Welcome to the Masters of Arts in Economics Program at the California State University in Fullerton. The Department of Economics is part of the renowned Steven Mihaylo College of Business and Economics. The Department offers an exceptional terminal Masters degree in Economics. The program prepares students for professional careers in the private sector, the industry, and the government agencies. The program also prepares students to continue with their graduate education and pursue a Ph.D. We have several success stories with our students. Our alumni have been placed in different positions in prestigious corporations, while others have continued their graduate education and pursued their Ph.D. degree in some of the top-ranking universities.

The courses offered in the program cover a broad array of topics such as Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, Macroeconometrics, Microeconometrics, Mathematics, and Statistics, in addition to a wide variety of electives in the various fields of Economics that include International Economics, Development Economics, Financial Economics, Monetary Economics, Labor Economics, Environmental Economics, Industrial Organization, Game Theory, and others.

The Department has top ranked Economics professors who are experts in their fields of study and who have made various contributions to Economic scholarly research. Our faculty members hold academic seminars, interact with colleagues in other Universities, and also serve as consultants and advisers to firms and organizations. Our professors also maintain a close working relationship with graduate students.

We invite you to explore the web pages of our Program, Department, and University, and we hope you will find that CSUF meets your interests, needs and qualifications. While we hope that these sites will provide the answers to most of your questions, please do not hesitate to contact us with additional questions about the program or suggestions for this site.

Graduate Program Handbook

Graduate Adviser: Dr. Sherif Khalifa
Department of Economics
California State University, Fullerton
Email: skhalifa@fullerton.edu
SGMH 3369; Tel: (657) 278-2228

Admission

The Department of Economics requires:

- At least two academic letters of recommendation.

- A resume.

- A statement of purpose.

- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores of the Verbal and Quantitative sections. The GRE score is valid only if the examination was taken no more than five years prior to the date the application is submitted.

- For international students, a minimum TOEFL score of 550 or equivalent, or an IELTS overall score of 7.0. Applicants who are from English-speaking countries or who hold a bachelor's or higher degree from a university in which English is the medium of instruction are exempt from both the TOEFL/IELTS requirement.

- Completion of the following prerequisite courses (or the equivalents) with a GPA of at least 3.0. The course in Business Calculus must have a grade of at least a C.

 

In the absence of one or more course prerequisites, students may be admitted as conditionally classified if their record otherwise indicates the ability to successfully complete the program. Such deficiencies can be eliminated after enrollment. However, students must advance promptly to classified status by satisfying all prerequisites. Students must also satisfy the University's Writing Proficiency Exam.

Application

You are encouraged to apply online. An online application is available at:

http://www.business.fullerton.edu/programs/graduate/admissions/apply

Study Plan

If all prerequisites have been met, the program can be completed in three semesters of full-time study or two and one-half years of part-time study. Classes are offered in the late afternoon and evenings to accommodate part-time study.

Students may obtain their degree either through a thesis exit track or an examination exit track. The study plan consists of a minimum of 30 units for the thesis exit track and 33 units for the comprehensive examination exit track. Units must be completed with a minimum grade-point average of 3.0. Any study plan course must be completed with at least a C grade, regardless of the overall grade-point average of the student.

Required Courses (18 units)

ECON 440: Introduction to Econometrics

ECON 441: Introduction to Mathematical Economics (3)

ECON 502: Advanced Microeconomics (3)

ECON 503: Advanced Macroeconomics (3)

ECON 504: Advanced Microeconometrics (3)

ECON 505: Advanced Macroeconometrics (3)

ECON 595: Current Research in Economics (3)

Terminal Evaluation (Thesis 30 units)

Econ 598 Thesis Research

500-level Electives (min. 6 units)

Terminal Evaluation (Comprehensive Exam 33 units)

500-level Electives (min. 9 units)

400-level Electives (max. 3 units)

Courses

This is a sample of the courses that are offered to our graduate students:

ECON 440: Introduction to Econometrics

Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 340, ISDS 361A or equivalent.

