Mar 28, 2024  
2020-2021 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2020-2021 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Economics, B.S.


Requirements for the major in economics, B.S.


Major adviser: Ronald Tracy

The Bachelor of Science with a Major in Economics is offered through the School of Business Administration, but is different from Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Major in Business Economics. The latter is a business degree, and the former is not. By not requiring the business core, the Major in Economics provides students greater flexibility. This major teaches students the concepts and tools of economic analysis, while providing them with the breadth and flexibility of a broad general education and courses in other areas of interest to the student. Students learn how economic analysis can be applied to major problems facing individuals, firms, the nation and the world today. Majoring in economics prepares students for the workplace of the future, which will require workers who are flexible, adaptable to change, and who can propose practical solutions to solve problems quickly.

Besides preparing students for a career in the private or public sector, an education in economics is excellent preparation for law school, graduate school in public administration or economics, or an MBA degree. Economics is a flexible choice for students seeking a rigorous, well-respected and relevant major without specializing in a narrowly defined area.

Beyond the Bachelor of Science with a major in business economics (a business degree, described previously), the Department of Economics offers four economics programs: a Bachelor of Arts in Economics (offered through the College of Arts and Sciences), a Bachelor of Science in Economics (offered through the School of Business Administration), a Bachelor of Science with a Major in Actuarial Science (offered through the College of Arts and Sciences), and a minor in economics. The Bachelor of Arts degree allows a student to pursue a liberal arts education while providing a background that business considers appropriate for most entry-level management positions (see the Department of Economics section in the College of Arts and Sciences portion of the catalog). The Bachelor of Science degree has additional accounting and finance requirements. It also provides educational and career flexibility not offered by a degree in business. The Bachelor of Science with a Major in Actuarial Science blends mathematics, economics, statistics, and finance, and is offered jointly with the Department of Mathematics and Statistics. The minor in economics is useful for liberal arts majors with an interest in business and for business majors who want to demonstrate their solid grounding in economics, the foundation of a business degree.

Students who are interested in attending graduate school in economics should see the department chairperson or an economics faculty mentor at an early stage of their undergraduate program. Professional advisers in the SBA (for B.A. and B.S. degrees) and the College of Arts and Sciences (for B.A. degree) or the chairperson of the Department of Economics offer routine student advising.

To earn the Bachelor of Science degree with a major in economics, students must complete a minimum of 124 credits as follows:

English composition – 4-8 credits


General education requirement – 28 credits


See the university General Education Requirements  section of the Undergraduate degree requirements for details on the writing requirement, U.S. diversity and other general education requirements.  Students on a previous catalog may use economics courses to satisfy the social science general education requirement.

Cognate courses – 28 credits


Electives – 15-16 credits


Choose five economics electives at the 3000 level or above, one of which must be at the 4000 level. Students taking ECN 1500  or ECN 1600  before ECN 2010  or ECN 2020  (or ECN 2000 ) and who subsequently become economics majors, should talk to the department chairperson. FIN 4180  or QMM 4520  can be substituted for a 3000 level elective. No more than three credits in ECN 3800 , ECN 4900 , or ECN 4996  may be counted as economic electives.

General electives – 23-34 credits


124 total credits


In addition, each student seeking a B.S. with a major in economics must:


  1. Complete at least 32 credits at Oakland University, of which at least 16 credits must be offered by the SBA. Of these 16 credits, at least 12 must be in the student’s major;
  2. Completion of the following courses, or their equivalents, with a grade of C or better in each course: MTH 1221 , MTH 1222 ; MIS 1000  (or CSI 1300 ); ECN 2010  and ECN 2020  (or ECN 2000 ); and QMM 2400 ;
  3. Complete ECN 3020 , ECN 3030 , and ECN 3040  with a minimum grade of C in each course;
  4. Complete at least 32 credits at the 3000 level or above;
  5. Take the last eight credits needed to complete the baccalaureate requirements at Oakland University;
  6. Earn a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.00 in courses taken at Oakland University and in courses taken in the School of Business Administration.