Meet Omar Avendaño, Class of 2007 and PhD Student

My name is Omar Avendaño and I graduated from Humboldt State in 2007 with a degree in Economics, as well as a degree in Business Administration. Currently I am a PhD student in Economics at the University of New Mexico where I am also a doctoral fellow with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center for Health Policy. My research interests include immigrant health, hospital choices, and the effects of insurance status on patient outcomes.

Attending HSU was one of the best decisions I have made in my life. I ended up in Arcata because I fell in love with the natural beauty of the area and because it was so different from my hectic, polluted, over-populated life in southern California (Riverside). Aside from the natural setting of HSU, I was attracted to the small class sizes and the opportunity to interact with professors. The economics department did not disappoint me as I was able to interact very closely with all of my professors. I was also able to participate in research, journal article discussions, and even go out to dinner with a visiting researcher.

Originally I was only a Business Administration major but I added Economics as my second major after realizing Economics encompasses most aspects of our lives. My initial view was that Economics was limited to the financial sector, but thanks to my professors I soon found out it was much more. The best part of being a student at HSU was being challenged by professors to think “outside the box,” and to come up with unique solutions to problems instead of just regurgitating answers from a book. This has been invaluable in my graduate studies, and as a future Economist it will help me to answer questions that may not have been asked before or have not been answered adequately.

I’m really glad I made the decision to attend Humboldt State and to major in Economics. These two decisions have changed my life for the better.


 
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