Economic measurement: specification and estimation of econometric models; statistical methods in economic research.

ECON 441: Introduction to Mathematical Economics

Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310 or equivalent, ECON 320 or equivalent, MATH 135

Economic models and equilibrium analysis. Calculus and comparative statics. Unconstrained and constrained optimization. Real Analysis. Linear Algebra. Applications in Microeconomics and Macroeconomics.

ECON 502: Advanced Microeconomics

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 441; and classified graduate status in Economics

Advanced treatment of decision-making by individuals and firms. Optimal resource allocation in partial and general equilibrium contexts. Topics include choice and preferences, duality, utility maximization, profit maximization, risk and uncertainty, information economics, and market power.

ECON 503: Advanced Macroeconomics

Prerequisites: ECON 320 or equivalent; ECON 441; and classified graduate status in Economics

Advanced treatment of long run economic growth models. Short run economic fluctuations and business cycle models. General equilibrium models. Dynamic inter-temporal optimization. Theories of consumption and saving. Models of unemployment and inflation. Monetary and fiscal policy.

ECON 504: Advanced Microeconometrics: Causality and Policy Evaluation

Prerequisites: ECON 440 or equivalent; and classified graduate status in Economics

Advanced estimation techniques of microeconomic data and panel data. Treatment Effects. Sample selection. Instrumental variables estimation. Limited dependent variable models. Use of econometric and statistical computer softwares.

ECON 505: Advanced Macroeconometrics: Time Series and Forecasting

Prerequisites: ECON 440 or equivalent; ECON 441 or equivalent; and classified graduate status in Economics

Advanced estimation techniques of macroeconomic data. Economic forecasting. Time series econometrics. Stationarity and unit roots. Deterministic and stochastic processes. Vector Autoregressive Analysis. Macroeconomic applications. Use of econometric and statistical computer softwares.

ECON 528: Seminar in Financial Economics

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

Valuation or corporate liabilities and other securities. Economic decision-making under uncertainty and asset pricing theories are analyzed rigorously. Other topics may include optimal capital structure, the market for corporate control, or macroeconomics aspects of finance.

ECON 529: Seminar in Monetary Economics

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

Advanced treatment of monetary policy issues. Topics may include the relevance of monetary policy, new Keynesian Economics, monetary policy shocks, price rigidities, optimal monetary policy, and monetary policy design.

ECON 530: Seminar in Labor Economics

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

Advanced treatment of macro or micro labor market issues. Topics may include unemployment, cyclical unemployment, unemployment insurance, labor unions, minimum wage, wages, and the skill premium.

ECON 531: Seminar in International Economics

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

Advanced treatment of macro or micro international economic issues. Topics may include international trade, trade policy, international finance, currency value, exchange rate regimes, macroeconomics of an open economy, international business cycles, offshoring and foreign direct investment, and globalization issues.

ECON 532: Seminar in Game Theory

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 441 or equivalent; Classified MCBE status

Advanced treatment of topics in game theory. Topics may include dynamic games and static games. Games of complete information and games of incomplete information. Nash Equilibrium. Auctions. Evolutionary Economics

ECON 533: Seminar in Development Economics

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

Advanced treatment of the macroeconomic or microeconomic determinants of economic prosperity. Topics may include institutions, geography, culture, globalization, governance, conflict, inequality, corruption, and others. The course emphasizes the appropriate techniques used to address the core questions in the field of the deep determinants of economic development.

ECON 534: Seminar in Environmental and Natural Resource Economics

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

Advanced treatment of topics in Environmental Economics and Natural Resource Economics. Topics may include market failures, public goods, environmental goods, policies for pollution, renewable and non-renewable resources, land, and sustainability.

ECON 535: Seminar in Industrial Organization

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; ECON 441 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

This course covers topics of industrial organization at the advanced and graduate levels. Industrial organization studies firm behaviors under a variety of market structures that deviate from perfect competition and their implications to welfare, and the latter is especially important in anti-trust litigations and policies. Topics include monopolistic pricing, oligopolistic competition, collusion and merger of firms.

