• About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
The Wellesley News -
  • News and Features
    • The Wellesley (COVID) 100
      The Wellesley (COVID) 100
    • In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
      In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
    • Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
      Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
    • News
      • News in Brief
      • Nation & World
      • President’s Corner
      • Senate Report
    • Features
      • Alumnae Spotlight
      • Eye on Science
      • Faculty Focus
      • LGBTQIA+ Column
  • Opinions
    • The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
      The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
    • Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
      Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
    • No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
      No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
    • Staff Editorial
    • Letters to the Editor
    • The Elephant in the Room
  • Arts
    • Chloe Gong could publish her grocery list and I’d pay $20 for it (Books Before Boys review)
      Chloe Gong could publish her grocery list and I’d pay $20 for it (Books Before Boys review)
    • RIP to Wanda, the male betta fish (Books Before Boys review)
      RIP to Wanda, the male betta fish (Books Before Boys review)
    • When talking to ghosts only worsens your existential dread (Books Before Boys review)
      When talking to ghosts only worsens your existential dread (Books Before Boys review)
    • Arts In The News
    • Reviews
    • Music Peek
    • Books Before Boys
  • Health and Wellness
    • February Student Athlete of the Month
      February Student Athlete of the Month
    • Athletics Update
      Athletics Update
    • Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
      Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
    • Athlete of the Week
    • Boston Sports Update
    • The Vegan Digest
    • The SHE Corner
  • The Wellesley Snooze
    • Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
      Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
    • Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
      Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
    • Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
      Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
  • Miscellanea
    • President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
      President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
    • Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
      Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
    • 50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
      50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
    • The Dose
    • The Olive Branch
    • Multimedia
      • Galleries
      • Infographics
      • Videos
By Kira Hamilton Alumnae Spotlight, Features, News and FeaturesNovember 8, 2017

Economics Professor Olga Shurchkov ’01 discovers the power behind a Wellesley education

Shurchkov discovered her passion for economics when she was a student at Wellesley Photo by Lien Dao '20, Photo Editor

According to Olga Shurchkov ’01, life as a Wellesley alumna returning to campus as a professor is not unlike working towards mastery in Taekwondo—she’s currently a level four black belt.

“You’re an instructor, but you’re also a student,” she explained. “You never really stop learning.”

Shurchkov received her bachelor’s at Wellesley and earned her doctorate from MIT. After graduation, she worked as an assistant professor at Columbia University, and a research fellow at the Kennedy School of Government, and has been working in Wellesley’s economics department since 2008.

Growing up in Moscow when it was still a part of the USSR, Shurchkov never thought she would end up settling down in a Boston suburb. Yet, during her sophomore year of high school, her family chose to move to Massachusetts in search of better opportunities.

“It was a hard transition—you know, language, figuring out the education system … people thought I was an exchange student,” she said.

Though she was a domestic student at Wellesley, Shurchkov became heavily involved with international student groups on campus.

“I was really lucky to find Wellesley,” she said.

Coming to Wellesley gave Shurchkov the opportunity to start fresh with a group of people who were immersed in the same new experience as her. She was no longer the odd one out, feeling isolated from her peers by language and experience. When she joined the college choir, that was when she knew she had truly found her home. One of Shurchkov’s favorite memories at Wellesley was a first-year trip to Italy with the choir.

“I got to sing in Rome, Montella, Venice … we were together all the time, all the choir members. We lived together, sang together, worked together. It was such a community,” she recalled. “My favorite part was the spontaneous concerts we would give. Everywhere. We would just go into some church … we went, we stood, we held hands, and just sang. It was just really amazing.”

It was at Wellesley that she also discovered her passion for economics, the subject she now teaches as a professor.

“I came in totally unsure of what I wanted to study,” she said. “I thought I might go into diplomacy … but some upper class women in my dorm told me, ‘You have to take a class with this amazing professor, Chip Case.’ That class was an absolute revelation. He explained things in ways that I think, but I didn’t even know I think that way.”

Shurchkov pursued economics post-graduation at MIT, where the gender dynamics were flipped. Economics, especially at the graduate level, is still one of the most male-dominated fields.

Shurchkov calls the skills she learned at Wellesley her “armor of knowledge, confidence, and soft skills.” It allowed her to walk into any situation knowing that she was capable and should not take anything too personally.

“It allows you to be protected from the daily pressures, and only in a nurturing place like Wellesley you can preserve your inner spirit but also have a tougher exterior,” she explained.

For all that Wellesley did for her, Shurchkov was excited to return to her alma mater to teach. Being back at Wellesley years later has given her a renewed appreciation for the power of a Wellesley education.

“I work with students who I relate to … I feel like I’m contributing in a meaningful way. It’s more than just a job,” she said.

Shurchkov especially values the intro level economics course she teaches, where she can see firsthand how multifaceted the student body of Wellesley is in a way she never could as a student.

“[The class is] not just economics majors. It’s students who will never take economics again, but they contribute so much of their other perspectives from their other majors and where they come from,” Shurchkov said.

When your history becomes your workplace, it can sometimes be hard to find the places that bring back the magic of being a young woman discovering the world. However, Shurchkov acknowledges that she still has special places on campus that remind her of her undergraduate years.

“I sacrificed some of the magic people get from returning to their alma mater, but I still have places on campus that deliver that nostalgia,” Shurchkov admitted.

One of those places is the chapel, which conjures countless memories.

“That’s where I spent daily hours rehearsing with the choir … even the smell transports me back into it,” said Shurchkov.

Even amidst the bustle of daily life, Shurchkov still stops to snap the occasional photo of this tree-lined campus. It may be where she works now, but it’s also the place that made her who she is today.

Share on

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Google +
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Previous articleStudents revitalize pagan community at Wellesley
Next articleProfessor Pinar Keskin studies the intersection of environmental challenges, gender and economics

You may also like

The Wellesley (COVID) 100

In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays

Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

Top Articles

Sorry. No data so far.

Recent Tweets

Tweets by @Wellesley_News

The independent student newspaper of Wellesley College since 1901.

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

  • About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
COPYRIGHT © 2022 THE WELLESLEY NEWS
Back to top