Economics

Overview

Economics is the study of decision-making and policy-making in the context of a world constrained by scarcity. We aim to help our students understand how decisions are linked to incentives and how policies can help align individual incentives with social objectives, including an efficient use of the world's resources and an equitable distribution of its output. We also aim to equip our students with the rigorous theoretical and empirical tools of our profession to enable them to better analyze and guide the decision making of individuals, the conduct of businesses and nonprofit enterprises, and the policies of governments and international organizations.

The Department aims to ensure that students majoring in Economics (1) understand the framework that professional economists use to analyze social and economic issues; (2) recognize how economic behavior and policies can affect both the aggregate level of prosperity and differentials in prosperity across members of society distinguished by characteristics such as race, gender, and socioeconomic status; (3) have proficient decision-making and problem-solving skills; (4) are competent in writing and speaking; and (5) possess critical-thinking skills that enable them to apply the theoretical and empirical tools of professional economists to a wide range of issues.

Requirements

Major

A major in economics requires a minimum of ten courses. 

The major can be completed in fewer than four years, but it is almost impossible to complete the major in less than three years.

For exceptions to the ten course minimum please refer to the section "OFF-CAMPUS AND TRANSFER CREDITS" below.

Honors in the Major

Majors can earn honors by taking ECON 498 in the spring semester of their senior year and by writing and defending, in that class, a thesis that is judged by the department faculty to be of honors quality. Enrollment in ECON 498 is limited to students with a GPA of 3.5 or higher (both overall and within the department). Interested students should consult with their academic adviser and then apply to the department chair in the fall semester of their senior year.

Minor

Students must complete the following coursework:

Electives:

Second-Stage Writing

Students majoring in Economics will satisfy the Second-Stage Writing Proficiency Requirement by arranging (with the instructor) for ECON 272 or an eligible ECON 300-level course to be designated as the student's writing course. Students need to notify the instructor of the course they are wishing to designate as their writing course before the end of the semester in which they are taking the course. Writing courses cannot be retroactively counted. Also, students can only designate one course as their writing course in a given semester. Writing proficiency will be determined through faculty assessment of written work and is independent of the course grade. The Second-Stage Writing Requirement must be satisfactorily completed by May of the student's junior year. Students who fail the requirement or who fail to meet the deadline will be required to both take and pass a college writing course in the senior year, CWP 201. Students should familiarize themselves with the departmental writing requirement at the time of declaring the major. See information about the two Stage Writing Proficiency Requirement  in the college catalog and consult your major adviser and/or the Writing Programs Director for additional information.

Comprehensive Requirement

Economics students meet their comprehensive requirement by successfully completing ECON 495 with a grade of C or above in the fall semester of their senior year. Students who will be off campus during the fall semester of their senior year must contact the department chair by the end of their junior year to make alternative arrangements.

Transfer Credit Policies

• Students who have passed a microeconomics or macroeconomics class at another college or university will be allowed to skip ECON 101.
• Economics majors and minors must complete the following courses at Occidental and may not satisfy them with transfer credits: ECON 250, ECON 251, ECON 272. Economics majors must also complete at least two 300-level electives and their Senior Comprehensives course at Occidental.
• Students who have received a score of 4 or 5 on either AP Calculus test have met the departmental Calculus I major requirement (and the calculus pre-requisite for courses that require Calculus I).
• Students who have received a score of 5 on both the AP Microeconomics test and the AP Macroeconomics test will be allowed to skip ECON 101 and ECON 102. Students who have received a score of 4 on both the AP Microeconomics test and the AP Macroeconomics test, or a score of 4 in one and 5 in the other, will be allowed to skip ECON 101. Students who have an AP Microeconomics score of 5 may be allowed to skip ECON 101 after consultation with the economics department.
• Students who have received a score of 7 on the Higher Level (HL) International Baccalaureate in micro- and macroeconomics will be allowed to skip ECON 101 and ECON 102, but will need to take an additional 4-unit Economics course. 
• Students who have received a score of 6 on the Higher Level (HL) International Baccalaureate in micro- and macroeconomics will be allowed to skip ECON 101.
• Students who have received a score of A on the A-Levels micro- and macroeconomics exam will be allowed to skip ECON 101 and ECON 102, but will need to take an additional 4-unit Economics course. 
• Students who have received a score of B on the A-Levels micro- and macroeconomics exam will be allowed to skip ECON 101. 
• For all students, at most one 300-level elective course will be accepted toward the major or the minor in transfer. Students should consult with the department chair about how courses they have taken elsewhere may count toward the 100-level or 200-level Economics requirements.
• Economic department policy is that all students may only count one (1) pre-professional business or accounting course taken at another academic institution as ECON 233 (Accounting) towards college credit (not credit towards the Economics major). For example, if a student takes a marketing course at a local community college, and hasn't already taken ECON 233 on campus, this course will transfer as ECON 233 and they will not be allowed to take ECON 233 without a Petition for Special Consideration in order to repeat a course. If a student has already taken ECON 233 before taking a pre-professional course at another domestically accredited institution of higher education, the Economics chair will not approve this course for college credit.
• For any course not approved by Economics to transfer, students are welcome to check with other departments/programs, as appropriate, to allow for them to review the content as appropriate to transfer to Occidental as college credit only.
• Students should reference the Transfer Credit section for more details.