ECON 590: Topics in Economic Analysis and Policy

Prerequisites: ECON 310 or equivalent; ECON 320 or equivalent; classified MCBE status

Special topics in microeconomic and macroeconomic analysis. The course covers different topics in various microeconomic and macroeconomic fields.

ECON 595: Current Research in Economics

 Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310 or equivalent, ECON 320 or equivalent, MATH 135

Read, present and replicate scholarly research published in peer-reviewed journals covering a variety of topics in economics. Receive guidance as to research methodology, composing a research paper and professional presentation. Attendance at departmental research seminars required.

ECON 598: Thesis Research

Prerequisite: ECON 502, 503, 504 and classified graduate status in economics. Corequisite: ECON 505.

Selection and approval of topic; outline; methodology; literature survey; data collection and analysis; presentation of results. Award of the grade is contingent upon the completion and acceptance of the thesis.

ECON 599: Independent Graduate Research

Prerequisites: ECON 502; ECON 503; ECON 504 or ECON 505; and classified graduate status in Economics; consent of instructor, Department Chair, and the Graduate Studies Committee

Directed advanced independent inquiry. May not be repeated for credit. Not open to students in academic probation.

Financial Assistance

Graduate Assistantships:

The department of Economics has a limited number of assistantships available for exceptional graduate students with strong applications. For these students, the department will offer half-time (10-20 hours of work per week) graduate assistantships (approximately $9,000/year). The graduate assistants are expected to have fluency in English, have an ability to tutor undergraduate students and are expected to assist the faculty in various aspects of research.

Tuition waiver:

Students from abroad or from out-of-state (not from California) pay higher tuition than students who are legal residents of California. For exceptional students, the department recommends to the graduate school that tuition waivers be awarded.

Note:
No separate financial aid application is required for financial aid or out-of-state tuition waiver. If you want to be considered for financial aid and tuition waiver, please make sure that that your application file is complete by May 1 for fall admissions and by November 1 for spring admissions.

Other Financial Aid Awards:

A number of other financial aid and student loan programs are also offered by the University. For more information, please see:
http://www.fullerton.edu/financialaid/

For more information about the costs of attending CSUF, please see:
http://www.fullerton.edu/financialaid/appinfo/cost.htm

Graduate Awards

Outstanding Graduate Academic Performance Award ($750)

This is awarded annually in May to a graduate student in Economics who has the highest GPA above 3.75 in all the 500-level core courses in the M.A. in Economics program. Students will be contacted by the graduate advisor to apply for the award. The applicant with the highest GPA will receive the award.

Outstanding Graduate Scholarly Research Award ($750)

This is awarded annually in May to a graduate student with the best graduate research paper, project, or thesis. The instructor or the first thesis committee member of the student will email the graduate advisor a recommendation letter and a copy of the thesis, research paper, or project. The Graduate Studies Committee makes the final decision.

Advanced Graduate Studies Award ($500)

This is awarded annually in November to a graduate student applying for a Ph.D. program, with the best overall performance. The Graduate Studies Committee makes the final decision. 

Placement

Our alumni have been placed in prestigious positions in the private and the public sectors. Others have continued their graduate education in top-ranked universities including in the top 25 Ph.D. granting universities in the United States. Some of our alumni were placed in the Ph.D. programs in the University of Michigan, University of Colorado at Boulder, University of California at Irvine, University of California at Santa Barbara, University of California at Riverside, University of Washington at Saint Louis, and others. Other alumni are placed in prestigious positions at Deloitte, EconOne, Beacon Economics, the Walt Disney Company, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the United States Census Bureau, Southern California Edison, Anaheim Public Utilities, and others.

This is a list of placement for some of our students in the last decade:

University of California, Sant Cruz

Florida International University

Penn State University

Oregon State University

 

Useful Links

Office of Graduate Studies

MCBE Graduate Programs