they'll use when they leave here.

"I always start the econometrics course off by telling them that if there's one course they may actually make use of when they leave, it's probably going to be this one."