The year 2022 is the 15th anniversary of the AAEA Graduate Student Extension Competition (GSEC). The GSEC provides an opportunity for applied economics MS and PhD students to develop Extension and/or outreach programs based on their graduate work, present their proposals to a group of outreach experts, and gain feedback. It also serves as an opportunity for networking, informal mentorship, and enhancing professional relationships and collaboration. This competition is one way to encourage applied economics graduate students to enter into Extension careers, or at least better inform them about those careers. We evaluate the competition and its outcomes for both student competitors and judges through historical information and survey data. We find that the GSEC enhances the ability of graduate students to translate research to lay audiences and can serve as a key pipeline for future Extension economists and others in outreach roles. This case study can be used to inform similar efforts for career education and mentorship efforts in Extension and outreach fields of economics.

Alston, J., M. Anderson, J. James, and P. Pardey. 2011. “The Economic Returns to U.S. Public Agricultural Research.” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 93:1257–1277.

Bethlehem, J. 2010. “Selection Bias in Web Surveys.” International Statistical Review 78(2):161–188. doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-5823.2010.00112.x.

Dupas, P., A.S. Modestino, M. Niederle, J. Wolfers, and the Seminar Dynamics Collective. 2021. “Gender and the Dynamics of Economics Seminars.” NBER Working Paper 28494. https://www.nber.org/papers/w28494.

Edwards, W. 2004. “2004 Minutes of the Executive Committee of the Extension Section.” https://www.aaea.org/UserFiles/sections/extension/communications/minutes/Minutes_2004.pdf.

Elliott-Engel, J., D. Westfall-Rudd, M. Seibel, E. Kaufman, and R. Radhakrishna. 2021. “Extension Administrators’ Perspectives on Employee Competencies and Characteristics.” The Journal of Extension 59(3), Article 3. https://doi.org/10.34068/joe.59.03.03.

Martin, M. 2002. “The Roles of Extension in Agricultural Economics Departments.” Journal of Extension 40(5).

Shear, H. 2020. “A Commentary on Extension Education Programming: An Overview of the CattleTrace Extension Program and Graduate Extension Education.” Applied Economics Teaching Resources 2(4):57–62. doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.307150.

Wang, S.L. 2014. “Cooperative Extension System: Trends and Economic Impacts on U.S. Agriculture.” Choices 29(1):1–8.

Wang, S.L., E. Ball, L. Fulginiti, and A. Plastina. 2012. “Accounting for the Impacts of Public Research, R&D Spill-ins, Extension, and Roads in U.S. Agricultural Productivity Growth.” In Agricultural Productivity: An International Perspective. edited by K.O. Fuglie, S.L. Wang, and V.E. Ball, 13 – 31. Boston, MA: CAB International. Available at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/pb-assets/AJAE%20Author%20Checklist%20Revised%20March%202020-1590686228903.pdf.

Wedemeyer, C.A. 1981. Learning at the Back Door: Reflections on Non-Traditional Learning in the Lifespan. Madison, WI: The University of Wisconsin Press.