Economics, Bachelor of Arts College of Letters & Science

The Major Program

Economics is the study of how individuals, organizations, and societies choose among alternative uses of resources and how these resources are turned into the things people want.

The Program

Economics majors complete an introductory course sequence in economics, in addition to several courses in quantitative methods. Intermediate theory and economic history are taken on the upper division level and then  students are free to concentrate the remainder of their units in various areas of interest, including more courses in economic theory or history, international economics, labor, industry, alternative economic systems, economic development, public finance, econometrics, or mathematical economics.

Major Advisors

Contact Department office at eheadvisingcenter@ucdavis.edu or 530-752-9142.

Internships & Career Alternatives. Internships for economics majors have been arranged at banks, brokerages, other business enterprises, and governmental units. The internships must complement the student's course work. A degree in economics is excellent preparation for students who want to go on to law school, business school, advanced work in economics, or graduate work in international relations. It is also a good background for careers in management and positions with the government.

Course Limits

Except under extraordinary circumstances, not more than two economics courses should be taken in any one quarter. In special cases, the department will accept a limited number of related upper division courses from other departments in satisfaction of the economics upper division course requirements. Approval from a departmental advisor is required in all such cases.

Graduation with High or Highest Honors. To be eligible for departmental recommendation for High or Highest Honors in Economics at graduation, a student must take all upper division courses in Economics for a letter grade, earn at least a 3.500 grade point average in those courses, and complete at least eight units of course work that result in the submission of an Honors project. Consult the College of Letters and Science section of this catalog and contact the Department for more information.

Study Abroad

The Economics Department wishes to accommodate students who would like to complement their economics degree with a study abroad experience. Up to 20 units of upper division credit from foreign campuses (excluding  ECN 100A and ECN 101) may be used towards the completion of the degree. To ensure that foreign courses will apply towards the economics degree, students need to select courses from the pre-approved list at the UC Davis Study Abroad office or seek pre-approval in the economics department for the foreign courses they wish to complete.

Recommended

Students considering graduate study in economics are strongly urged to take MAT 021A-MAT 021B-MAT 021C and MAT 022A.

American History & Institutions

This University requirement can be satisfied by completion of ECN 111A, ECN 111B; see also under Bachelor’s Degree Requirements.

Graduate Study

Students who meet the admission requirements of Graduate Studies and the Department of Economics may pursue studies leading to the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees. Fields of emphasis for graduate study include: Microeconomic Theory, Macroeconomic Theory, Econometrics, Economic Development, Economic History, Industrial Organization, International Economics, Labor Economics and Public Economics. For information on admission to graduate study, degree requirements, and financial aid, consult the Graduate Announcement and Department of Economics.

Graduate Advisors

Contact Department office.

Preparatory Subject Matter
Economics8
Principles of Microeconomics
Principles of Microeconomics
Principles of Microeconomics
Principles of Macroeconomics
Principles of Macroeconomics
Statistics4
Choose one:
Elementary Statistics
Elementary Statistics
Gateway to Statistical Data Science
Mathematics6-8
Choose one:
Short Calculus
Calculus for Biology & Medicine
Calculus for Data-Driven Applications
Calculus
Choose one:
Short Calculus
Calculus for Biology & Medicine
Calculus for Data-Driven Applications
Calculus
Preparatory Subject Matter Subtotal18-20
Depth Subject Matter
Economics20
Intermediate Micro Theory: Consumer & Producer Theory
Intermediate Micro Theory: Imperfect Competition & Market Failure
Intermediate Macro Theory
Analysis of Economic Data
Choose one:
World Economic History Before the Industrial Revolution
World Economic History Since the Industrial Revolution
Economic History
Economics History
Choose one specialization below:24
Depth Subject Matter Subtotal44
Total Units62-64

Specialization: General

Choose 12 units:12
Economics of Uncertainty & Information
Decision Making
Comparative Economic Systems
Industrial Organization
Industrial Organization
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Energy Economics
Public Microeconomics
Public Finance
Health Economics
Financial Economics
Money, Banks, & Financial Institutions
Topics in Macroeconomic Theory
Macroeconomic Policy
Public Economics in International Perspective
Econometrics
Economic & Financial Forecasting
Economics & Business Data Analytics
Transportation Economics
Economics of the Labor Market
Economics of Human Resources
Economics of Education
International Microeconomics
International Macroeconomics
International Finance
Economic Development in Weak States
Special Study for Honors Students
Special Study for Honors Students
Futures & Options Markets
Introduction to Mathematical Economics
Economics of Global Poverty Reduction: What Works & Why
Natural Resource Economics
Environmental Economics
Additional upper division Economics courses.12
Total Units24

