Admission Requirements

• Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy
• MBA/MA in Economics

Degree Requirements

• Master of Arts
• MBA/MA in Economics
• Doctor of Philosophy

Mailing Address:
Department of Economics (MC 144)
University of Illinois at Chicago
601 South Morgan Street
Chicago, IL 60607-7121

Campus Location: 2103 UH
Program Codes 20FS0074MA (MA); 20FS0074PHD (PHD)
Telephone: (312) 996-2683
E-mail: econ.uic@gmail.com
Web Site: http://www.uic.edu/depts/econ/
Head of the Department: Barry R. Chiswick
Director of Graduate Studies: Paul J. Pieper

The Department of Economics offers work leading to the Master of Arts in Economics and the Doctor of Philosophy in Economics. The department also participates with the MBA Program in offering the MBA/MA in Economics joint degree program. In addition, the Business Administration doctoral program offers a specialization in Business Economics; consult Business Administration in the College of Business Administration section in this catalog for more information.

Admission Requirements

Applicants are considered on an individual basis. Transcripts from all colleges and universities attended in the last eight years must be submitted. In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, applicants must meet the following program requirements:

Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy

• Baccalaureate Field An undergraduate degree in economics is not required. Prior academic work should include introductory calculus, statistics, intermediate microeconomic theory, and intermediate macroeconomic theory.
• Grade Point Average At least 3.00/4.00 for the final 60 semester hours (90 quarter hours) of undergraduate study.
• Tests Required GRE or GMAT.
• Minimum English Competency Test Score
  • TOEFL 550 (paper-based); 213 (computer-based); 80, with subscores of Reading 19, Listening 17, Speaking 20, and Writing 21 (iBT Internet-based), OR,
  • IELTS 6.5, with subscores of 6.0 for all four subscores.
• Letters of Recommendation Three required.
• Personal Statement Required.
• Deadlines Same as the Graduate College deadlines.

MBA/MA in Economics

All MBA application materials should be submitted to the MBA Program Office. See Professional Program—Business Administration in the College of Business Administration section for more information.

Degree Requirements

In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, students must meet the following program requirements:

Master of Arts

• Minimum Semester Hours Required 40.
• Course Work At least 32 hours must be in economics, of which at least 28 hours must be at the 500-level, excluding ECON 592, 596, and 598. ECON 441, 442, and 472 may be used to satisfy the 40 semester-hour degree requirement but not the 32 hours of course work in economics requirement. No more than 12 hours total of ECON 596 and 598 may be applied to the degree. ECON 520, 540, 541, 592, and 599 cannot be used to satisfy any MA requirement.
• Required Courses: ECON 501, 502, 511, 512, 534, and 535. All students must complete the 4 courses in economic theory (ECON 501, 502, 511, and 512) with a GPA in these four courses of at least 3.00/4.00. Credit will be given for at most one grade of C in any of these courses.
• Comprehensive Examination None.
• Thesis, Project, or Course-Work-Only Options Thesis or course work only. No other options are available.
• Thesis: No more than 8 hours of ECON 598 can be applied to the degree.
• Course Work Only: Students who do not write a thesis must enroll in ECON 596 for 4 hours of credit and write an acceptable paper for the course.

MBA/MA in Economics

• Minimum Semester Hours Required 72.
• Course Work No more than 12 hours total of ECON 596 and 598 can be applied to the degree.
• Required Courses: ACTG 500; ECON 501, 502, 511, 512, 534, 535; FIN 500; IDS 532; MGMT 541; MKTG 500. All students must complete the four courses in economic theory (ECON 501, 502, 511, 512) with a grade point average in these four courses of at least 3.00. Credit will be given for at most one grade of C in any of these courses.
• Electives: 12 additional hours in economics at the 500-level (excluding ECON 520, 521, 540, 541, 592, 593, and 599), and 16 additional hours of 500-level courses in at least two other disciplines within the College of Business Administration except Economics.
• Comprehensive Examination None.
• Thesis, Project, or Course-Work-Only Options Thesis or course work only. No other options are available.
• Thesis: No more than 8 hours of ECON 598 can be applied to the degree.
• Course Work Only: Students who do not write a thesis must enroll in ECON 592 or 596 for 4 hours of credit, and write an acceptable research paper for the course.

Doctor of Philosophy

• Minimum Semester Hours Required 104 from the baccalaureate, 72 from the master’s.
• Course Work Required Courses: ECON 501, 502, 511, 512, 534, 535, and 592. Students must also select two areas, each consisting of at least two 500-level economics courses. The required courses and ECON 520, 521, 540, 541, 592, 593, 598, or 599 may not be used to satisfy the area requirement.
• Electives: One additional graduate-level course in economics and two other graduate-level courses related to the student’s area of study in either economics or in another social science or business discipline.
• Examinations Departmental Qualifying Examination: Students must take written qualifying examinations in microeconomics and macroeconomics within two years after admission to the program. Students who receive a failing grade on either exam on two occasions will not be allowed to continue in the PhD program.
• Preliminary Examination: Written; the exam covers two areas in economics. The oral portion of the exam may be waived on agreement of the examination committee.
• Dissertation Required.

Interdepartmental Concentration in Gender and Women’s Studies

Students earning a graduate degree in this department may complement their courses by enrolling in a concentration in Gender and Women’s Studies after consulting with their graduate advisor. See Gender and Women’s Studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences section of the catalog for more information.