Department of

Why major in economics?

ECONOMICS: SEXIEST TRADE ALIVE
Newsweek- Dec. 26, 2005 - Jan 2, 2006 issue, —Elise Soukup

Economics, perhaps the geekiest of geek subjects, got a serious makeover this year…

Reasoning Skills       
Economics majors learn how to think through problems, compare alternatives, make decisions, offer solutions, and take charge.

Data Analysis
Economics majors learn how to understand and use statistical data, download data from the Internet, form meaningful ratios, plot graphs, and use spreadsheet and statistical software.

Preparation for the MBA
The economics major is an excellent springboard for the MBA. A Business Week survey showed that the most common undergraduate majors of MBA graduates earning more than $100,000 were engineering and economics. 

Preparation for law school
Economic reasoning appears frequently in law reviews and case study analysis and economics majors on average achieve high LSAT scores that are crucial to getting into law school. As illustrated in the table below, among the eight disciplines with more than 3,000 students taking the LSAT, the 4,163 economics majors received the highest average score.


                        Average LSAT Scores by Major, 2002-03.

Rank Major Average LSAT score # of takers
1 Economics 157 4,163
2 Engineering 155 3,367
3 History 155 4,716
4 English 154 6,265
5 Finance 153 3,492
6 Political Science 152 15,023
7 Psychology 152 5,164
8 Criminal Justice 145 3,433
  Average all majors 152 94,391

Career Preparation
The Bureau of Labor statistics considers economics one of the more flexible majors, because the analytical skills developed in that major can be applied in numerous occupations.

$ Money $
Economics majors earn more than students from almost any other undergraduate major.

College Major of recent BA grads Average Starting Salary Summer 2007
Economics $47,782
Accounting $44,928
Mathematics (inc. Statistics) $46,547
Business Administration/Management $43,256
Political Science/Government $35,261
Sociology $32,161