Graduate Program

The Department of Economics offers programs leading to the Ph.D. degree in International Economics and M.S. degree in Applied Economics and Finance.

The Ph.D. program in International Economics provides students with training in modern microeconomics, macroeconomics, and econometrics, combined with focused training in fields of international finance and international trade. The emphasis on international economics distinguishes the program from most other Ph.D. programs. Graduates of the program have taken positions at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, the International Monetary Fund, the U.S. Treasury, the Bank of Canada, the Swiss National Bank, the Reserve Bank of Australia, and tenure track academic appointments at Brandeis University, the University of Wisconsin, Ryerson University, the University of Alberta, Indiana University, Mount Holyoke College, Royal London College, Vassar College, and the National Dong Hwa University.

The M.S. program in Applied Economics and Finance is designed for students who wish to supplement their undergraduate work in economics with analytical graduate training that prepares them for careers in business, international and domestic banking, consulting firms, government, and nonprofit organizations. The program combines theory with meaningful applications that students are likely to face in their professional careers. The program is more practical than a typical M.A. program and provides more training in economics and statistics than most M.B.A. programs. Recent graduates have found employment with a wide range of public and private sector employers, including VISA Inc., Providian Financial, Deloitte and Touche, Wells Fargo, the World Bank, and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The Dual B.A./M.S. Degree (also known as the Pathway program), is an accelerated program whereby an undergraduate economics major can earn a B.A. in Economics in four years and an M.S. in Applied Economics and Finance after a fifth year of study. Students begin to take graduate courses in their senior year while maintaining undergraduate status, simultaneously earning undergraduate and graduate credit. In their fifth year, they are officially enrolled as graduate students.