student majoring in economics should acquire a thorough grounding in basic principles and methods of analysis, plus a working competence in several of the specialized and applied fields. Examples of such fields are industrial organization, law and economics, money and banking, international trade and finance, public finance, labor economics, health economics, urban and regional economics, and economic development.
Course work in economics serves a wide variety of vocational objectives. An economics major (supplemented by a rigorous calculus and statistics course sequence) is excellent preparation for graduate work in economics, which qualifies a person for academic, business, or government employment. Majors and others with strong economics training are attractive prospects for business firms and government agencies, and for professional graduate study in business or public policy. An economics background is especially desirable for the study and practice of law. The economics B.S. is recommended for students interested in professions that call for quantitative skills. The B.S. is especially recommended for Honors students and students considering graduate school in economics or other quantitative areas.
A minor in Economics is described in the “Minors” section.
Requirements
For both the B.A. and B.S., the intermediate theory courses should be taken early in the student’s major program:
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| ECON 2201 | Intermediate Microeconomic Theory | 3 |
| or ECON 2211Q | Quantitative Intermediate Microeconomics |
| ECON 2202 | Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory | 3 |
| or ECON 2212Q | Quantitative Intermediate Macroeconomics |
| Total Credits | 6 |
The department has special requirements for economic majors in the University Honors Program.
Economics B.A Requirements
For an economics major that leads to a Bachelor of Arts degree, students must earn twenty-four credits in courses at the 2000 level or above, including:
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| ECON 2201 | Intermediate Microeconomic Theory | 3 |
| or ECON 2211Q | Quantitative Intermediate Microeconomics |
| ECON 2202 | Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory | 3 |
| or ECON 2212Q | Quantitative Intermediate Macroeconomics |
| 9 |
| Mathematical Economics | |
| Econometrics I | |
| Econometrics II | |
| Operations Research | |
| Information Technology for Economics | |
| |
No more than six credits in ECON 2499 Independent Study and/or ECON 3499 Independent Study may be counted toward the required 24 credits in economics courses at the 2000 level or above. ECON 2481 Internship Field Study does not count toward fulfilling the major requirements.
Related Courses
Economics B.A. majors are also required to pass twelve credits in 2000-level or above courses in fields related to economics or to fulfill a minor related to economics. In addition, all Economics majors must take:
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| 4 |
| Introduction to Statistics I | |
| Elementary Concepts of Statistics (recommended) | |
| 3-4 |
| Calculus for Business and Economics | |
| Calculus I | |
| Advanced Calculus I | |
ECON 2311Q Econometrics I is a recommended course for the B.A. Students may substitute more advanced MATH and STAT courses with consent of the faculty advisor.
Economics B.S. Requirements
For an economics major that leads to a Bachelor of Science degree, students must take:
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| 4 |
| Introduction to Statistics I | |
| Elementary Concepts of Statistics (recommended) | |
| 8 |
| Calculus I
and Calculus II | |
| Advanced Calculus I
and Advanced Calculus II | |
| 4 |
| Multivariable Calculus | |
| Applied Linear Algebra | |
| Elementary Differential Equations | |
Students may substitute more advanced MATH and STAT courses with consent of the advisor.
B.S. students must take one of the following science sequences in Biology, Chemistry, or Physics:
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| BIOL 1107 | Principles of Biology I | 4 |
| BIOL 1108 | Principles of Biology II | 4 |
| or BIOL 1110 | Introduction to Botany |
| 8-10 |
| Fundamentals of General Chemistry I
and Fundamentals of General Chemistry II
and Fundamentals of General Chemistry III | |
| General Chemistry I
and General Chemistry II | |
| Honors General Chemistry I
and Honors General Chemistry II | |
| 8 |
| General Physics I
and General Physics II | |
| General Physics with Calculus I
and General Physics with Calculus II | |
| Physics for Engineers I
and Physics for Engineers II | |
| Fundamentals of Physics I
and Fundamentals of Physics II | |
B.S. majors must also earn 27 credits in courses at the 2000-level or above, including :
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| 6-9 |
| Quantitative Intermediate Microeconomics
and Quantitative Intermediate Macroeconomics | |
| Intermediate Microeconomic Theory
and Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory
and Mathematical Economics 1 | |
ECON 2311Q
& ECON 2312Q | Econometrics I
and Econometrics II | 6 |
| 6 |
| Mathematical Economics | |
| Operations Research | |
| Information Technology for Economics | |
| Programming and Computation with R for Economists | |
| Open Source Programming with Python for Economists | |
| Game Theory | |
| Behavioral Economics | |
| Elementary Economic Forecasting | |
| Financial Econometrics | |
| Machine Learning for Economists | |
| Panel Data Econometrics | |
| Mechanism Design | |
| Convex Optimization with Python | |
| Operations Research for Benchmarking | |
B.S. majors may not count ECON 2481 Internship Field Study toward the major, nor may they count more than six credits in ECON 2499 Independent Study and/or ECON 3499 Independent Study.
Related Courses
B.S. majors are also required to pass 12 credits in 2000-level or above courses in a field or fields related to economics. These related area courses may count toward a minor in a field related to economics.
Information Literacy and Writing Requirements
Economics majors satisfy the information literacy competency by passing at least one W course in Economics. Students may gain enhanced competence in information literacy by taking ECON 2311Q Econometrics I, ECON 2312Q Econometrics II, ECON 2326 Operations Research, or ECON 2327 Information Technology for Economics. Economics majors satisfy the writing in the major requirement by passing at least one W course in Economics.
University Common Curriculum Requirements
Every student must meet a set of core requirements to earn a baccalaureate degree, in addition to those required by the student's major course of study and other requirements set by the student's school or college. For more information about these requirements, please see Common Curriculum Requirements.
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Degree Requirements
Students must meet a set of requirements established by the college in addition to the University's Common Curriculum requirements. For more information, see the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences section of this catalog.
