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Economics Handbook

The M.A. Program in Economics

The Master of Arts in Economics is a terminal (non-thesis) degree designed to prepare students for positions in business or government or for further graduate work in an economics Ph.D. program. Students completing the program will be confered an MA in Business Economics.

Admission Requirements

  • Score of at least 430 (V) and 570 (Q) on the GRE or at leasat 500 on the GMAT.
  • GPA of 3.0 (B) or better in last 60 hours of undergraduate coursework.
  • Grade of B or better in each of the following four prerequisite courses: calculus, statistics, intermediate microeconomics, intermediate macroeconomics.

Program Requirements

The program consists of 30 hours of coursework plus the successful completion of an oral exam given before a committee of three faculty. The 30 hours of coursework is comprised of 12 hours of required coursework, at least 12 hours of economics elective coursework, and no more than 6 hours of elective coursework either taken outside of economics or certain economics courses offered in the MBA program.

Required courses are the following:

  • ECO 6115 Microeconomics I
  • ECO 6206 Aggregate Economics
  • ECO 6405 Mathematical Economics I
  • ECO 6424 Econometrics I

Available economics elective courses include: advanced courses microeconomic theory, mathematical economics, and econometrics; urban and regional economics; economics of the public sector; economics of health care; industrial organization; economics of organization; history of economic thought, economic development; international trade; and economic policy analysis.

Economics courses offered in the MBA program that may be applied towards the MA degree include: issues in regulation/anti-trust; law and economics; and the economics of sustainable enterprise.

To be eligible to graduate, in addition to completing all coursework and passing the oral exam, students must satisfy all University requirements for the Master of Arts degree which include maintaining a GPA of at least 3.0 overall and a GPA of at least 3.0 within economics.

The Department participates in the Graduate Interdisciplinary Transportation Program which is coordinated by USF's Center for Urban Transportation Research and involves the departments of Civil Engineering, Public Administration, and Economics. An economics MA student can obtain a concentration in transportation analysis by taking two courses offered by each of the three departments. As two of the four courses from outside of economics may be used as unrestricted electives in the MA program, it is possible to obtain the MA and the certificate with as few as 12 courses. The only two economics courses that may be used towards the MA and the certifcate are Microeconomics I and Urban Economics.

Application Procedure

To obtain an application for admission go to USF graduate admissions. The deadline for fall admission is June 1 and for spring admission is October 15. The department does not offer a summer admissions cycle.

Financial Assistance

The Department has several graduate teaching assistantships available. The GTA provides a salary and a tuition waiver. Assistantships are awarded on a competitive basis and may be renewed for a second semester when students remain in good academic standing. To obtain an assistantship application, please contact the Economics Department's Graduate Programs Secretary at econgrad@coba.usf.edu. Also, the Center for Urban Transportation Research offers research assistantshps to qualified students participating in the transportation program..

A brochure describing the Master's of Arts in Economics program is also available.