Staff Profile: Andrew Samwick, Director of the Rockefeller Center

Andrew Samwick - Director of the Rockefeller Center

What was your most rewarding collegiate experience as an undergraduate or graduate?
My most rewarding collegiate experience was doing a summer research assistantship at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System after my second year of graduate school.  It was an opportunity to be immersed in a strong economic research environment, and it opened my eyes to the relevance of public policy and the many ways to put an economics Ph.D. to work.

Why did you choose to work at Dartmouth College, and/or what do you currently most enjoy about your position and/or field of interest?
I came to Dartmouth as an assistant professor straight out of graduate school.  I was attracted to Dartmouth because, of the multiple job offers I had, Dartmouth offered the best research environment and provided great opportunities to excel at both scholarship and teaching.  What I like most about being the Director of the Rockefeller Center is that I get to advance both aspects of Dartmouth’s mission – preparing students for lifetimes of learning and of responsible leadership.

What is your most important message to pass on to students?
If you think that College will be the best 4 years of your life, then you have done it wrong.  College should be the best 4 years of your life so far – use your time in College to make sure that the next 4 years are even better than those you spend in College.

What hobby fuels you?
I have enjoyed hiking and skiing since I arrived in Hanover.  My son and I have recently taken up squash.

What is one life experience or aspect about yourself that students do not know?
My students do not know that there was almost no such thing as Professor Samwick.  I rolled my SUV the week before I taught my first class at Dartmouth.  I was lucky to be able to walk away from that accident, and I am grateful for every day since.