Alumni Speak: Sahana Subramanyam and Meghna Prasad

Sahana Subramanyam and Meghna Prasad are alumni of the undergraduate programme at Azim Premji University. They were both part of the first cohort of students to do their BA in Economics at the University, and are currently pursuing their PhD in Economics at two of the best economics departments in the world. Sahana is at Stanford University and Meghana is at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Here they describe their academic journey and how their undergraduate experience has helped them along the way. During their undergraduate years, both were part of the honours programme and worked on independent research projects. They mention how courses like History of Economic Thought and Political Economy were instrumental in getting them excited about the discipline. These courses along with more standard ones like Econometrics, prepared them well for their masters. After leaving the University, Meghana did her masters at the University of Gottingen in Germany, and Sahana at the Bocconi University in Italy.
They talk about the diversity of the student body, courses like Understanding India, and the field experience that they got as part of the curriculum, which made them aware of the lived realities of people coming from very different backgrounds than them and taught them how to engage with them. They also express appreciation for the flexibility of the curriculum that allowed them to engage with subjects other than their disciplines, like doing a course in Non-linear Dynamics with Physics students. They also reminisce fondly about activities outside the classroom, including their Creative Expressions courses, as well as the girls football team.
Find out more about the BA Economics programme at azimpremjiuniv... .

[@silasxuereb2826]

We love having Meghana at UMass!!!!