McDaniel College Fed Challenge
FED CHALLENGE LINKS
 
-Official details from the Richmond FED
 
-Richmond Fed
 
-Federal Reserve Board
 
-Bureau of Economic Analysis
 
-Bureau of the Census
 
-Bureau of Labor Statistics
 
-NBER
 
-The Economist
 
-CBS MarketWatch
 
-Wall Street Journal

The Fed Challenge is an economic and monetary policy analysis competition sponsored by the Baltimore Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.  McDaniel College has participated in the Fed Challenge since 2002 and is advised by  Professor McIntyre.

Fed Challenge team members at McDaniel College are "honors equivalent" students with senior standing as of the fall semester.  Members of the Fed Challenge team are recruited in the fall of their junior year.  Distinguished performance in one's (upper-level) economics curriculum is required.  ECON 3320 (Macro Theory) is the only strict curricular prerequisite, although virtually all team members have been invited to take and have subsequently taken ECON 4310 (Money & Financial Markets), the department's senior-level Capstone, as juniors. The Economics and Business Administration faculty views participation in the Fed Challenge as a great honor. And, of course, it looks good on a resume.
The actual Fed Challenge competition takes place in late November at the Fed's Baltimore office.  The actual competition involves a 20-minute PowerPoint presentation detailing (1) the current state of the U.S. macroeconomy and likely near-term prospects and (2) an appropriate recommendation for monetary policy followed by a 10-minute question and answer session led by Fed economists.  Performance is judged on how well the team presents and defends its points, answers questions, and involves all team members.

Preparation for the Fed Challenge will involve approximately weekly meetings consisting primarily of "talking economics" and preparing the presentation.  Fed Challenge team members will receive subscriptions to the Wall St. Journal subsidized by the department as well as a biweekly gourmet, home-cooked meal at Professor McIntyre's house.  (This whole exercise is, after all, supposed to be fun!)

Previous years' Fed Challenge teams have been featured in The Hill magazine and other McDaniel College publications.