Levan Efremidze


655 Marshall Court, Claremont, CA 91711, USA
Tel: (909) 437-8260, Email: LEWEB@hotmail.com

DISSERTATION
Summaries
Twin Deficits and Sudden Stops
Firm Strategies and Stock Market Values in Biotechnology Industry
Flat Tax, FDI and Government Spending

DOWNLOAD CURRICULUM VITAE


EDUCATION

Ph.D. in Economics. Expected Graduation in May, 2008
Claremont Graduate University (CGU), Claremont, California, USA.  2004-Present

  • Doctoral Thesis: Essays on Financial Crises and Asset Bubbles.
  • Awarded Merit Tuition Fellowship.
  • Teaching Assistant, Advanced Microecoeconomic Analysis
  • Research Assistant, conducting research on “Global Imbalances, Currency Crises, International Capital Flows and Exchange Rate Policies.”
  • Research Assistant at the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies, working in the area of experimental economics and neurofinance.


M.A. in Economics. 1994
Claremont Graduate University (CGU), Claremont, California, USA.  1993-1994

  • Awarded Benjamin Franklin and Edmund Muskie fellowships (part of Fulbright Scholarship program, only 150 fellows are selected every year from the countries of the former Soviet Union).
  • Research Assistant, conducting research on "Monetary and Exchange Rate Policies in Transition Countries”
  • Teaching Assistant, Corporate Finance course at Peter F. Drucker School of Business Administration.

B.A. double major in Economics and Industrial Engineering. 1992
Tbilisi State University, Tbilisi, Georgia.

  • Graduated with highest honors (4.0 GPA).
  • Awarded Merit Fellowship (3 years) for #1 rank in the class of 200 students.
  • Elected Chairman of the University’s Student Scientific Society in 1991.


 RESEARCH INTERESTS
International finance, monetary economics, macroeconomics, neuroeconomics, experimental finance, international trade, economics of transition, economic development, institutions, growth, political economy.

 TEACHING INTERESTS
International money and finance, monetary economics, macroeconomics, microeconomics, statistics, econometrics, neuroeconomics, experimental finance, international trade, economics of transition, institutions, growth, political economy, corporate finance, mathematics for economists.

 EXPERIENCE
 Pomona College, Claremont. 2006-Present
Lecturer of Economics

Courses taught:
Principles of Macroeconomics
Principles of Microeconomics

Claremont Graduate University, Claremont. Fall 2007
Teaching Assistant

Courses taught:
Advanced Microeconomic Theory

University of Redlands, Redlands. Fall 2007

Courses taught:
Introduction to Statistical Methods

California State University, Long Beach. Fall 2006

Courses taught:
Principles of Macroeconomics

University of Phoenix, Southern California Campus. 2001-Present

Courses taught:
Corporate Finance
Critical Thinking
Macroeconomics
Math for Business
Microeconomics

Marketing Manager
ATX, Inc., Los Angeles, California. 1999-2003

  • Managed company's planning and budgeting activities.
  • Contributed to the steady growth of the company by timely reporting and sound financial decision making.


Associate
Nissin Foods (USA) Co., Inc., Gardena, California. 1997-1999

  • Designed successful budgets and developed over $17 million dollars of additional annual revenue.
  • Contributed up to 40% in company profits.
  • Directed highly effective advertising and promotion campaigns and made Nissin the #1 brand in the market.


Export Marketing Manager
RBI, Los Angeles, California. 1993-1996

  • Designed and managed company's export operations.
  • Improved profits and sales performance through diligent competitive research and restructuring of company's operations.


Stock Market Specialist
Caucasus Stock Exchange, Tbilisi, Georgia 1991-1992

  • Traded and created market for listed stocks.
  • Consulted on the design of trading rules, privatization and financial regulations reform.


PUBLICATIONS
Contributed to ”Currency Policies and Central Banks in the Commonwealth of Independent States,” with King Banaian and Eugene Zhukov, in Establishing Monetary Stability in Emerging Market Economies, edited by Thomas D. Willett,, et al., Westview Press, 1995.

CONFERENCES
“Have the Causes of Currency Crises Varied Across Decades?“
        Western Economic Association International annual conference, July 2, 2006
“Sudden Stops and Currency Crises“
        Western Economic Association International annual conference, July 3, 2007

WORKING PAPERS
“Flat Tax, FDI and Government Spending“
        last revision Oct, 2007
“The Non-profit University: Reasons for Its Longevity and Dominance“
        last revision Sep, 2007
“Twin Deficits and Sudden Stops“
         last revision Nov, 2007

SKILLS
Fluent in English, Georgian and Russian

ACADEMIC AWARDS
Benjamin Franklin & Edmund Muskie Fellowships, the United States Congress, 1992-1994
Ivan Javakhishvili Merit Fellowship, Tbilisi State University, 1990-1992
Merit Tuition Fellowship, Claremont Graduate University, 1992-1994 and 2004-2006

REFERENCES
 Prof. Thomas Willett, Dean
Department of Economics
School of Politics and Economics
Claremont Graduate University
Claremont, CA 91711,
909-621-8787,
Thomas.Willett@cgu.edu
 
Prof. Paul Zak
Department of Economics
Claremont Graduate University
Claremont, CA 91711
909-621-8074
Paul.Zak@cgu.edu
 
Prof. Arthur T. Denzau
Department of Economics
Claremont Graduate University
Claremont, CA 91711
909-621-8692
Art.Denzau@cgu.edu
 
Prof. Michael Kuehlwein
Department of Economics
Pomona College
Claremont, CA 91711
909-607-4016
MKuehlwein@pomona.edu