This summer I worked at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in the Monetary Affairs Division. Of the division’s many sections specializing in various aspects of monetary policy, I spent my summer at the Banking Analysis Section working on the Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS), a quarterly survey given out to a sample of domestic and foreign banks to gauge qualitative macroeconomic trends such as the tightening or easing of loan standards. Throughout my internship I helped create a database that documents changing trends in the survey in response to economic shocks, and extended the response series into the 1980s to supplement my supervisor’s research on the relationship between bank-level credit supply and general macroeconomic performance.

At the Fed I also attended various seminars related to monetary policy, which gave me a chance to truly experience the intersection of policymaking and academic research in one organization. This summer was full of great opportunities to expand my knowledge of the public sector and I am extremely grateful to the MIT DC Program for a fantastic experience.