Specialization Head: Catherine Mann (clmann@brandeis.edu)
Business economists provide the rigorous analysis required for decision-making in all major aspects of business activity. A traditional corporate economist works within a large firm to provide careful economic analysis and statistically-based forecasts relevant to decisions on pricing, procurement, long-term investment and other matters. Consulting economists consider a wide range of topics including bank regulatory compliance, risk management, statistical sampling, federal tax and nontax policy, state and local tax policy, surveys and litigation support. A student's employability in this specialization will be enhanced by writing a paper. (Further information about careers in business economics is available HERE).
To earn this Specialization in Business Economics, students must complete 20 credits at IBS in fulfillment of the requirements listed below.
Coursework
20 credits from the following categories as shown:
Group 1: Foundational (6 credits required)
| ECON 211f |
Foundations of Statistics and Econometrics II (2 credits) |
| ECON 207f |
Applied Microeconomics I (2 credits) |
| ECON 208f |
Applied Microeconomics II (2 credits) |
Group 2: Econometrics (minimum 4 credits; 8 recommended)
| ECON/FIN 250a |
Forecasting in FIN & ECON (time-series econometrics) (4 credits) |
| ECON 261a |
Empirical Analysis of Trade Policy (4 credits) |
| ECON 311a |
Advanced Econometrics I (PhD level course) (4 credits) |
| ECON 212f |
Survey of Advanced Econometric Techniques (2 credits) |
| BUS 211f |
Information Management (2 credits) (later to be renamed "Analyzing Big Data I") |
Group 3: Economics (4 credits required)
| ECON 135a |
Industrial Organization (4 credits) |
| ECON 181a |
Game Theory & Economic Applications (4 credits) |
| ECON 301a |
Advanced Microeconomics (PhD level) (4 credits) |
Group 4: Electives (at least 6 credits)
Any selection below, or any course in Groups 1-3 not taken to fulfill other specialization requirements.
| BUS xxxf |
Analyzing Big Data II (2 credits) (to be introduced in Academic Year 2013-14) |
| BUS 253a |
Marketing Research: Design & Analysis (4 credits) |
| ECON 262a |
Outsourcing and Off-Shoring (4 credits) |
| ECON 205f |
Applied Business Cycle Analysis (3 credits) |
| ECON 141b |
Economics of Innovation (4 credits) |
| FIN 213a |
Intermediate Financial Accounting (4 credits) |
| ECON 235a |
Central Banking (4 credits) |
| ECON 236a |
Managing Government Debt and Deficits (4 credits) |
| BUS 228f |
Management Communication (2 credits) |
| ECON 299a |
Master's Project |
| Also: |
Cost Accounting (offered at IBS partner institutions; highly recommended for those interested in transfer pricing). |
- Students must be mindful that many electives require other courses as pre-requisites.
- If a student exempts from a course, the total IBS credits in Specialization remain the same. The student would take more courses under Group 4.
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