What To Do with a Major in Economics

Presented by:

Kellie Klinck, M.A., L.L.P.C., N.C.C.Academic Adviser, School of Business

Administration

Special Guest: Ed Eickhoff, Alumnus

Our Agenda:

•What is Economics?•Curriculum •Skills Needed for this Field•Possible Career Paths•Job Market Information/Career-Readiness•Student Organizations•Guest Speaker•Questions/Comments

What is Economics?• Economics examines how individuals, for-profit

organizations, non-profit organizations and societies in general make efficient decisions, given limited resources.

• It analyzes how businesses and households make decisions and prescribes solutions to societal problems such as unemployment, inflation, pollution and crime.

• Majoring in economics prepares students for the workplace of the future which will require workers who are flexible, adaptable to change, and who can propose practical solutions to solve problems quickly.

• It is one of the leading fields of study at major universities within the U.S., as well as around the world.

What is Economics cont’d…• Besides preparing students for careers in business,

an education in economics is excellent preparation for graduate studies in law, business and public administration, as well as environmental studies.

• Economics majors consistently attain high scores on national placement tests (GMAT, LSAT, GRE, etc.) by instilling strong critical-thinking capabilities.

• In addition to quantitative analysis and problem solving, students learn to develop models appropriate to understanding the consequences of decision-making.

Interesting Tid-bit…Some Famous Economics Majors…

  Steve Ballmer, CEO, Microsoft

  George H. Bush, Former U.S. President

  Sandra Day-O'Connor, Former Supreme Court Justice

Mick Jagger, Rolling Stones

  Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President

  Arnold Schwarzenegger, Actor/Governor of California

  Ted Turner, CNN/Atlanta Braves/Hawks

Meg Whitman, CEO, Ebay

Tiger Woods, world-renown golfer

Curriculum

•OU offers THREE different degrees in ECONOMICS:

▫B.S. in Business Administration with a MAJOR in Business Economics

▫B.S. in Economics▫B.A. in Economics (SBA & CAS)

▫Checklists…

What ECONOMICS Courses will you Take?

•ALL THREE DEGREES:▫ECN 200 and 201 – Macro/Micro (Pre-Core)▫ECN 303 – Managerial Economics (Core)

•Business Economics Major:▫ECN 302-Intermediate Economics▫ECN 304-Consumer Economics▫ECN 405-Econometrics▫Four 300-level or above economics electives

Courses cont’d…•B.S. in Economics

▫ECN 302- Intermediate Economics▫ECN 304- Consumer Economics▫ECN 405- Econometrics▫FIVE ECN Electives

•B.A. in Economics▫ECN 302-Intermediate Economics▫ECN 304-Consumer Economics▫SIX ECN Electives

ECONOMICS ELECTIVES•ECN 309 – State and Local Public Finance•ECN 310 – Economics of the Environment•ECN 315 – Economics of Gender and Ethnicity•ECN 321 – Financial Markets and the

Economy•ECN 326 – International Economic

Development•ECN 333 – History of Economic Thought•ECN 338 – Economics of Human Resources•ECN 367- Economics of Health Care

Economics Electives Cont’d…•ECN 373 – International Trade•ECN 374 – Economics of International

Finance•ECN 378 – Economic Analysis of Law•ECN 380 – Topics in Economics•ECN 385 – Economics of Industries•ECN 409 – Urban and Regional Economics•ECN 418 – Seminar in Economic Policy•ECN 421 – Monetary Economics•ECN 456 – Public Finance•ECN 480 – Special Topics in Economics

Skills Needed:

•Analytical Skills•Communication (oral/written)•Critical Thinking•Inquisitiveness•Interpersonal Skills•Model Building•Quantitative

Possible Career Paths:• Bank Officer• Bond Trader• Budget Analyst• Economic Analyst• Financial Economist• Healthcare Administrator• Labor Economist• Loan Officer• Market Research Analyst• Public Administrator• Securities Broker• Urban/Regional Planner

Job Market/Career Readiness

Type of Employer % of Graduates Traditional Business 23.3 Government 18.4 Financial Business 17.7 Graduate School 13.1 Consulting Business 4.4 Private/public university 3.9 Law Firm 3.5 Other 9.8

Source: http://www.mhhe.com/economics/sharp/student/careers.mhtml

Student Organization

•Economics Students AssociationEmail: sksoo@oakland.edu or

coppin@oakland.edu

For Further Information…

Professor Addington CoppinMajor Adviser and Chair, Department of

Economics440 Elliott Hall(248) 370-3541

Email: coppin@oakland.edu

http://www.sba.oakland.edu/econpage/programs.asp