Fall 2026 Undergraduate Newsletter Issue 1

Fall 2026 | Issue 1 | August 28, 2026. Internships and jobs, student accomplishments, upcoming events, student research, and everyday economics.

All undergraduate newsletters

Opportunities and events reflect the original newsletter publication date, August 28, 2026.

Internship & Job Opportunities

Featured Opportunity: Federal Reserve Board Research Assistant

  • Deadline: October 15, 2026
  • Location: Washington D.C.
  • Pay: Salaried, relocation and tuition assistance
  • Best For: economics, math, statistics, data science
  • Term: Two years, starting Summer 2027

Apply: Featured Opportunity: Federal Reserve Board Research Assistant

Summer Analyst Intern — Cornerstone Research

  • Deadline: September 27, 2026
  • Location: 9 U.S., U.K., and E.U. offices
  • Best For: economics, math, statistics

Apply: Summer Analyst Intern — Cornerstone Research

Summer Intern — Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City

  • Deadline: Postings open this fall
  • Location: Kansas City, Missouri
  • Best For: economics, statistics, data analysis
  • Term: 10 weeks, paid

Apply: Summer Intern — Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City

Paid Micro-Internships — Kansas Micro-Internship Program

  • Deadline: Rolling – posts year round
  • Location: Remote, Kansas employers
  • Pay: 90% of project fee, set at $20/hr
  • Best For: All majors

Apply: Paid Micro-Internships — Kansas Micro-Internship Program

Student Accomplishments

  • Zach Drier ’27 — Financial Crimes Risk MGMT Intern, Charles Schwab | Summer ’26
  • David Cardaronella ’26 — Arthur J. Boynton Award | Spring ’26
  • Brett Cranor ’26 — Self Memorial Scholarship | ’26 - ’27
  • Grace Peterman ’27 — Environmental Services Intern, Evergy | Summer ’26

Share your accomplishments by filling out the student accomplishments form!

Upcoming Events

KU ECON Club Meeting

Join the Econ Club for pizza and icebreaker games at the annual kick-off meeting!

When: September 9, 2026, 5:00pm - 6:00pm. Where: Snow Hall 452.

Student Research Highlight

Non-Tariff Measures & Regional Trade Agreements

Brett Cranor | B.S. ’26/ M.A. ’27

Brett Cranor

Brett studies the relationship between non-tariff measures and regional trade agreements. Specifically, he seeks to understand whether countries that enter trade agreements are truly committed to trade liberalization.

Brett’s advice to students interested in research is simple: stop waiting and start. AI has made it easier than ever to learn new concepts, replicate papers, and develop ideas. What matters most is curiosity and a willingness to try, fail, and try again. KU has excellent professors who can guide you. The tools and support are here, so take the first step and begin.

Brett is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Economics at KU.

Want a chance for your research to be featured? Fill out the student research form!

Economics in Everyday Life

Line chart: grocery and restaurant prices since January 2020. By July 2026, restaurant and takeout prices rose 37% and grocery prices 32%. Grocery prices rose faster at first; restaurants overtook groceries in December 2023.

Few expenses illustrate the changing nature of inflation as clearly as eating at home versus eating out. Through 2022 grocery prices rose faster than restaurant prices, peaking at about 5.5 percentage points higher in August. Restaurant prices continued to grow at a steady pace, overtaking grocery prices in December 2023. Since January 2020, restaurant prices are up by 37% and grocery prices 32%.

The difference reflects the distinction between goods and services. Grocery prices are heavily influenced by commodity and supply-chain conditions, which eased as pandemic disruptions decreased. Restaurant prices are more sensitive to labor and occupancy costs. Wages, unlike many commodity prices, are slow to fall, keeping service prices elevated even during disinflation.

This helps explain why the final stage of disinflation can feel particularly hard. Goods inflation can ease as supply constraints disappear, while service inflation remains tied to costs such as wages and housing that adjust more gradually. As a result, the end of an inflationary episode may be far less noticeable in everyday spending than its beginning.

Source: Consumer Price Index by category, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Chart shows CPI for food at home and food away from home, seasonally adjusted, January 2020 through July 2026.

Stay connected with KU Economics!

Follow KU Econ Club on Instagram

Recent archived undergraduate newsletters · All undergraduate newsletters