Tara M. Sinclair

Tara M. Sinclair is a macroeconomist, chair of the department of economics, and professor of economics and international affairs at the George Washington University.  She was previously an official at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where she worked closely with Secretary Janet Yellen and was responsible for the Treasury’s domestic macroeconomic outlook. 

Sinclair uses her research to connect economic principles with real-world concerns, developing data sources and tools that policymakers can use in their decision-making. She is a sought-after public speaker who regularly consults with public officials, business leaders, and the press on issues related to business cycles, labor market dynamics, forecasting, AI, and macroeconomic policy. 

At GW, Dr. Sinclair is the chair of the Department of Economics and is the former director of the GW Center for Economic Research. From October 2022 through May 2024, Sinclair served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Macroeconomics in the Office of Economic Policy at the Department of Treasury.  Prior to joining the Treasury Department, Sinclair was a senior fellow and former chief economist at job search site Indeed.  She founded the Indeed Hiring Lab, the research arm of the world’s #1 job site, and developed original research using Indeed data on labor markets around the world.  She also previously served as a Special Government Employee (SGE) member of the Bureau of Labor Statistics Technical Advisory Committee (BLSTAC).

Her research focuses on modeling, explaining, and forecasting macroeconomic and particularly labor market fluctuations and trends for different countries. She also evaluates forecasts, particularly with respect to their role in monetary policy and decision-making. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in macroeconomics and econometrics.  

Dr. Sinclair earned her PhD in economics from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri in 2005.