Elena Salamandic, MA School of Economics, Stockholm, JAM programs’ graduate
My experience at JA, during high school, was exciting. Lessons of economy aimed the substitutions of a big lack of school programs – the failure of everyday problems. Sincerely, at which subject could we learn about duties, differences between crude and net salary and the structure of personal budget? Because the obtained knowledge at lessons could be applied immediately in real life, I strived to develop, untimely, the habit to explain every small economic phenomenon from reality with already learned principles at lessons of economics. This habit has been transformed then in an instinct, guiding intricate decisions, as: the evaluation of investment profitability or screening immobile which can generate passive income.
I participated in the economic program of JA, being student at “Vasile Alecsandri” Lyceum, from Ungheni city. A very prominent memory was the lesson with Mrs. Elena Chelaru, teacher of economy, proposed us to create a own company and to choose, by ourselves, the product that we wish to sell. Together with friends, we created bracelets in the colors of martisor (March), with a specific Romanian connotation. We were surprised when we heard that our company was chosen to participate at the Fair of Scholar Campaigns at Tallinn, Estonia. Probably this first international experience was base for my attachment for Baltic and north countries, studding economics at School of Economics, Stockholm and continuing masters in the same field in Sweden. This domain continues to fascinate me through its capacity to explain phenomena form real life and people’s behavior in specific situations.
That is way I consider that despite of student’s choice after graduation, either this is related with engineering, medicine, public administration or law, economic education during the school is a foundation stone of education. We are submissive of everyday decisions, from making shopping till the creations of an enterprise. My advice for our students is that they have to assume total responsibility for their own financial education and to make own decisions.
