BS in Economics
The Bachelor of Science in Economics degree provides a strong foundation in economic theory, mathematics, and statistics. The program requirements include introductory and intermediate level theory courses as well as elective courses on a range of topics in economics.
Compared with the BA in Economics degree, the BS curriculum requires an additional calculus course, plus courses in related STEM fields, as well as econometrics and more advanced economics electives. The BS degree prepares students for graduate programs in economics or careers that require sophisticated quantitative analysis.
"Econometrics was one of the hardest and most gratifying classes I have ever taken. The course gave me the tools to read, critique and conduct empirical research. It was like learning a new language."
Andrea Cristina Ruiz
BA ’12, Economics and International Affairs
Recommended BS Course Schedules
Students with AP Calculus credit or those who placed above MATH 1231 may move through the required MATH and STAT courses at a faster pace than this schedule indicates.
- Recommended Schedule: ALEKS Scores of 61+
Students with AP Calculus or Stats credit can move through the required math and stat courses at a faster pace than recommended below.
- Freshman year: ECON 1011, ECON 1012, STAT 1111/1053/1051, MATH 1221/1231
- Sophomore year: ECON 2101/2103, ECON 2102/2104, MATH 1232, two ECON electives and/or one required STEM elective
- Junior year: ECON 2123, two econ electives and/or one required STEM elective
- Senior year: Remaining econ electives and/or other remaining non-ECON electives, ECON 4198W
- Recommended Schedule: ALEKS Scores Below 61
Students with ALEKS scores below 61 may find the Bachelor of Arts track a better fit.
- Freshman year: ECON 1001, ECON 1011, STAT 1111/1053/1051 and MATH 1221/1231 (or any other pre-requisites needed for enrollment into these STAT and MATH courses)
- Sophomore year: ECON 1012, ECON 2101/2103, MATH 1232, one ECON elective, and/or one required STEM elective
- Junior year: ECON 2102/2104, ECON 2123, two ECON electives, and/or one required STEM elective
- Senior year: Remaining ECON electives and/or required STEM electives, ECON 4198W
- Important Notes for All Students
- Students are encouraged to complete the two principles classes (ECON 1011 and ECON 1012) plus the intro stats (STAT 1111/1053/1051) and Calculus I (MATH 1221/1231) classes no later than the first semester of their sophomore year so that they are fully prepared for entry into the economics major.
- We recommend that students take intermediate micro prior to taking intermediate macro as it will enhance students’ understanding of the macro material.
- Intermediate micro and macro as well as econometrics and three ECON electives are pre-requisites for the capstone proseminar course (ECON 4198W). Students will not be allowed to enroll in proseminar until they have completed these pre-requisites. It is therefore imperative to plan ahead and finish these pre-requisite courses by the end of the first semester of senior year.
- We strongly recommend completing all ECON BS major requirements prior to enrolling in ECON 4198W. Materials covered in the required major classes will be extremely helpful to students in completing their research projects in the proseminar course.
- For students wishing to study abroad in their junior year, you are encouraged to only transfer back ECON electives courses. We recommend taking the core theory classes (ECON 2101/2103, 2102/2104, 2123) at GW
Course Requirements
The following requirements must be fulfilled:
The general requirements stated under Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, Undergraduate Programs and the following curricular requirements.
Program-specific curriculum:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required core courses | ||
| ECON 1011 | Principles of Economics I * | |
| ECON 1012 | Principles of Economics II | |
| ECON 2101 | Intermediate Microeconomic Theory | |
| or ECON 2103 | Intermediate Microeconomic Theory: A Mathematical Approach | |
| ECON 2102 | Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory | |
| or ECON 2104 | Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory: A Mathematical Approach | |
| ECON 2123 | Introduction to Econometrics | |
| MATH 1221 | Calculus with Precalculus II | |
| or MATH 1231 | Single-Variable Calculus I | |
| MATH 1232 | Single-Variable Calculus II | |
| STAT 1111 | Business and Economic Statistics I (or equivalent) | |
| or STAT 1051 | Introduction to Business and Economic Statistics | |
| or STAT 1053 | Introduction to Statistics in Social Science | |
| STEM electives | ||
| Two courses (6 credits) selected from the following and completed with a minimum grade of C-: | ||
| CSCI 1011 | Introduction to Programming with Java | |
| CSCI 1012 | Introduction to Programming with Python | |
| CSCI 1111 | Introduction to Software Development | |
| CSCI 1112 | Algorithms and Data Structures | |
| CSCI 1311 | Discrete Structures I | |
| DATS 1001 | Data Science for All | |
| DATS 2102 | Data Visualization for Data Science | |
| DATS 2103 | Data Mining for Data Science | |
| DATS 2104 | Data Warehousing for Data Science | |
| EMSE 2705 | Mathematics of Operations Research | |
| EMSE 3850 | Quantitative Models in Systems Engineering | |
| MATH 2184 | Linear Algebra I | |
| MATH 2233 | Multivariable Calculus ** | |
| MATH 2971 | Introduction to Mathematical Reasoning ** | |
| MATH 3342 | Ordinary Differential Equations ** | |
| MATH 3410 | Mathematics of Finance ** | |
| MATH 4239 | Real Analysis I ** | |
| STAT 1129 | Introduction to Computing | |
| STAT 2183 | Intermediate Statistics Lab/Packages | |
| STAT 3119 | Design and Analysis of Experiments | |
| STAT 3157 | Introduction to Mathematical Statistics I | |
| STAT 3187 | Introduction to Sampling | |
| STAT 4158 | Introduction to Mathematical Statistics II | |
| STAT 4181 | Applied Time Series Analysis | |
| STAT 4188 | Nonparametric Statistics Inference | |
| STAT 4189 | Mathematical Probability and Applications I | |
| STAT 4190 | Mathematical Probability and Applications II | |
| STAT 4197 | Fundamentals of SAS Programming for Data Management | |
| Additional electives | ||
| Six courses (18 credits) in Economics (ECON) electives numbered between 2000 and 4999 are required. At least one of these courses should be numbered between 3000 and 3999 and at least one should be an ECON WID course. The following guidelines and restrictions apply to this requirement: | ||
*Post-matriculation residency requirement: ECON 1011 must be taken at GW to count toward the major. Students who matriculate with AP or transfer credit for ECON 1011 are exempt from this residency requirement.
**MATH 2233, MATH 2971, MATH 3342, MATH 3410, and MATH 4239 are strongly recommended for students planning to pursue graduate studies in economics.