Major/Minor Information

The programs offered by the Department of Economics are designed to provide a general understanding of the functioning of the economic system and the role of institutions, groups, and regions within that system and prepare the student for employment in industry, the professions, and government, or to pursue graduate work toward such advanced degrees as the M.A., M.B.A., M.S., or Ph.D. in related fields.

Economics Major Requirements (45 credits)

Courses may be counted toward both Major and General Requirements. However, no course may fulfill two categories of General Requirements. If you use any course for both Major and General Requirements, be sure to count the credits only once toward the degree total.

A grade of a C or better is required for each of the courses below.

Students majoring in economics must take a total minimum of 45 credits in economics (18 credits from Required Courses and 27 credits from Elective Courses).

To make sure you are on the right track, a Curriculum Worksheet is available for download here (click to download).

Required Courses:
(3 credits each. 18 credits total)

  • Principles of Microeconomics 220:102
  • Principles of Macroeconomics 220:103
  • Intermediate Microeconomics 220:203
  • Intermediate Macroeconomics 220:204
  • Foundations of Econometrics 220:222
  • Econometrics 220:322

Elective Courses: Students must take a minimum of 9 elective credits in Economics for a minimum total of 27 credits.

To view courses, visit the Course Catalog page.

Note: Students planning to pursue a Ph.D. in Economics are advised to take more math courses besides taking Mathematical Economics (220:391); Calculus II (640:122) , Calculus III (640:221), Linear Algebra (640:250), Mathematical Reasoning with Proofs (640:300) and Elementary Differential Equations (640:314).

 

Economics Minor Requirements (21 credits)

Courses may be counted toward both Minor and General Requirements. However, no course may fulfill two categories of General Requirements. If you use any course for both Minor and General Requirements, be sure to count the credits only once toward the degree total.

A grade of C or better is required for each of the courses below.

Students minoring in economics must take a total minimum of 21 credits in economics (12 credits from Required Courses and 3 credits from Elective Courses).

To make sure you are on the right track, a Curriculum Worksheet is available for download here (click to download).

Required Courses:
(3 credits each. 12 credits total)

  • Principles of Microeconomics 220:102
  • Principles of Macroeconomics 220:103
  • Intermediate Microeconomics 220:203
    OR Managerial Economics 220:308
    OR Economics of Labor 220:313
    OR Cost-Benefit/Effective Analysis 220:318
  • Intermediate Macroeconomics 220:204
    OR Financial Markets and Institutions 220:325
    OR Economics of International Finance 220:329
    OR Economics of Investment and Capital Markets 220:363

Elective Courses: Students must take a minimum of 3 elective credits in Economics.

To view courses, visit the Course Catalog page.

 

Departmental Honors Program

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Students seeking the distinction of graduating with “Honors in Economics” and the experience of intense investigation of a particular topic in economics may do so in the honors program. Eligibility for such a project is judged by the student’s qualifications and availability of an appropriate supervising professor with a student with the GPA=3.5 above. The supervisor works individually with the student over a two-term sequence, 50:220:495-496, during the student’s last three terms before graduation. Total credits earned are determined by the department according to the nature of the project; a grade is not given until completion of the two-term sequence and department approval of an honors thesis embodying the project. Interested students should contact their academic advisors.

 

Requirements and Restrictions for Independent Study Projects

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Enrollment in 50:220:491 Independent Study Projects in Economics requires prior approval by the department and the participating faculty member. All independent study projects require at least the same rigors of training, instruction, research, and grading as do other upper-division economics courses. To enroll in 50:220:491, students must have completed nearly all of the course requirements for the major in economics and have achieved a grade-point average in economics of at least 3.0. A student is limited to enrollment in only one independent study project within the economics department each term and a maximum of two during the degree program with a student with the GPA=3.5 above.