Why Participants Value the Workshops

Why Attend Workshop | What To Expect |

Carlos Brando

My experience at the RCI Moscow workshop was remarkable. Three aspects stand out. First, emphasis on the processes of researching and the problems faced by the researcher – in contrast to the standard presentations on the outcomes of research – was particularly revealing and insightful. Secondly, simultaneous access to several first-class academics out there just willing to truly help you with your research is a most unusual circumstance and one I profited from greatly. Lastly, the mix of students from nations all over the world and from different backgrounds made for vibrant academic discussions and informal exchanges in and outside of the classroom. In short, a unique kind of workshop.
Carlos Brando (2010 Moscow workshop)


Julio Amador III

This was the most demanding, intensive and mentally exhausting event that I have attended so far. However, it's also one of the most rewarding!
Julio Amador III (2008 Philippines workshop)


Jonathan Greenacre

The workshop was humbling and ultimately very useful.
Humbling because I realized how little I knew about how to do research! Multiple interactions with faculty (which was an amazing opportunity) helped me understand that my questions were far too broad, amongst other problems. Usually I couldn’t even state my argument in one sentence (let alone three).
The workshop was useful because it helped me begin fixing those problems and driving my research into the future. The faculty helped me understand how to formulate research questions and answer them in a much more succinct way. I’m already much more productive and write more clearly than before I attended the workshop. Thank you to the Ronald Coase Institute!
Jonathan Greenacre (2019 Warsaw workshop)


Stefano Pascucci

1) I learned how to connect with other scholars to develop research ideas in a new, effective and simple way.
2) This workshop woke me up and reminded me that I can still try to impact society with my work.
Stefano Pascucci (2011 Chicago workshop)


Qi Zhou

This is the best learning experience within last 31 years.
Qi Zhou (2009 Bratislava workshop)


Ekaterina Khmelnitskaya

The workshop had considerable impact on my way of doing research. I've realised how important it is to keep in mind a clear and simple picture of what your research is about. I've also realised that almost every subject may be interesting and important to study. I've decided to narrow my topic, that was very broad, and make it more manageable.
And there were great conversations! And I had fun!
Oh, and most importantly (for me) it inspired me to work and to try to do something, to make a difference.
Ekaterina Khmelnitskaya (2011 Chicago workshop)


Alvin P. Ang

I am very pleased to inform you, colleagues at the Coase Institute and fellow scholars that I and my colleague won the Award for Outstanding Research in Development at the recently concluded [January 2011] Global Development Awards in Bogota, Colombia. I would like to express my thanks to the Coase Institute. The skills I have learned from the workshop have helped in making us win.
Alvin P. Ang (2008 Singapore workshop)


Natalia Lyarskaya

The Ronald Coase Institute workshop was the most outstanding school I had ever attended during all 3 years of my PhD. The spirit of collaboration and cooperation running through the whole workshop made it a truly enriching and challenging event for me.
Natalia Lyarskaya (2010 Moscow workshop)


Alexander Kurdin

The RCI workshop is a unique experience for its participants. It gives a chance to build fruitful relationships between young scholars from all over the world. It provides an unusual possibility to communicate formally and informally with leading researchers in the field of institutional analysis. The most important thing during the workshop was the series of individual consultations. Attention is paid not only to the contents of each individual work but also to the presentation skills of each young researcher, which will be useful even outside academic circles. So, the quality of the workshop far exceeded my best expectations.
Alexander Kurdin (2010 Moscow workshop)


Biniam Bedasso

Due to the sheer number of different perspectives I was exposed to during the workshop, I have started to see several aspects of my own research differently. I was inspired by the feedback from the faculty to delve into the fascinating literature of economic history and effectively relate it to my theoretical research.
Biniam Bedasso (2011 Chicago workshop)


Justine Diokno-Sicat

I will always remember what I have learned and incorporate this in my classes and researches.....a researcher/policymaker must understand how institutions work first in order to reform these institutions.
Justine Diokno-Sicat (2008 Philippines workshop)


Ninghua Zhong

I really want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to have this wonderful experience. I have learned a lot about doing academic work, I have met and made friends with many excellent guys, and the food could not be better. It was perfect!
Ninghua Zhong (2008 Singapore workshop)


Johan Eklund

By critically assessing my research, the Ronald Coase workshop has not only vastly improved my work, but it has also strengthened my ability to communicate my research to non-specialists. I cannot begin to tell how much I appreciated the opportunity to speak with the faculty about my research. Moreover, the workshop gave me an invaluable opportunity to meet other researchers who are in their early stages of their careers. Further, I'm confident that I will stay in touch with both the institute and its faculty as well as with fellow graduates over the years to come.
Johan Eklund (2010 Moscow workshop)


The Chicago workshop (May 2011) had a big impact on the design of my PhD research. It also gave me incredibly useful advice on my conceptual framework and measurement issues, and gave me more contacts in the country where I plan to do fieldwork. Finally, I have made contacts with other participants and have already got emails from some of them also based in Europe, who in turn have put me in touch with people they know working on a similar topic to mine!
Imogen Wade (2011 Chicago workshop)


Nakul Kumar

The workshop has a commendable structure, wherein with each activity I noticed a marked improvement in the way I thought about my research question. In the end it helped me achieve a more focused and well-structured research framework. Intimate interaction with some of the best faculty and inspiring participants made me continuously challenge myself, while their feedback and suggestions helped to develop and polish my research. The experience was truly incredible and immensely rewarding.
Nakul Kumar (2011 Chicago workshop)


Just wanted to let you know how important your 2006 workshop was for me. I am working in the field of institutional research right now studying bureaucracies within Russian enforcement agencies. And I still capitalize on skill and advice I received from this short but very productive experience. Thanks!
Ella Paneyakh (2006 Boulder workshop)


Perspective of a faculty member who was earlier a participant:


The 2011 RCI Chicago workshop, like past workshops, had a variety of unique benefits for the participants.

First, it created a new cross-national, cross-disciplinary network of collaboration and mentoring. Since the workshop, I have remained in touch with a few of the participants who have asked for my advice on literature to learn about subjects with which they had limited previous familiarity. For example, I have corresponded with a student working on a PhD in law on the issue of causal inference - an issue that receives little emphasis in some law graduate programs yet is central to social-science research in law. In the past, I have advised workshop participants on admission to PhD programs in the United States.

A second benefit of the workshop is the training that students received in presenting their ideas concisely, clearly, and effectively. Such training, valuable as it is, cannot be found in any PhD program of which I am aware.

Third, the contact that workshop participants have with Nobel-prize winners and other faculty, as well as the fact that the workshop operates on a volunteer basis, creates palpable enthusiasm and a sense of can-do in the participants.
Alberto Simpser (2005 Barcelona workshop alumnus,
subsequently faculty member at Boulder, Singapore, Beijing,
Moscow, and Chicago)