Major in Economics (COL)

A major in Economics at Georgetown University requires completion of 34 academic credits, earned from courses described below. Each course earns 3 credits, except for MATH-1350/1360 [formerly MATH-032/035] (4 credits), ECON-1003 [formerly ECON-003] (4 credits), Economics Internship (variable credits) and Guided Research (variable credits). At least five economics courses (excluding calculus, Economics Internship and Guided Research) must be taken in the Economics Department at Georgetown. The remaining credits for the major can be earned from transferred courses and/or advanced placement credit. The relevant advanced placement policies are laid out in the Admissions section of the University Bulletin at https://bulletin.georgetown.edu/admissions/advanced-credit/.

The AB in Economics is recognized as a STEM degree: https://internationalservices.georgetown.edu/students/after-graduation/stem-opt-approved/

Course Categories & Prerequisites

Note: Effective Fall 2023, all main campus courses have been renumbered using a new 4-digit numbering system.
https://schedule.georgetown.edu/course-renumbering-crosswalk/e/#econ

Principles of Microeconomics and Macroeconomics
(2 courses or 1 combined course)

ECON-1001 – Principles of Microeconomics and ECON-1002 – Principles of Macroeconomics
[formerly ECON-001 and ECON-002]
ECON-1003 – Principles of Economics: Micro & Macro combined [formerly ECON-003] may be taken instead of ECON-1001 and 1002 [formerly ECON-001 and 002], but not by students who have taken both ECON-1001 and 1002, or received Advanced Placement (AP) credit for both of these courses. Students who have taken only one of these courses, or received AP credit for it, may take ECON-1003. As of Fall 2022, this course earns 4 credits, and is more intensive and faster paced than 1001 or 1002. It is aimed at students who have had a year of high school economics and/or are comfortable with graphical analysis and high-school algebra.
Students who take ECON-1003 in Fall 2022 or later will need to take 2 additional credits from economics elective courses to earn the 34 credits required for the major (see below). Students who took ECON-1003 prior to Fall 2022 for 3 credits will need to take 3 additional credits from economics electives to earn the 34 credits required for the major.

Calculus (1 course)

ECON 1357 Essential Math for Econ [New], or MATH-1320 – Calculus with Review B or MATH-1350 – Calculus I [formerly MATH-032 and 035], or an AP score of 5 (or IB score of 7 on HL exam)
Calculus is a prerequisite for all 2000-level economics courses.
Calculus is a corollary requirement* for all 1000-level economics courses
* This course may also count toward another major or minor requirement in addition to the Economics minor

Intermediate Microeconomics and Macroeconomics (2 courses)

ECON-2101 – Intermediate Microeconomics) and ECON-2102 – Intermediate Macroeconomics
[formerly ECON-101 and 102]

Statistics (1 course)

ECON-2110 – Economic Statistics or MATH-2140 – Intro to Mathematical Statistics
[formerly ECON-001 and MATH-140]
Statistics, ECON-2110 or MATH-2140, is a prerequisite for Econometrics

Econometrics (1 course)

ECON-2120 – Introduction to Econometrics
[formerly ECON-122/ECON-3001]
Must be taken before the start of Senior year

Major Electives

The remainder of credits will come from major elective courses taken at 2000-4999 level.
Majors who received credit for 1001 and 1002 require a total of 12 credits from electives. Majors who took ECON 1003 prior to Fall 2022 require 15 elective credits. Students who take ECON-1003 in Fall 2022 or later require 14 elective credits.
Of these elective credits, at least 2 courses (6 credits) must be 4000 level. To graduate with Honors, majors must take 3 courses (9 credits) at the 4000 level. (NOTE: 4000-level courses typically require at least one of these prerequisites: 2101, 2102 or 2120.)
The remaining credits may be earned from regular 3-credit courses, or from variable-credit courses described below.
The Department maintains a list of our course descriptions and their prerequisites.
Note: not all courses are offered each semester, check with the Georgetown Schedule for the current semester’s listing.
Variable Credit courses: Economics Internship and Guided Research courses each can earn 1, 2 or 3 credits, and are graded Pass/Fail. They are open only to Economics majors (COL) or International Economics majors (SFS). Total credits from such courses may not exceed 3, and can be earned in any combination from the two course categories (e.g., 2 credits from Economics Internship and 1 credit from Guided Research).
Senior thesis: although this is not required to graduate with Honors, it is a valuable option for Economics Majors. See below, Writing in the Major.

Writing in the Major describes our integrated writing requirement for economics majors.

Grading Rules

In general, only free electives may be taken pass/fail. Courses fulfilling core or major/minor/certificate requirements must be taken for a letter grade (unless the course is only offered on a pass/fail basis). Students may take courses in core curriculum fields of study as electives, on a pass/fail basis, after they have already fulfilled that core requirement. Similarly, students who wish to take a course in their major or minor field of study on a pass/fail basis may do so only after all requirements for that major or minor have been fulfilled. Those seeking an exception to this rule must consult the relevant director of undergraduate studies or program director. If the pass/fail option is approved by exception, the course will not, under any circumstances, count in the major or minor.
Undergraduate Bulletin

Graduate Study

Students who anticipate graduate study in economics should take the Calculus sequence in the Mathematics Department (MATH-1350, 1360, 2370), Linear Algebra (MATH-2250), and Analysis I
(MATH-3310).