Economics

An Economics major is a versatile degree that prepares students for careers in the business world as well as graduate study. The exposure to economic analysis (theoretical and empirical) makes Economics majors attractive to many job recruiters and graduate schools.

The skills taught to Economics majors provide a solid foundation and preparation for many business and technical occupations. Occupations that attract students with these kinds of skills include consulting firms, commercial banks, oil companies, investment firms, healthcare entities, and utility companies.

Economic majors are also attractive to various branches of the Federal, State, and Local governments. These agencies offer extensive employment opportunities for undergraduate Economics majors. For example, the Departments of Agriculture, Labor, Commerce, and Treasury are the biggest federal employers of Economics majors. At the State level, Corporation Commissions, Office of the State Treasurer, Office of Management and Budget, and the Department of Commerce are among the major recruiters. Other big recruiters of Economics majors include the Federal Reserve Banks and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Economics majors are very well-suited and prepared for advanced degrees in Economics, Business and Law. Many law school representatives believe that Economics is one of the best and most desired pre-law majors because of the analytical training and logical thinking involved in the discipline. The wide range of theoretical, analytical, and empirical courses offered ensure that our undergraduate program equips students with the skills to successfully pursue advanced degrees in Economics.

For more information about Economics degrees, majors or required classes, please contact the Economics Advisor, Corey Quiett.  Ms. Quiett can be reached at cquiett@ou.edu, or current Economics majors can schedule an appointment with her on iAdvise.

Economics courses provide students with a good foundation in both analytical and quantitative analysis.

A major in Economics requires a minimum of 30 hours total or 10 Economics courses. The 30 hours must include Economics 1113, 1123, 2843, 3113, and 3133. A minor in Economics requires a minimum of 15 hours. Economics 2843 is not required for Economics minors.

Our diverse and internationally recognized faculty have research agendas across fields including international economics, industrial organization, public economics, and labor economics, among others.  Using cutting edge tools of empirical and theoretical modeling, we seek to produce impactful research that adds value to both academic and policy-oriented discussions.

Our research has been published in leading professional journals such as:  The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Journal of Political Economy, Journal of Labor Economics, Journal of Econometrics, Journal of International Economics, Journal of Public Economics, Journal of Monetary Economics, Nature: Food, American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Development Economics, Journal of Urban Economics, Journal of Regional Science, Journal of Applied Econometrics, Management Science, Marketing Science, European Economic Review, Review of Economics and Statistics, Journal of Business and Economic Statistics, Journal of Human Resources, Health Economics, World Development, American Journal of Agricultural Economics, American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, Review of Economic Dynamics, Economic Inquiry, Food: Policy, Economics of Education Review, Regional Science and Urban Economics, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, International Journal of Epidemiology, Journal of the American Planning Association, International Economic Review, Journal of Population Economics, Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, and many others.

Dr. Greg Burge, department Chair and professor, was recently featured in WalletHub's article, "Cities Where Inflation is Rising the Most"

Dr. Tyler Ransom's work in the paper "Legacy and Athlete Preferences at Harvard" was referenced in several publications, including the Washington Examiner, Bloomberg, the National Review, the New York Times, and Moguldom.

Dr. Firat Demir interviewed Kamal Soleimani and Ahmad Mohammadpour about "Iranian Kurds and the Status of Kolberi 'Smugglers'" for Security in Context, Dr. Daniel Mains about "Under Construction: Technologies of Development in Urban Ethiopia."

Dr. Qihong Liu was recently featured in WalletHub regarding "Cheap Car Insurance in Oklahoma."

Dr. Jayash Paudel recently published a paper for Review of Development Economics: "Challenges in water and sanitation services: Do natural disasters make matters worse?"  as well as a publication in Ecological Economics: "Unintended environmental benefits of crop insurance: Nitrogen and phosphorous in water bodies" along with a publication in Energy Policy: "Shaking things up: Do seismic shocks affect energy choices?"

Current information about tuition and fees at the University of Oklahoma, including information about in-state, out-of-state, and flat-rate tuition, can be found here. There are several merit scholarships available to Economics majors. The scholarships range from $250 to $2,500. For additional information. please contact the Department of Economics.

The Economics Department at the University of Oklahoma will be hosting a Conference on Auctions, Firm Behavior, and Policy.  The conference will be held on the Norman campus on June 10 and 11, 2024.  It is supported by the National Science Foundation (grant #1919345) and the Dodge Family College of Arts and Science (Click here for the call for papers).

Keep up to date with the economics department here!