Specialization: Behavior & Strategy

Choose one:
Industrial Organization
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Choose two:8
Economics of Uncertainty & Information
Decision Making
Neuroeconomics/Reinforcement Learning & Decision Making
Industrial Organization
Industrial Organization
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Introduction to Behavioral Economics
Choose one:4
Economics of Uncertainty & Information
Decision Making
Comparative Economic Systems
Industrial Organization
Industrial Organization
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Energy Economics
Public Microeconomics
Public Finance
Health Economics
Financial Economics
Money, Banks, & Financial Institutions
Topics in Macroeconomic Theory
Macroeconomic Policy
Public Economics in International Perspective
Econometrics
Economic & Financial Forecasting
Economics & Business Data Analytics
Transportation Economics
Economics of the Labor Market
Economics of Human Resources
Economics of Education
International Microeconomics
International Macroeconomics
International Finance
Economic Development in Weak States
Special Study for Honors Students
Special Study for Honors Students
Futures & Options Markets
Introduction to Mathematical Economics
Economics of Global Poverty Reduction: What Works & Why
Natural Resource Economics
Environmental Economics
Additional upper division Economics courses.8
Total Units20

Specialization: Data Analytics & Economics Analysis

ECN 140Econometrics4
Choose two:8
Economics of Uncertainty & Information
Decision Making
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Health Economics
Econometrics
Economics & Business Data Analytics
Transportation Economics
Additional upper division Economics courses. 12
Total Units24

Specialization: International Macro-Finance

Choose three:12
World Economic History Since the Industrial Revolution
Financial Economics
Money, Banks, & Financial Institutions
Topics in Macroeconomic Theory
Macroeconomic Policy
Economic & Financial Forecasting
International Macroeconomics
International Finance
Economy of East Asia
Choose three:12
Economics of Uncertainty & Information
Decision Making
Comparative Economic Systems
Industrial Organization
Industrial Organization
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Energy Economics
Public Microeconomics
Public Finance
Health Economics
Financial Economics
Money, Banks, & Financial Institutions
Topics in Macroeconomic Theory
Macroeconomic Policy
Public Economics in International Perspective
Econometrics
Economic & Financial Forecasting
Economics & Business Data Analytics
Transportation Economics
Economics of the Labor Market
Economics of Human Resources
Economics of Education
International Microeconomics
International Macroeconomics
International Finance
Economic Development in Weak States
Special Study for Honors Students
Special Study for Honors Students
Futures & Options Markets
Introduction to Mathematical Economics
Economics of Global Poverty Reduction: What Works & Why
Natural Resource Economics
Environmental Economics
Total Units24

Specialization: Policy

Choose three:12
Energy Economics
Public Microeconomics
Public Finance
Public Economics in International Perspective
Transportation Economics
Economics of the Labor Market
Economics of Human Resources
Economics of Education
International Microeconomics
Additional upper division Economics courses.12
Total Units24

Specialization: Poverty & Inequality

Choose three:12
Economic Development
Economic Development
Economics of International Immigration
Public Microeconomics
Public Economics in International Perspective
Economics of Human Resources
Economic Development in Weak States
Choose three:12
Economics of Uncertainty & Information
Decision Making
Comparative Economic Systems
Industrial Organization
Industrial Organization
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Energy Economics
Public Microeconomics
Public Finance
Health Economics
Financial Economics
Money, Banks, & Financial Institutions
Topics in Macroeconomic Theory
Macroeconomic Policy
Public Economics in International Perspective
Econometrics
Economic & Financial Forecasting
Economics & Business Data Analytics
Economics of the Labor Market
Economics of Human Resources
Economics of Education
International Microeconomics
International Macroeconomics
International Finance
Economic Development in Weak States
Special Study for Honors Students
Special Study for Honors Students
Futures & Options Markets
Introduction to Mathematical Economics
Economics of Global Poverty Reduction: What Works & Why
Natural Resource Economics
Environmental Economics
Total Units24

