Alan Seals Ph.D.
Alan Seals is an Associate Professor of Economics at Auburn University. He is a labor economist who primarily studies the market for college students and college graduates. Professor Seals has taught econometrics at both the undergraduate and Ph.D. levels and has supervised doctoral dissertations in economics. His research has been published in peer-reviewed journals and featured by news outlets, such as the Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, FZA, Fortune, National Public Radio, Chronicle of Higher Education, and Market Watch. He has testified as an expert witness in many federal and state civil court cases and has provided testimony in regulatory hearings concerning regulated public utilities and healthcare establishments.
Experience
Academic Experience
- Taught undergraduate and graduate courses in microeconomics, econometrics, and labor economics, as well as Ph.D.-level courses in microeconometrics and labor economics. Supervised Ph.D. dissertations in economics and served on many Ph.D. and masters committees.
- Published peer-reviewed research in applied economics with two main areas of focus:
- Causal Inference Using Large Datasets:
- Analyzed survey and administrative data to determine the effects of state policy changes on education and labor market outcomes.
- Examined the impact of automation technologies on disability program applications and the creation of new businesses.
- Augmented government and proprietary datasets to improve data quality and relevance.
- Applied time series econometric techniques in several research projects to study changes in aggregate economic indicators over time.
- Investigated industry workforce issues, including studies of the U.S. election and university labor forces.
- Worked with colleagues to design and collect survey data from over 30,000 college students around the world, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Design and Management of Large-Scale Field Experiments in Labor Markets:
- Collaborated with coauthors and managed research teams to implement large-scale field experiments.
- Utilized machine learning algorithms to process and interpret text data from job advertisements, producing datasets that many other economists use in their own research.
- Causal Inference Using Large Datasets:
- My research has been covered in news and media outlets including: Wall Street Journal, Fortune Magazine, BBC, NPR, Market Watch and many others.
Litigation, Regulatory and Industry Experience
- Extensive Experience in Complex Civil Litigation
Provided oral and written testimony in many different kinds of civil cases, including medical malpractice and wrongful death cases, as well as other matters involving economic damages to businesses and individuals.
Consulted on class action cases, offering analysis related to class certification, including issues of numerosity.
- Testified before state legislative committees and regulatory bodies on the economic implications of proposed policies and regulations.
- Provided economic analysis and other consulting for large electric utilities, healthcare providers, and telecom firms, as well as firms in various other industries.
