2014-15 Catalogs
BS in Economics
The undergraduate program in economics provides practical preparation for a variety of careers as well as for graduate study in economics, business administration, public policy, and law. Economics is a social science and as such is best studied in the context of broader exposure to the liberal arts and sciences.
Economics is a marketable liberal arts degree. Liberal arts majors (social sciences and humanities) develop excellent writing and research skills, and increase a student's knowledge of the world. These majors also help students build a stronger and more informed sense of identity and values. Economics at USM also provides students critical thinking and analytical (including statistical) skills.
The B.S. curriculum is recommended for students interested in a liberal arts economics education with greater stress on business and quantitative skills.
Program Requirements
Under Other Requirements, choose either Track A (49 or more credits) or Track B (53 or more credits); both tracks share the same major prerequisites, major requirements and some of the other requirements.
Track A is recommended for students interested in an economics education with a quantitative business emphasis.
Track B is recommended for students interested in graduate study in economics or related policy fields.
ECO 120 satisfies the Quantitative Reasoning Core curriculum requirement; all other 100-level Economics courses satisfy a second-tier Core curriculum requirement.
Note that only one course carrying the prefix ECO can be used to satisfy both Core curriculum and economics major requirements.
Major Prerequisites (6 credits)
ECO 101 Introduction to Macroeconomics
ECO 102 Introduction to Microeconomics
Major Requirements (9 credits)
ECO 301 Intermediate Macroeconomics
ECO 302 Intermediate Microeconomics
ECO 303 Political Economy
Other Requirements (16 or more credits)
Select two of the following courses (both Track A and Track B):
BUS 260 Marketing
BUS 335 International Business
BUS 340 Managing Organizational Behavior
BUS 361 International Marketing
BUS 365 Consumer Behavior
BUS 385 Entrepreneurship and Venture Formation
FIN 320 Basic Financial Management
FIN 326 Financial Modeling
FIN 327 Investment Management
FIN 330 International Financial Management
Track A:
ACC 110 Financial Accounting Information for Decision Making
MAT 210 Business Statistics
BUS 275 Applied Business Analysis
Track B:
ACC 110 Financial Accounting Information for Decision Making
MAT 152 Calculus A
MAT 153 Calculus B
MAT 380 Probability and Statistics
Major Electives, for both Track A and Track B (18 or more credits)
Select any five economics elective courses numbered 200 or above, from the following list of economics elective courses:
ECO 220 U.S. Economic and Labor History
ECO 305 Research Methods in Economics
ECO 310 Money and Banking
ECO 312 U.S. Economic Policy
ECO 315 Economic Development
ECO 316 Case Studies in International Development
ECO 319 Macroeconomics: Debt and Finance
ECO 321 Understanding Contemporary Capitalism
ECO 322 Economics of Women and Work
ECO 323 U.S. Labor and Employment Relations
ECO 325 Industrial Organization
ECO 326 Environmental Economics
ECO 327 Natural Resource Economics
ECO 328 Rural and Regional Economic Development
ECO 330 Urban Economics
ECO 333 Economics and Happiness
ECO 335 The Political Economy of Food
ECO 340 History of Economic Thought
ECO 350 Comparative Economic Systems
ECO 370 International Economics
ECO 380 Public Finance and Fiscal Policy
ECO 381 State and Local Public Finance
ECO 399 Special Topics in Economics
ECO 450 Readings in Economics
ECO 490 Independent Readings and Research in Economics
Select one additional economics elective from the above list of economics electives, or one additional elective from the following list of acceptable courses offered by other departments:
BUS 370 Management Science
FIN 320 Basic Financial Management
FIN 326 Financial Modeling
FIN 327 Investment Management
FIN 330 International Financial Management
GEO 303 Economic Geography
MAT 252 Calculus C
MAT 290 Foundations of Mathematics
MAT 295 Linear Algebra
Students who select one or two FIN courses under Other Requirements above cannot use the same course(s) to satisfy the major elective requirement here.
Admission Information
To be eligible for a degree, a student must complete 120 credit hours fulfilling the University's Core curriculum requirements and all requirements for the major.