UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Vijay Krishna, distinguished professor of economics in the College of the Liberal Arts, is the 2017 recipient of the Graduate School Alumni Society Graduate Program Chair Leadership Award.
The award honors faculty members for exemplary leadership that benefits graduate students and faculty in an existing graduate program at the University.
As director of graduate studies for the Department of Economics, a position he held until 2015, Krishna reformed the program to improve student progress and increase the quality and number of doctoral candidates. According to colleagues, he also developed innovative approaches to recruit potential graduate students. Under his leadership, he increased the number of doctoral students from 65 to 109.
“Krishna has been able to increase the size of the entering class and improve the overall quality of admissions,” said a colleague and nominator. “We would not have been able to do this without his leadership. This is a difficult combination to achieve, and he deserves great credit for this
accomplishment.”
In an effort to better train doctoral candidates, Krishna created empirical methods for yearlong learning and instituted a third-year paper. Both innovations better prepared students for the job market. Krishna’s efforts led to graduates attaining tenure track positions in economics at schools including Edinburgh, Carnegie-Mellon and Cambridge.
“Krishna’s leadership has thus greatly enhanced student recruitment, professional development and placement,” said a colleague. “He has definitely increased the national visibility of our program and its stature.”