PREREQUISITE COURSES

Students considering concentrating OR minoring in economics must complete the following prerequisite courses with grade C or better:

• Economics 101, Principles of Economics I.  Microeconomics is the focus of this course.  It teaches how markets function, what markets do well, where markets do not work well, the distribution of income and wealth, the public sector, international trade, and environmental economics.

• Economics 102, Principles of Economics II. The fundamental concepts and theories of macroeconomics are developed and used to analyze problems of current interest. The major concerns of this course are the determinants of GDP, unemployment, inflation, international trade, and economic growth. Prerequisite: Econ. 101.

• Mathematics 115, Calculus I (or Mathematics 175 or 185).  Advanced placement credits in Mathematics 121 may be substituted for Mathematics 115, but students who scored less than a 4 on the BC Calculus exam are encouraged to elect one of the calculus courses on the placement list before proceeding to economics courses having a Mathematics 115 prerequisite.  Credits in Mathematics 120 alone do not satisfy the mathematics prerequisite for an economics concentration or minor.  Students with this credit may fulfill the economics mathematics prerequisite by completing, with grade of at least C, one of the calculus courses on the placement list. (Mathematics 116, 119, 156, 175, 185, 186, 295). 

REQUIREMENTS FOR AN ECONOMICS CONCENTRATION

Effective January 1, 2003, an economics concentration plan must include:

• Economics 401 (Intermediate Microeconomics) and Economics 402 (Intermediate Macroeconomics), each completed with a grade of at least C-

• Statistics courses: Economics/Statistics 405 (Introduction to Statistics), Economics 404 (Statistics for Economists), or Statistics 426 (Introduction to Mathematical Statistics)

• 15 additional credits in upper level (300+) ECON courses, including at least 9 credits taken from the following set: courses with ECON 401 or ECON 402 as a prerequisite; ECON 406.

The statistics requirement may be waived, but only with the approval of an economics concentration advisor, for students who have already completed another satisfactory upper level statistics course. In this case, the third concentration requirement above would be increased to 18 rather than 15 additional credits in upper level economics.

Transfer credit is not normally granted for Economics 401. Any concentration courses to be taken outside the Ann Arbor campus of the University should be approved in advance by an economics concentration advisor. At least 12 credits in the concentration plan, including at least 3 of the credits in upper level economics electives in courses with Economics 401 or Economics 402 as a prerequisite, must be taken at the Ann Arbor campus.

Students who have completed Economics/Statistics 405 or Statistics 426 are strongly encouraged to include Economics 406 (Introduction to Econometrics) as one of the electives in their concentration plan. Note that Mathematics 116 (Calculus II) is a prerequisite for Economics/Statistics 405 and that Mathematics 215 (Calculus III) and Mathematics/Statistics 425 (Introduction to Probability) are prerequisites for Statistics 426.

Economics 401, 402, and statistics are prerequisites to many upper level economics courses and should be elected during the sophomore or junior year. Economics 401 should be elected before Economics 402.

MATH COURSES

A solid background in mathematics will help a student excel in economics courses. If a student has trouble with mathematics, economics will be difficult. Students with a serious interest in economics are strongly encouraged to continue the study of calculus beyond Math 115. Math 116, 215, 217, and 316, or Honors Mathematics courses covering the same material, are recommended for students with an interest in quantitative economics. Math 116 will prepare students to choose the more rigorous sequence in statistics and econometrics, Econ 405 and 406. Electing Math 116 during the freshman or sophomore year will allow students to choose this more rigorous sequence in the junior year.
 

REQUIREMENTS FOR AN ECONOMICS MINOR

• Economics 401 completed with a C- or better
• Economics 402 completed with a C- or better
• Economics Electives:  9 credits in upper-level economics courses, including 3 credits in courses with ECON 401 or 402 as a prerequisite.