The interfield degree in Political Science and Economics combines courses from the departments in the Division of Politics and Economics.

Students must be accepted by both departments. One department will serve as the student’s primary department and dictate the field to be listed first on the student’s diploma at graduation–whether Political Science and Economics or Economics and Political Science.

University Policies

Policies detailed in the current Policies and General Information Bulletin apply.

Admissions Requirements

Admission requirements are detailed in the Admissions section of the current Policies and General Information Bulletin.

Degree Requirements

Coursework.  A minimum of 80 units is required, composed of a core, a research tool, a political science concentration, and an economics field of study.

Research Tools.  Satisfactory completion of research tool requirements through our core methods courses(see below). If you completed a research tool at another institution, you may petition to apply the tool to your CGU degree program. Non-CGU tools must meet the following qualifications: 1. Transfer credit requirements apply – that is, graduate level achievement from an accredited institution and documented on an official transcript 2. In compliance with transfer credit policies, grades received in non-CGU coursework must be B or better. 3. Tools completed at another institution must have been accomplished within three years of the date you of your petition. In some cases, you must also successfully pass a test in the material covered by the tool.

Transdisciplinary Requirement. Doctoral students are required to complete 4 units of Transdisciplinary (TNDY) courses (T-Courses) within the first two years of their program or by the completion of 48 units in their program. The course will count as 4 units towards the doctoral degree requirement. It will not add any additional units to the student’s degree requirements nor count against the total number of transfer units from previous graduate coursework.

Practical Experience Milestone. Please see below.

Qualifying Exams.  A modified qualifying exam structure takes into account the requirements of the two programs. There are three qualifying exams in total:

• Economics: Successful completion of the Interfield Microeconomics qualifying exam and either a qualifying exam in econometrics/statistics or the Economics field of study (which are only for students in the IEDP field.)
• Political Science: Successful completion of a qualifying exam in the chosen concentration

Students can attempt each written qualifying exam twice. In the event that a student fails a second attempt, an oral examination is administered as soon as possible after the written examination is graded, but at a time that meets the scheduling needs of both the student and examining faculty.

Dissertation.  Students must successfully defend a dissertation proposal and successfully defend a dissertation that meets the rigorous methodological standards of and draws from both fields. Campus policies and procedures are detailed in the Doctoral Degree Regulations section of the Bulletin and on the registrar’s Completion of Degree webpage.

Core Courses (24 units)

Political Economy

Required Courses:

• SPE 411 -  International Political Economy (4 units)
• SPE 352 - Comparative Political Economy (4 units)

Microeconomics & Macroeconomics 

Required Courses:

• ECON 313 - Microeconomic Analysis (4 units) OR ECON 316 - Consumer Theory and General Equilibrium (4 units)
• ECON 302 - Modern Macroeconomics: Analysis, Policy and Applications (4 units)

Two of the following, with approval of the field advisor.

• ECON 317 - Game Theory and Asymmetric Information (4 units)
• ECON 303 - Macroeconomics Analysis II (4 units)
• SPE 489 – Computational Tools for Social Sciences (4 units)

Research Tools (16 units)

Choose one of the following four-course statistical sequences.

Track 1 (required for those whose primary department is Economics)

• PP 480 - Nature of Inquiry: Quantitative Research in Social Sciences (4 units)

ECON 308 - Math for Economists (4 units)​

*Please note that this course starts in early August as a Module 1, Fall course.

**Any student who wishes to, may attempt to test out of this class. If you test out of this class, then you can add an additional elective.

***Students who enter the program with an equivalent version of this course, for example, from a master’s degree program, may skip this requirement with faculty permission. Students who take the course for credit may count the course as an elective.

 

• ECON 381 - Probability and Statistics for Econometrics
• ECON 382 - Econometrics I (4 units) (Prereq for Econ 383 and Econ 384)
• ECON 383 - Econometrics II (4 units)

Track 2 (open to those whose primary department is Politics & Government​)

• PP 480 - The Nature of Inquiry: Quantitative Research in Social Sciences (4 units)
• PP 481 -  Introduction to Statistical Analysis (4 units)
• PP 482 - Multivariate Regression Analysis (4 units)
• PP 487 - Applied Data Analysis (various letters and topics) (4 units)

 

Field Options (40 units)

Nine courses or 40 units are required according to the following distribution.  

Political Science (20 units)

The Faculty of Political Science requires a minimum of five (5) courses to complete a field (20 units). Here is a list of concentrations available:

• American Politics
• Comparative Politics
• International Politics
• International Political Economy
• Public Policy
• Research Methodology

Economics (20 units)

• Applied Microeconomics: within this field are subfields to choose from:
  • Crime & Law Economics
  • Behavioral, Experimental, and Neurological Economics
• International Economic & Development Policy (see your advisor)