EconomicSense Undergraduate Research Journal
Innovate | Collaborate | Impact
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What we stand for
What we stand for
We believe that research is the powerhouse of universities, sparking innovation that drives progress and shapes the future. Recognizing Concordia’s untapped potential in undergraduate research resources, we united to enhance access and harness our university’s capabilities. This led to the founding of Concordia’s first undergraduate research journal.
Our mission is to close the resource gap at Concordia, providing our students with opportunities comparable to those at other leading universities. Our vision is to cultivate a vibrant academic community where outstanding students can delve into topics of interest under the direct guidance of esteemed faculty and industry professionals. Together, they collaborate to produce impactful research that addresses the pressing issues of our time, in a language that is accessible to the public.
Our first steps towards building a vibrant ecosystem of undergraduate research at Concordia University
Our first steps towards building a vibrant ecosystem of undergraduate research at Concordia University
The 2023-2024 academic year was our first iteration, and we had great success. During the winter 2024 semester, out of a pool of over 50 applicants, we selected five highly motivated economics students and gave them a chance to gain supervised research experience. The project ran from February to May.
Each student was selected to write on a different topic, which related to the broader theme of “21st Century Problems and Solutions.” The five topics were: Finance, Sustainability, Innovation, Politics, and Supply Chains & Globalization. To support their continued learning, we onboarded a group of mentors from both academia and industry, and paired them each with a student working on a paper that matches their expertise. In the end, we combined the five papers into a neatly designed journal of undergraduate research, which we believe explores some of our most urgent questions.
The project concluded with a research summit. The goal with this final event was to showcase the impressive work of our students to teachers, who will eventually be writing their letters of recommendation, to people from various industries who may one day be their colleagues, and to Concordia students who we wish to inspire as they pursue their own academic journey. The event was attended by the dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science, the chair of the Economics Department, the Chief Innovation Officer of Quebec, the CEO of CIRANO, and many more distinguished guests.
Our first cohort of students
The 2024-2025 first place winner
The 2024-2025 first place winner
Shengwen Xu
First-year economics student Shengwen Xu took home the journal's first iteration's top prize for her paper, “An Analysis Regarding the Impact on Education Brought by Artificial Intelligence.”
Xu received mentorship from Luc Sirois, chief innovation officer at the Conseil de l’innovation du Québec.
“Luc paid very close attention to every stage of my writing process,” Xu explains. “He gave me a lot of advice on how to improve my research and helped me access educational practitioners. This research would not have gone as smoothly without his help.”
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