Specialization: Economic History

Choose three:12
World Economic History Before the Industrial Revolution
World Economic History Since the Industrial Revolution
Economic History
Economics History
Economics of International Immigration
One of which may be from:
Medicine's Histories: Human & Veterinary Medicine from the Ancient World to One Health
Global Environmental History
Environmental Change, Disease & Public Health
Themes in World History
Colonialism & the Making of the Modern World
Ancient History
Ancient History
Ancient History
Topics in Pre-Modern Jewish History
Topics in Modern Jewish History
History of Jews in the Muslim World
History of Modern Israel
History of West Africa
History of East Africa & the Indian Ocean
History of Southern Africa from Exploration to the Rainbow Nation
Postcolonial Africa
Slavery, Africa, & the Atlantic World
History of Modern North Africa, 1800 to the Present
African History: Special Themes
World War I
World War II
Medieval History
Medieval History
Medieval History
Selected Themes in Medieval History
Topics in Early Modern European History
The History of Human Rights in Europe
Christianity & Culture in Europe: 50-1450
Christianity & Culture in Europe: 1450-1600
Christianity & Culture in Europe: 1600-1850
Early Modern European History
European History During the Renaissance & Reformation
The Old Regime: Absolution, Enlightenment & Revolution in Europe
Crime & Punishment in Early Modern Europe
European Thought & Culture from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment
The Age of Revolution
History of Science to the 18th Century
History of Science, 18th to 20th Centuries
Scientific Revolution
The Rise of the Russian Empire, 1304-1825
Reform & Revolution in Tsarist Russia, 1825-1917
Russian History: The Rise & Fall of the Soviet Union, 1917 to Present
Medieval & Renaissance Medicine
The Rise of Capitalism in Europe
France Since 1815
History of the Holocaust
The Memory of the Holocaust
History of Eastern Europe & the Balkans
History of Germany, 1450 to 1789
History of Germany since 1789
War & Revolution in Europe: 1789-1918
Europe in the 20th Century
Europe in the 20th Century
European Intellectual History: 1800-1870
European Intellectual History: 1870-1920
European Intellectual History: 1920-1970
Women & Society in Europe: 1500-1789
Women & Society in Europe: 1789-1920
Women in Society in Europe: 1914-Present
Comparative Cultural History of Modern Britain & France, 1880-1914
England: The Middle Ages
England: The Early Modern Centuries
18th-Century England
Industrial England
Latin American Migration History
Business, Biomes & Knowledge: Latin American Environmental History
Special Topics in Latin American History
Women & Gender in Latin American History
Spain & America in the 16th Century
Human Rights in Latin America
History of the Andean Region
History of Brazil
History of Brazil
History of Chile
Latin American Social Revolutions
History of Mexico to 1848
History of Mexico since 1848
Modern Latin American Cultural & Intellectual History
History of Inter-American Relations
Mexican-American History
Mexican-American History
Colonial America
The American Revolution
The Early National Period, 1789-1815
Slavery, Society & Expansion in the Early U.S.
Civil War Era
Reconstruction, America’s Second Founding
Selected Themes in 19th-Century American History
American Environmental History
Becoming an American: Immigration & American Culture
The Gilded Age & Progressive Era: United States, 1876-1917
War, Prosperity, & Depression: United States, 1917-1945
The United States Since World War II, 1945 to the Present
Selected Themes in 20th-Century American History
American Intellectual History
Cultural & Social History of United States
Cultural & Social History of United States
History of Black People & American Race Relations: 1450-1860
History of Black People & American Race Relations: 1860-Present
Water in the West: Environment & Politics in America's Arid Lands
Asian American History, 1850-Present
American Political History, 1789-1896
American Political History, 1896-present
The Fight for the Right to Vote
Religion in American History to 1890
Gender & Justice in American History
The Frontier Experience: Trans-Mississippi West
The Frontier Experience: Trans-Mississippi West
History of Sexuality in America
History of Science in America
History of Technology in America
History of US Foreign Relations in the 20th Century
America in the 1960s
California History
Middle Eastern History I: The Rise of Islam, 600-1000
Middle Eastern History II: The Age of the Crusades, 1001-1400
Middle Eastern History III: The Ottomans, 1401-1730
Middle Eastern History IV: Safavids Iran, 1300-1720
Classical China
High Imperial China
Late Imperial China
19th-Century China: The Empire Confronts the West
The Chinese Revolution
History of the People's Republic of China
Special Topics in Chinese History to 1800
Special Topics in Chinese History after 1800
Sex & Society in Modern Chinese History
History of the Modern Middle East, 1750-1914
History of the Modern Middle East, From 1914
The Middle East Environment: Historical Change & Current Challenges
History of Modern Iran, From 1850 to Present
Aristocratic & Feudal Japan
Early Modern Japan
Modern Japan
Business & Labor in Modern Japan
Education & Technology in Modern Japan
History of Modern Korea
A History of Vietnam
Medieval India
Modern India
Choose three:12
Economics of Uncertainty & Information
Decision Making
Comparative Economic Systems
Industrial Organization
Industrial Organization
Theory of Games & Strategic Behavior
Energy Economics
Public Microeconomics
Public Finance
Health Economics
Financial Economics
Money, Banks, & Financial Institutions
Topics in Macroeconomic Theory
Macroeconomic Policy
Public Economics in International Perspective
Econometrics
Economic & Financial Forecasting
Economics & Business Data Analytics
Transportation Economics
Economics of the Labor Market
Economics of Human Resources
Economics of Education
International Microeconomics
International Macroeconomics
International Finance
Economic Development in Weak States
Special Study for Honors Students
Special Study for Honors Students
Futures & Options Markets
Introduction to Mathematical Economics
Economics of Global Poverty Reduction: What Works & Why
Natural Resource Economics
Environmental Economics
Total Units24