Advising Information

Students interested in Economics are encouraged to complete the introductory sequence of ECON 101 and ECON 102 in their first year. It is also helpful to complete Calculus I during the first year, because it serves as a prerequisite for the intermediate courses ECON 250 and ECON 251. Students should also take statistics (COMP 146) during the first two years as it is a prerequisite for ECON 272. 

The economics major can be completed in fewer than four years, but it is almost impossible to complete the major in less than three years.

Placement Information

Most students who are interested in majoring in economics should take the Calculus Placement Assessment (ALEKS) during the summer prior to their first year. You do not need to take the Calculus Placement Assessment if you any of the following are true:

• You received a score of 4 or 5 on either the AP Calculus AB or BC exam;

• You receive an IB Calculus HL score of 5 or above;

• You have already taken a Calculus 1 course at another accredited college or university.  

Students who have AP or IB HL economics scores, or have taken economics courses at another college or university, should see the Transfer Credit Policies section for the Economics Major in the Catalog.

Sample 4-Year Plan

Curricular Notes

• Students must complete ECON 101, ECON 102, and Calculus 1 prior to taking ECON 250 and ECON 251.

• ECON 250 and ECON 251 can be taken in any order, but should not be taken during the same semester.

• ECON 250 is a prerequisite for most of the 300-level Economics electives.

• Prior to taking ECON 272, students must have completed Calculus 1, Statistics (or equivalent), ECON 102, and one additional ECON course. Equivalents to COMP 146 include MATH 150 or a score of 4 or 5 on the AP Statistics exam. 

• 300-level ECON electives can be reviewed, here. 

Economics Transfer Student Advice

Designated Transfer Adviser

Transfer students should contact the department chair two weeks before registration for transfer-specific advising information.

Courses

Economics Courses

Faculty

Tenure and Tenure Track Faculty

Mary Lopez, chair; designated transfer adviser

Professor

B.A., University of California, Riverside; M.A., Ph.D., University of Notre Dame

Bevin Ashenmiller

Associate Professor

B.A., Princeton University; Ph.D., University of California, Santa Barbara

Lesley Chiou

Laurence de Rycke Professor of Economics

B.A., University of California, Berkeley; Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Jorgen Harris

Assistant Professor

B.A., University of Chicago; M.A., Ph.D., Cornell University

Andrew Jalil

Associate Professor

A.B., Sc.B., Brown University; Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley

Brandon Lehr

Associate Professor

B.A., University of California, Berkeley; Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology 

Jesse Mora

Associate Professor

B.A., Claremont McKenna; M.A., John Hopkins-SAIS; M.A., Ph.D., University of California, Santa Cruz

Diana Ngo

Associate Professor

B.S., Harvard University; Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley

S. K. Ritadhi
Assistant Professor
B.A., Grinnel College; M.S., Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley

Kevin M. Williams

Assistant Professor

B.A., Claremont McKenna College; M.S., Ph.D., University of California, Davis

Non-Tenure Track Faculty 

Daryl Ono

Resident Senior Instructor of Accounting

B.A., University of California, Los Angeles; Ph.D., Pacific Western University 

Victoria Umanskaya

Resident Associate Professor

B.A. (DHE), Saratov State University; Ph.D., University of Wyoming