Students may complete a major or minor in Economics.

The economics curriculum provides students with a strong grounding in economic theory and methods through the core courses, and allows them to tailor their major to their specific interests in advanced theory and/or field courses. It emphasizes analytical rigor, the use and interpretation of statistical and empirical evidence, and original, independent research. The curriculum helps students master the methods used by economists to analyze economic issues and assess alternative economic arguments and policies.

Advanced Placement

The department will waive the ECON B105 prerequisite for students who score a 5 on both the Microeconomics and Macroeconomics AP exams or a 6 or 7 on the Economics Higher Learning Exam of the International Baccalaureate. The waiver does not count as course credit toward the major or minor; majors and minors receiving advanced placement must still take a total of ten and six courses in economics, respectively. Students qualifying for advanced placement should see the department chair to confirm the waiver, plan their course work in economics and receive a permission number to enroll in the elective that will substitute for Econ 105.

Major Requirements

The economics major consists of 10 semester courses in economics and one semester of college-level calculus. The required courses for the economics major are:

Course List

Code	Title	Units
ECON B105	Introduction to Economics	1
ECON B200	Intermediate Microeconomics	1
ECON B202	Intermediate Macroeconomics	1
ECON B253	Introduction to Econometrics	1
Two 300-level economics electives, at least one that is writing intensive (WI)		2
Three additional 200- and/or 300-level economics electives		3
Research seminar in economics that fulfills the thesis requirement		1
A minimum of one semester of college-level calculus (or its equivalent)
Total Units		10

To declare an economics major, a grade of no less than 2.7 in ECON B105 is required.  All other courses in the major (including MATH B101 or its equivalent) must be completed with merit grades.

Students declaring an economics major must have completed at least two economics courses by the end of their sophomore year.

Because ECON B200, ECON B202, and ECON B253 have a 200-level economics elective as a prerequisite, prospective majors should try to enroll in a 200-level economics elective the semester after completing ECON B105.

Majors are advised to complete ECON B200, B202, and B253 during sophomore year. They must be completed by the end of junior year or before any study away.

The writing-intensive 300-level elective must be taken at Bryn Mawr and should be completed before the research seminar.

Research seminars in economics (ECON B390-399) each focus on a specific field in economics and require that a student has successfully completed prior coursework in that field. In exceptional cases, ECON B403 Supervised Work Independent Research may be substituted for this requirement; this requires preapproval of the instructor and the department chair.

Important Information for Majors and Minors

Students with questions about the economics major or minor are encouraged to meet with an Economics faculty member.

ECON B200, ECON B202, and ECON B253 must be completed at Bryn Mawr.

To count toward the major or minor 300-level requirements, 300-level electives must have ECON B200 or ECON B202 as a prerequisite.

Not all Haverford and Swarthmore 200-level courses are the equivalent of Bryn Mawr's 200-level electives. The following Haverford and Swarthmore courses do NOT count towards the BMC major or minor, nor do they fulfill the "elective" prerequisite for the three BMC core economics courses:

• ECON S033 (Financial Accounting)
• ECON H201 (Analytical Methods in Economics)
• ECON H210 (Linear Optimization)
• ECON H247 (Financial Accounting)
• ECON H277 (Ethical Leadership in Business and the Professions)

Only ONE of the following two Haverford electives can count towards the BMC major of minor (i.e. if you take both, you only get credit towards the BMC major or minor for one of them), and neither fulfill the "elective" prerequisite for the three BMC core economics courses:

• ECON H205 (Corporate Finance)
• ECON H206 (Microfinance)

Study Abroad and Transfer Credits

We encourage students to spend a semester abroad during their junior year. Majors must complete ECON B200, ECON B202, and ECON B253 before studying away. Up to two courses taken abroad may be counted for credit toward the major. If a student wants a particular course to count toward the economics major, the student must obtain approval from the department chair before confirming registration at the host institution.

Honors

An economics major with a minimum GPA of 3.70 in economics, including economics courses taken in the second semester of the senior year, will graduate with honors in economics.

Minor Requirements

The minor in economics consists of 6 semester courses in economics and one semester of college-level calculus. The required courses for the economics minor are:

Course List

Code	Title	Units
ECON B105	Introduction to Economics	1
ECON B200	Intermediate Microeconomics	1
or ECON B202	Intermediate Macroeconomics
ECON B253	Introduction to Econometrics	1
Three electives, at least one of which must be at the 300-level		3
A minimum of one semester of college-level calculus (or its equivalent)
Total Units		6

Please see Important Information for Majors and Minors for additional details.

A minor plan must be approved before the start of the senior year.