Fall 2014 Course Offering by the Economics Department1
ECON 1010 Principles of Economics: Macroeconomics
ECON 1020 Principles of Economics: Microeconomics
ECON 3010 Money and Banking
ECON 3240 Intermediate Microeconomic Theory
ECON 4040 International Economics
ECON 4280 Sport Economics
ECON 4300 Environmental Economics
ECON 4440 Economic Development
ECON 4999 Game Theory
ECON 5010 Concepts in Economics
What careers follow the economics baccalaureate? 2
Economics majors are successful in a wide variety of careers. Although various roles in businesses are
most common, economics majors are successful in law, medicine, government, non-profits, and
international relations, as well as in academic roles.
The Corporate World & the MBA
Most economics majors pursue employment in the private sector. Graduates in economics succeed in
many occupations. Some students plan to earn the Masters of Business Administration (MBA) degree
in time. Others find employment with the BA is sufficient to fulfill their aspirations.
Economic Consulting
Some economists with BA degrees find employment as research associates with economic consulting
firms. Consultants advise firms on business strategies, prepare economic evidence for court cases,
and develop analyses to influence public policy.
Law and Other Professions
Law school is also a common destination for recent graduates in economics. The careful reasoning in
economics is a good fit for law and many careers in the law influence significant economic decisions
for firms.
Government and Not-for-profits
Some students enter government service or choose jobs with non-profit entities. Governments at
every level hire economists for their facility with statistics and analysis.
Professors, Teachers and Researchers of Economics
Some graduates in economics are interested in academic careers. They are drawn by the love of the
study of economics and the prospect of teaching and writing about economics as a career.
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http://www.utc.edu/economics/
http://www.aeaweb.org/students/Careers.php
Career Earnings3
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports annual wages for economists in 2010. For economists of all
educational levels, the median earnings in 2010 were $89,450 with $48,250 at the tenth percentile
and $155,490 at the 90th percentile.
Payscale.com reports its survey of people with Baccalaureate degrees (and no more) who are
employed full time, showing starting salaries (typically with two-years of experience) and mid-career
annual earnings. Here are selected occupations for the 2012-13 report.
College Major
Starting Salary
Chemical Engineering
$67,500
Applied Mathematics
$50,800
Statistics
$49,300
Economics
$48,500
Mathematics
$48,500
Finance
$47,700
Business
$41,400
Political Science
$40,300
Advertising
$37,800
Sociology
$36,000
Psychology
$35,200
Mid-career Salary
$111,000
$102,000
$99,500
$94,900
$85,800
$85,400
$70,000
$74,700
$77,100
$56,700
$60,200
Median earnings of economists by highest level of degree in 2010
Highest Degree
Women
Men
BA
$38,000
$42,000
MA
$45,000
$38,000
PhD
$90,000
$100,500
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http://www.aeaweb.org/students/Careers.php
Mid-Career Earnings
The fifteen majors reported below are those with the highest median earnings among the 50 most
popular majors. Economics is in ninth place in median earnings in this group. The table reports the
percentage of the majors who are unemployed, the earnings at the 25th percentile (Q1), the median,
and at the 75th percentile (Q3). Economics has the widest dispersion between Q1 and Q3 with Finance
in second place.
Major Field
Unemployment %
Q1
Median
Q3
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
5.00%
$60,000
$86,000
$111,000
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
3.80%
$60,000
$86,000
$117,000
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
3.80%
$60,000
$81,000
$106,000
COMPUTER ENGINEERING
7.00%
$58,000
$81,000
$102,000
COMPUTER SCIENCE
5.60%
$50,000
$77,000
$102,000
CIVIL ENGINEERING
4.90%
$55,000
$76,000
$101,000
GENERAL ENGINEERING
5.90%
$47,000
$73,000
$101,000
MANAGEMENT INFORMATION
SYSTEMS
AND STATISTICS
4.20%
$47,000
$71,000
$96,000
6.30%
$42,000
$69,000
$108,000
FINANCE
4.50%
$44,000
$65,000
$101,000
MATHEMATICS
5.00%
$42,000
$63,000
$95,000
COMPUTER AND INFORMATION
SYSTEMS
5.60%
$44,000
$62,000
$86,000
TREATMENT THERAPY PROFESSIONS
2.60%
$40,000
$62,000
$81,000
ACCOUNTING
5.40%
$41,000
$61,000
$94,000
NURSING
2.20%
$48,000
$60,000
$80,000
ECONOMICS
What Is Economics?4
Economics is the study of scarcity. Resources are limited, and every society wants to figure out how to
allocate its resources for maximum benefit. The field of economics serves in large part to help answer
this resource allocation question. Economists study topics such as:
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How prices and quantities of items are determined in market economies
How much value markets create for society
How taxes and regulation affect economic value
Why some goods and services are under-supplied in a market economy
How firms compete and maximize profit
How households decide what to consume, how much to save, and how much to work (or,
more generally, how people respond to incentives)
Why some economies grow faster than others
What effect monetary and fiscal policy has on economic well-being
How interest rates are determined
Microeconomics Versus Macroeconomics5
Microeconomics
Those who have studied Latin know that the prefix “micro-“ means “small,” so it shouldn’t be
surprising that microeconomics is the study of small economic units. The field of microeconomics is
concerned with things like:
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Consumer decision making and utility maximization
Firm production and profit maximization
Individual market equilibrium
Effects of government regulation on individual markets
Externalities and other market side effects
Macroeconomics
Macroeconomics can be thought of as the “big picture” version of economics. Rather than analyzing
individual markets, macroeconomics focuses on aggregate production and consumption in an
economy. Some topics that macroeconomists study are:
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The effects of general taxes such as income and sales taxes on output and prices
The causes of economic upswings and downturns
The effects of monetary and fiscal policy on economic health
How interest rates are determined
Why some economies grow faster than others
http://economics.about.com/od/economics-basics/a/What-Is-Economics.htm
http://economics.about.com/od/economics-basics/a/Microeconomics-Versus-Macroeconomics.htm