Peter Bruno has a wide variety of academic interests. So, the College's liberal arts and sciences curriculum seemed a good fit for him. In his first economics class, he realized that economists think very differently. "I really enjoyed that first class," he says, "and my experiences just kept getting better from there."
To further his interest in international economics, Peter spent a semester studying in Europe. "Our program focused on economics, international relations, international business and political science, all within the context of the European Union. I was based in Germany, but we traveled a fair bit, studying institutions, corporations and banking systems."
Peter also became active in the Center for Public Choice and Market Process – a faculty-student collaboration that focuses on economic issues by bringing speakers to the College and staging events. "Each year, the group puts on Adam Smith Week in the spring," he explains, "and we also orchestrate a book colloquium. One year, we read In Fed We Trust, by David Wessel.
One thing Peter truly values about this major is "just being around economics majors who think somewhat the same way yet have differing perspectives. For me, that's great. I like being exposed to differing viewpoints. We bounce ideas off each other and everyone offers different insights. It's a special environment where you can learn from your peers as well as your professors."
With professor Mark Witte, Peter did an independent study that merged his major with his minor in data science. "I concentrated on college football merchandise sales. It was so intriguing that I'm making it my senior thesis for the Honors College. I'll be examining data from 17 different universities." Peter is undecided on what he'll do after graduation, but he knows that his background in economics is preparing him to excel whether his next step is graduate school or the professional realm. "I'll be well prepared and well connected."