Economics, Ph.D.

Students must complete the coursework described below, pass the written and oral qualifying examinations, complete a satisfactory dissertation, and defend it in an oral examination.

Required Courses. A total of 72 units are required. This includes a minimum of 64 units of course credit, i.e., 16 4-unit courses. For some special applied programs, the required minimum is higher. The remaining units may be earned by taking dissertation research. A listing of specific course requirements for each degree program is available from the Department of Economics Office. In addition, all of the Ph.D. programs require the satisfaction of two research tool requirements.

The typical first year consists of core courses as well as research tools. The second and third years mix core and field courses and research workshops. The third year is typically devoted to elective courses and research workshops, completion of written qualifying exams, and beginning the dissertation. The fourth year is normally devoted primarily to the dissertation.

Core requirements for the Ph.D. program are as follows:

Microeconomics

Macroeconomics

Political Economy (one of the following):

Mathematics and Quantitative Methods

ECON 308 - Mathematics for Economists I
ECON 382 - Econometrics I
ECON 383 - Econometrics II
Possibility of Econometrics III ECON 374 - Economic Policies in Developing Countries as a requirement, depending on the chosen field.

Transdisciplinary Course Requirement.

All students who enter the doctoral program after the fall 2004 semester are required to complete the transdisciplinary course requirement within the first two years of their program. For details on the requirement, see the “Doctor of Philosophy Degree ” section in this Bulletin.

Degree Requirements

Written Qualifying Examinations. The written qualifying examinations are designed to test a student’s knowledge of economics and of specialized fields. Students are required to pass three exams: two in the core areas of micro and macro, and one in an elective field. Information on the structure and coverage of the exams for each degree program, and suggestions for preparing for them, are available from the Department of Economics office.

Information on other doctoral degree requirements can be found in the “Registration and Degree Information ” section of this Bulletin.

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