(NEEDS IMAGE) Economics graduate shines a light on energy policy in Pakistan

Neelum Maqsood graduated from the University of Cambridge in 2012 with an MPhil in Economics.

She wrote her MPhil dissertation on the financial crisis in Argentina in 2002, analysing the impact on the urban labour market and exploring its heterogeneous impact on individuals working in various firms.

Prior to this, she gained her B.Sc in Economics from Lahore University of Management Sciences in Pakistan.

Neelum went on to work at a think-tank at the Institute of Development and Economic Alternatives (IDEAS) in Lahore, Pakistan, focusing on a research project exploring the evolution of policies in Pakistan’s education sector and highlighting the policy gaps that still remain unaddressed.

She also researched the areas of institutional and pricing structure in Pakistan’s power sector, in the hope that such research would build on existing work in this area and help guide policy-makers to address the challenge of power shortages and excessive load-shedding in Pakistan.

“Cambridge opened a completely different world for me,” says Neelum. “I spent evenings talking to people carrying our research in vastly different fields, ranging from a Turkish educationist researching teaching methods in schools, to a Mauritian environmentalist who spoke passionately about her love for nature. I’m grateful to the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust for awarding me a Commonwealth Shared & Noon Education Foundation Cambridge Scholarship which made it possible for me to attend the University of Cambridge.

Cambridge did not just give me an excellent environment to carry out my research, but also an extremely refreshing discovery of different lifestyles and attitudes. I was also selected to represent the University at the Econometric Game Competition held at Amsterdam; it was a fantastic time all year round!”