Dublin, Ireland, Monday, March 23, 2020- It wasn’t the usual return to break that UCD Smurfit School MBA students expect. The coffee shop at the School’s Blackrock campus is normally abuzz as classmates catch up on news from the break, including their annual international trip, this year to Argentina. Instead, 60 full-time MBA and Executive MBA students logged in from around the world to join a virtual event with one of Ireland’s leading economists.

UCD Economics & Politics alumnus, Jim Power, kicked off the return to classes with a virtual lecture on what will be one of the most influential events in our history, “Covid-19: The Economic & Financial Implications of this Unprecedented Shock”.

“We began preparing for the move to remote teaching weeks ago to ensure that there would be no gap in learning for our ambitious students,” said Sophie Carey MBA Programme Director at UCD Smurfit School. “At UCD Smurfit School, we are extremely fortunate to have dedicated staff, faculty and alumni who were able to swiftly adapt and offer expertise where it will have the strongest positive impact as we continue to offer the best in Irish business education.”

Power, who is also a Business Economics lecturer on the full-time MSc Management and MBA programme at UCD Smurfit School, was approached by current MBA student Daniel Duignan to deliver a lecture on the topic.

“Last September, I stressed that economics is not a precise science and that the future is not forecastable because we are dealing with human behaviour and there is always some shock lurking out there waiting to blow our best-laid plans out of the water.”
—Jim Power, UCD Business Economics Lecturer

“We are in a time of unprecedented crisis at a business, economic and personal level due to COVID-19,” said Power. “I felt it would be useful to provide the full-time MBA class with an update on what is going on in the crazy world of economics at the moment and give them some understanding on how this is already, and is increasingly likely to impact on their lives both at a personal and professional level. My full-time MBA class is made up of amazingly bright and curious individuals and I really welcomed the opportunity to re-connect.”

“The session couldn't have been more appropriate given the current economic climate,” said Duignan. “Feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive and there have been requests for similar sessions throughout this crisis, where faculty and alumni offer expert economic comment in our increasingly busy news feeds.”

Power concluded, “Nobody has all of the answers at the moment, but the level of questioning from the students would suggest that they are thinking deeply about all of the issues. In my humble view, that is what education should be all about.”

To view the lecture in its entirety, click here.

A special thank you to our E-Learning Team who have worked tirelessly to transition to online learning for all UCD College of Business students.

Learn more about our Financial Times, The Economist and QS world-ranked UCD Smurfit School MBA Programme here and reach out to our MBA Admissions Manager with any questions you might have.