     |
Inside Economics
VCU College of Humanities and Sciences
Inside Economics is part of a series of pamphlets relating VCU majors to occupational areas. The information in this brochure can help you in planning your education and career. Both the College of Humanities & Sciences and the School of Business offer the major in economics. Students in the College will take a required core of liberal arts courses, while School of Business students have a required business core.
Economics is the study of how people make decisions and how these decisions affect other people and the overall level of economic activity. From the economic perspective, the decision maker evaluates the costs and benefits of any decision before actually choosing the best alternative. Stopping after class for a drink of water and hence missing a piece of gossip with one's friends is an economic decision, but a small one.
Through the general education requirements, taken in the freshman and sophomore years, students typically develop the following skills:
- curiosity and intellectual ability to ask the right questions - to think critically.
- interpersonal skills to understand and influence others.
- ability to communicate, in writing and orally, along with the ability to analyze and synthesize information.
- a breadth of background from the sciences, mathematics, social sciences, and humanities.
- a sense of ethics that will not be compromised by immediate personal gain or prejudice
These skills are typically gained through the requirements in economics:
- analytic ability - reasoning
- quantitative ability
- retrieval and use of economic information
- proficiency in written communication
Economics is a unique blend of liberal arts and business. Therefore, the Department of Economics at Virginia Commonwealth University offers a major in both the College of Humanities and Sciences and the School of Business. Students interested in politics and public policy or careers in the news media or the legal profession frequently choose the major in the College of Humanities and Sciences. Students who want to combine training in economics with exposure to the business disciplines are encouraged to consider the major in the School of Business.
Junior and senior level courses include policy oriented classes such as public finance, government and business, urban economics, and environmental economics as well as theory courses such as intermediate microeconomics and macroeconomics, international trade, and labor. The Department also offers courses for students interested in graduate studies or policy analysis such as mathematical economics and econometrics (statistical applications).
Class sizes for the principle courses range from 45 to 180 students; upper-level classes rarely have more than twenty students. Moreover, nearly all of the instructors are full-time faculty; the remainder are highly qualified professionals drawn from the local business community. The Department does not use graduate students as instructors for any classes.
To become more marketable:
- Arrange for an internship or part-time employment in your field.
- Enroll in the Cooperative Education program to gain valuable work experience related to your major.
- Take electives related to your career goals (for example, foreign language, business, or urban planning) or minor in a supporting area such as African-American studies, international studies, or political science.
- Participate in, and take on leadership roles in, extracurricular activities (for example, the Jennings Economic Society, Omicron Delta Epsilon or student government).
Because economics teaches you how to analyze data and information and how to think strategically about business decision-making, an economics major with good training and the necessary interpersonal skills is highly competitive in the job market. The US Census Bureau reports that the mean yearly income for undergraduate economics majors is $41,916. This is only slightly below the average for engineering ($43,740) and compares favorably with business/management ($35,940), liberal arts/humanities ($25,236), social sciences ($26,916), and all majors ($31,500)
What do economics majors do? The answer is almost anything. Because of their broad analytical, quantitative and decision-making skills, students who major in economics are sought for a wide array of positions in management and sales. For example, firms hire economics majors a bank examiners, consultants, financial advisors, managers, and sales people. Economics is excellent preparation for almost any job with the word "analyst" in its title - such as business, credit, economic, financial, market research, or risk analyst. An economics major is also excellent preparation for running your own business.
Graduate study in economics is often necessary for those students interested in a career as an economist with the government, consulting firms, industry, or universities. Increasingly, students are using an undergraduate degree in economics as a basis for doing graduate study in areas such as law, public administration, business, and medicine
Further information is available at the Career Center (Commons, first floor) or through the division:Virginia Commonwealth University
College of Humanities and Sciences
Department of Economics
Business Building, 1015 Floyd Ave., Room 5128
PO Box 844000
Richmond VA 23284-4000(804) 828-1717
This brochure is published by the VCU Career Development Council in cooperation
with academic departments.
|