Women in Economics, Finance and Accounting (WEFA)

Women in Economics, Finance and Accounting (WEFA) is an outreach initiative aiming to encourage and inspire women to consider a career in Economics, Finance and Accounting (WEFA).

Some of the activities undertaken by WEFA include school visits, with the participation of student ambassadors and academics, as well as the development of a YouTube channel.

The group work in collaboration with Discover Economics for many events. Discover Economics is a campaign led by the Royal Economics Society which aims to broaden the appeal of economics to potential students. 

Discover Economics student champion programme

The group aim to recruit and train economics undergraduates to act as student champions to deliver one-off sessions in some local schools. Student Champions will give young people an introduction to economics and deliver interactive economics content. Example topics include inequality, economic growth, panic-buying, the gender pay gap and more. 

WEFA have currently recruited six student champions and will start vising local schools from mid-January.

Past events

WEFA Outreach Event for pre-16 school girls - 3 November 2021

This event aimed at increasing diversity in Economics by introducing the subject to school girls who were about to choose their A-level subjects from local Leicester schools. Dr Laura Harvey from the University of East Anglia and Ms Ffion Turner from MediaCom came to give talks on their paths. Students got to know more about women who studied Economics and their careers.

At the beginning of the event, the team asked students if they would like to study Economics in the future. Only one student raised her hand. At the end of the day, we asked the same question again, and all students raised their hands and showed their interest in Economics. 

Economics, Finance and Accounting mixed gender post-16 outreach event - 10 November 2021

The group sent out invitations all across the country, with students attending from Birmingham, Exeter, London and more. Professor Clive Fraser from the University of Leicester and Mr Lewis Evans-Richardson from Dunelm attended to give talks on their paths. Professor Clive’s talk was all about his academic life and some suggestions for students. Lewis talked about his university life and suggested very good resources for students to learn more about Economics.

Economics Outreach - 9 November 2022

In this event, the group showcased Brookfield's Bloomberg trading room, gave students a tour of the campus, and hosted economics and future career talks. Doctor Guillaume Willemme and Doctor Jingyi Mao from the University of Leicester's School of Business were involved, alongside Muthomi Gichaara amd Lewis Evans-Richardson. 

Keep an eye out for more events hosted by WEFA.