The economics department offers a small, selective graduate program with a focus on applied and policy-oriented economics. Students work closely with faculty members, many of whom have extensive experience in the public and private sectors.  A low student-to-faculty ratio encourages mentoring relationships, which pays dividends in classrooms, research, and job placement.

The focus of the economics department meshes with the public policy environment of the Maxwell School. The Ph.D. program is research-oriented and designed for those who want to conduct applied economics in higher education, government, international agencies, independent research organizations, or private business. The program begins in the summer with a Math for Economists course, which is covered by any assistantship or University fellowship awards received.  During the first three semesters, students receive rigorous training in micro- and macroeconomic theory and econometrics.

Thereafter, students focus primarily on two of the following fields of specialization:

• public economics,
• international economics,
• labor economics, and
• urban & regional economics.

In addition, students with strong theoretical interests may take fields in microeconomic and econometric theory. Opportunities also exist to study financial economics in the SU School of Management. The Ph.D. requires 72 credits, 51 credits of coursework, and 21 credits of dissertation.

The economics Ph.D. program requires a dissertation workshop to help doctoral students identify a topic, organize the material, and practice its presentation. Students can also take part in the Future Professoriate Project, the University- wide program that helps graduate students develop teaching skills.  
Doctoral students and faculty members participate in joint research projects, many of them housed in the school’s Center for Policy Research or Global Affairs Institute. Students, with faculty members, often write papers for journals and conferences. Efforts to identify a student’s professional goals begin early, with faculty advisors and dissertation committee members assisting in ongoing networking that leads to successful placement.

The department also offers graduate courses toward the completion of a master of arts degree. A faculty advisor works with master’s students to find coursework related to the individual’s academic and career objectives. The M.A. requires 30 credits and provides its graduates with the tools to perform policy-related research in government or private sector settings. For midcareer professionals, a terminal master of arts degree is also available through the school’s Executive Education Programs (see pages 12-13).

Faculty members are professionally active and well known in their fields. Some have worked, or continue to work, at the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Institute for International Economics; two have served on the staff of the Council of Economic Advisers; and one is a Social Security public trustee. These backgrounds enrich faculty and graduate student research and bring a wealth of real-world experience to the classroom. Such contacts help place economics Ph.D. students in significant academic and government positions. The department also enjoys strong loyalty from its many distinguished alumni, who can be found in academia, business, and government.

All Ph.D.-level graduate students are assigned carrels in the department’s home in Eggers Hall. The facility provides round-the-clock access to computers with the sophisticated software required for economic analysis.

The economics department typically accepts 10 to 15 master’s students and 10 to 12 doctoral students each year. Approximately half of the department’s doctoral students are women. Entering Ph.D. students generally receive financial aid in the form of renewable one-year teaching assistantships as part of the offer of admission. Fellowship support is available to highly qualified applicants.

Applicants to the M.A. and Ph.D. programs are required to submit scores from a recent Graduate Record Examination (GRE), transcripts from all graduate and undergraduate coursework, and three letters of recommendation. Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores are required of all international applicants whose native language is not English.

Selected student research topics include:

• The interaction of housing and labor markets in metropolitan areas
• Environmental quality and economic development
• Dumping and international market power in vertically related industries
• The economic well-being of men with disabilities: a dynamic cross-national view

Economics contact:  

Donald H. Dutkowsky, Graduate Director
Department of Economics
110 Eggers Hall
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY 13244-1090 USA

Telephone 315-443-1918
Fax 315-443-3717
E-mail dondutk@maxwell.syr.edu
Main departmental website with graphics www.maxwell.syr.edu/econ

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