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Masters in Applied Economics and Finance

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Professor Justin Marion at guest lecture series

OVERVIEW

The M.S. program in Applied Economics and Finance provides two years of analytical graduate training that prepares students for careers in business, government, international and domestic banking, consulting firms, and nonprofit organizations. The curriculum stresses mastery of the core principles of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and finance. In addition, each student becomes knowledgeable in at least two chosen fields, such as international economics, corporate finance, and public finance. Even more important, each student learns how to solve practical problems and to communicate the results clearly. The emphasis of the program, and perhaps its greatest strength, is exposing students to statistical software packages (SAS, TSP, etc.), econometric techniques, and large-scale financial and micro datasets throughout their coursework. Students become adept at finding the tools and information to solve specific problems, work out solutions, and present the solutions in concise written and oral communications.

Students have many opportunities for individual work with economics faculty. Faculty interests are broad, covering all the major fields in economics. Approximately 25 students are admitted to the program each year. Recent graduates of the program have competed very successfully in the job market with those holding M.B.A.s and Ph.D.s from other schools. A few graduates of the program use it as a foundation for further graduate and professional study.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

The master’s program consists of 12 courses (60 credits) of graduate study, an independent study and a workshop, usually completed in two years of full-time enrollment. During the first year, all students take the same core courses. Thereafter, students have the flexibility to pursue more specialized interests.

The first two quarters (fall and winter) of the program aim to give students a command of analytical techniques and concepts for studying topics such as inflation, unemployment, pricing policies, and the working of markets, as well as quantitative tools for these studies. In the third quarter, students take a required course in corporate finance as well as a course in applied microeconomics in which they analyze specific policy issues.

In the second year, students pursue their more specialized interests, such as international economics, public economics, and finance. Students may consult with the program director at the beginning of their second year to discuss other possibilities such as environmental policy analysis.

In their final quarter of the program, students complete a major applied project as the capstone of their studies. Sometimes projects develop out of summer internships between their first and second year of study. Each student works with a faculty adviser in choosing, developing, and completing his or her project. Drafts of projects are presented, discussed, and critiqued, and oral and written communication skills are polished in the process.

ACADEMIC STANDING INFORMATION

Residency
To receive a Master's degree from the UC system, a student must register as a full-time graduate student at the University of California for a minimum of three quarters. To receive an M.S. degree from UC Santa Cruz, a student must be registered at the Santa Cruz campus for at least two of the three quarters.

Academic Progress
A master's degree student is considered not to be making satisfactory progress beyond nine quarters of full-time enrollment.

Graduation
By the end of the second week of instruction in the quarter you intend to graduate, you must file an "Announcement of Candidacy and an Application for Degree" with the Division of Graduate Studies and Research.