Meet Olusayo Adeleye

Olusayo joined the PhD Excellence Initiative at NYU Stern in July 2020, following her graduation from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and with designation as a Sloan-UMBC Pre-Doctoral Fellow in Economics. She also has been part of the leadership team at The Sadie Collective since its founding in 2018.

In More Detail

Olusayo (Sayo) received her BA in Mathematics with a minor in Economics in May 2020 from UMBC (Honors College), where she was a Meyerhoff Scholar, LSAMP Research Scholar, and was awarded a Maryland Delegatorial Scholarship. Sayo attended the AEA Summer Training Program in 2019, and in Fall 2019 she was a Kellogg Scholar in the IDDEAS@Booth/Kellogg program. During her time at UMBC, Sayo also shared her skills and knowledge through peer tutoring in the areas of microeconomics and probability and statistics, providing effective learning and study strategies for student-athletes.

In addition to pursuing her own path in economics, Sayo has dedicated herself to lifting up other Black women with similar career goals. She has worked with The Sadie Collective since its inception in 2018—first as Co-Head of Conference Operations, launching the Annual Sadie T. M. Alexander Conference for Economics & Related Fields in 2019, and later as Public Relations Manager. The Sadie Collective provides resources, programs, and community to members and advocates for broader visibility of Black women in quantitatively demanding fields.

The Entrance Interview: In Her Own Words

  I became interested in economics during the summer of my sophomore year of college. I had never encountered economics as a field of study before that. When I found that it was an analytical way to approach social issues, I loved it.

I learned about the Ph.D. Excellence Initiative through a network of young Black economists that I plugged into when I realized I was interested in doctoral studies in the field. One recurring piece of advice from the Black graduate students in that network was to identify good mentors early on. I believe that being a fellow with the Ph.D. Excellence Initiative will best prepare me for a doctoral degree through gained research experience, supplementing coursework I did not take during my undergraduate career, and, most importantly, through Dr. Henry’s mentorship.”

Sayo’s awareness of the exponential growth of data collection in her lifetime leads her to ask important questions regarding the social responsibility of companies that profit from their users’ personal data, and how prioritizing social good impacts competitiveness, business strategy, and profits.

Further Reading by and about Sayo

>> UMBC Students Co-Create 1st Conference for Black Women Economists (Feature)

>> Co-Authored: 9 Black Women in Data Science You Should Know