A few weeks ago I came across an interview on TechCrunch with Brian Kibby, the president of McGraw-Hill Higher Education, discussing his positive outlook on the future of e-books, e-content and generally the future of what he calls ‘super adaptive learning.’ Contrary to what one might expect from a textbook publisher, Kibby explains in the interview that he expects to see a significant increase in the adoption of e-materials within the next year and full adoption within three years. Optimistic?

One great way to keep up to date with the latest news in your field is to listen to podcasts. These are regularly broadcast audio programs which address specific topics, and often include interviews, discussions, and news. We've previously covered some of the best podcasts in economics, but today we're looking at podcasts in the field of finance.

While it was the UMP, France’s conservative opposition party, that won the majority of votes in Sunday’s first round of town hall elections in France, the far-right Front National also made decisive gains, particularly in areas that used to be bastions of the left wing. The ongoing difficulties in the French economy are often cited as one of the key reasons for this redrawing of the political landscape and the losses for the ruling Socialist Party.

As previously mentioned in our articles about Spanish professionals moving to South America and Brazil as a new destination for skilled migration, Latin America is becoming ever more attractive in terms of professional development for people from all over the world. Latin American migration trends are undoubtedly connected to demographic and economic indicators for the region. In some cases, countries like Brazil stand out thanks to promising conditions for foreign employees, or increasing living standards and wages for the higher-educated workforce.

The following is an analysis of data taken from the INOMICS Salary Report 2018 - downloadable for registered users here. Specifically, it looks at the average salaries of economists working in academia and the private sector according to their level of seniority. It is the third instalment in a series of insights handling the Report’s findings.

Source: National Science Foundation, NSF/NIH/USED/USDA/NEH/NASA, Survey of Earned Doctorates

Figure 1. Average number of applications per position

After our post last summer about the trend for conferences and prizes aimed at young economists, several further events are coming up this year, which could be of interest to PhD students and young researchers. Some of these are specifically for students or junior academics whilst others offer financial support or prizes to those attending or presenting papers at the meeting.

Source: Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China (China), The Survey of Earned Doctorates, National Science Foundation (US)

Now we're over the hump of winter and looking ahead to sunnier days, the time has come to start considering academic activities for the summer break. Summer schools run by top universities give you the chance to attend lectures and courses conducted by top researchers in your field, to practise skills in small groups or seminars, and to get to know students from other institutions. As well as social activities and the opportunity for travel, you can benefit from making new professional contacts, hearing about the latest research, and building your CV.