UMass Boston

Econometrics & Statistical Computing, Urban & Regional Economics, and Economic Education

PhD, Economics, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

• 42 Years of Urban Growth and Industry Composition, Atlantic Economic Journal 2017, 45(2), 133-147.
• What Do Firms Value? The Role of Industry Composition in Firm Location Decisions, Global Journal of Business Disciplines 2017, 1(1), 73-86.
• State Educational Mandates in Economics: Do We Really Need the Treat(ment)?, with C.J. Asarta, and R. B. Butters, Perspectives on Economic Education Research 2016, 10(1), 1-20.
• U.S. Vehicle Fuel Efficiency Choices: Demographic, Behavioral, and Cultural Factors, with D. Timmons, Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 2016, DOI:10.1080/09640568.2015.1131675
• Contextual Density and U.S. Automotive CO2 Emissions across the Rural-Urban Continuum, with D. Timmons, International Regional Science Review 2015, DOI: 10.1177/0160017615614897
• Success in the Economics Major: Is it Path Dependent?, with C.J. Asarta and R.B. Butters, in New Developments in Economic Education, F.Mixon (ed.) 2014, Northhampton, MA.
• University of Massachusetts Boston Economic Contribution Analysis, with D. Terkla, 2013.
• How do Transfer Students Perform in Economics? Evidence from Intermediate Macroeconomics , with C.J. Asarta and S.M. Fuess, Jr,.Journal of Economic Education. 2013, 44(2).
• Are Asian-Pacific Real Exchange Rates (Trend) Stationary?, with B. Kim, Applied Economics Letters 2011, 18(16), 1531-1535.

Andrew Perumal joined UMass Boston as an assistant professor of economics in 2011. Perumal completed his graduate work at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he explored the underlying determinants of the Urban Wage Premium with a specific focus on firm and household choices. He is the recipient of the McConnell Outstanding Graduate Student Research Prize. During this time, he also worked as a Research Assistant for the Bureau of Business Research and was engaged in research ranging from evaluating Nebraska’s Worker Retraining Centers, to identifying growth industries for the city of Lincoln. He was also the recipient of several teaching awards, including the Department of Economics Award for Excellence in Teaching. Prior to beginning his graduate work, Perumal was a research assistant at the Institute of Policy Studies in Sri Lanka where he worked in the Industry Reform and Regulation, Poverty and Social Welfare, and Agricultural Economic Policy Units. 

As an urban and regional economist his research focuses on the micro-foundations, or mechanisms, that drive the economic benefits of urban agglomeration economies, analyses of urban labor markets and the environmental impacts of urbanization. As a methodologist he explores recent advances in statistical computing and integration of cutting-edge large scale data sources. Currently he is focusing on using night-time light satellite imagery and google map data to characterize and explore issues related to urbanization in developing countries. In economic education, he pursues his deep interest in teaching and student success, engaging in economic education research encompassing the evaluation of teaching methodologies for effectively conveying economics concepts; and, the application of economic modeling to understand and refine educational outcomes in economics coursework. As a teacher he employs innovative teaching methods, incorporating novel teaching and learning technologies to enhance student learning experience in the class. He was recently recognized for his dedication to teaching as one of the two recipients of the Face-to-Face Innovation in Teaching Award 2016.

View Professor Perumal's curriculum vitae.