Economists play a role in a range of industries, from business and law to social sciences, agriculture, and environmental studies. They study how society distributes its resources – from land, labor, raw materials, and machinery – to produce a range of goods and services. They also conduct research, collect and analyze information, monitor economic trends, and develop forecasts to guide industries in making critical decisions. For students who have strong math skills, but are also interested in impacting policy and social issues, an economics bachelor's degree is an exciting, dynamic major.
RIT's Economics Bachelor's Degree
Develop your communication, computational, and management skills in addition to refining your economic reasoning and quantitative abilities. You'll be prepared to apply economic analysis to help solve real-world problems.
The economics degree emphasizes the quantitative analytical approach to dealing with economic problems in both the public and private sectors, providing you with marketable skills and the intellectual foundation for career growth. Graduates are prepared for entry-level managerial and analytical positions in both industry and government and to pursue graduate studies in economics, business, and law. Students choose one of the following tracks: economic theory, environmental economics, or managerial economics.
Economics Courses
The economics curriculum develops communication, computational, and management skills in addition to economic reasoning and quantitative abilities. Required courses develop your abilities to apply economic analysis to real-world problems. Liberal arts courses enhance oral and written communication skills. Business courses include accounting and finance. Quantitative analytical skills are developed by a course sequence that includes computer science, mathematics, and statistics.
Free electives allow you to pursue advanced study in your individual areas of interest and/or develop a double major. Along with finance, marketing, mathematics, statistics, or computer science, there are many other possibilities. Faculty advisors help you develop professional options that assist you in attaining your career goals.
Capstone Experience
Students are required to complete a creative capstone experience. Students may publish a paper in a refereed journal, present a paper at a professional conference or at an RIT-sponsored conference, present research at an approved exhibit at Imagine RIT: Creativity and Innovation Festival, or fulfill a comparable creative capstone requirement in the student's primary major (if economics is the secondary major).
Double Majors
Double majors are a way to customize your education to best reflect your interests, career goals, and your marketability after you graduate. The economics bachelor's degree is flexible and allows students to pursue a double major in a secondary field of study. Even with a double major students are able to graduate in four years.
Academic Enrichment Opportunities
Economics faculty members serve as mentors and are available to enhance students' personal and professional growth. Students may work as teaching assistants for professors in economics courses or learn about research techniques as research assistants for faculty. For both of these activities, students receive a stipend. Finally, students can engage in independent or joint research with a faculty member, receiving academic credit and obtaining funding for their research needs.
RIT's Pre-Law Program
Law schools welcome applications from students majoring in a wide range of academic programs. RIT's pre-law program will help you navigate the admission process for law school, explore a range of legal careers, and guide you through course selection to ensure you build the skills and competencies required of competitive law school applicants. The program is open to students in all majors who are interested in pursuing a career in law.
RIT/Syracuse University College of Law 3+3 Option
RIT has partnered with Syracuse University's College of Law to offer an accelerated 3+3 BS/JD option for highly capable students. This option provides a fast-track pathway to law school in which students earn a bachelor's degree and a Juris Doctorate degree in six years. In the 3+3 option, students may apply to the option directly. Successful applicants are offered admission to RIT and given conditional acceptance into Syracuse University's College of Law.
RIT's economics degree is one of the approved majors for the 3+3 option. Learn more about the RIT/Syracuse University College of Law 3+3 Option, including admission requirements and frequently asked questions.
Combined Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degrees
Today's careers require advanced degrees grounded in real-world experience. RIT's Combined Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degrees enable you to earn both a bachelor's and a master's degree in as little as five years of study, all while gaining the valuable hands-on experience that comes from co-ops, internships, research, study abroad, and more.
+1 MBA Early Acceptance Pathway: Successful RIT applicants who are offered admission into the BS degree in economics as an incoming first-year student may also be offered conditional early acceptance into the +1 MBA Early Acceptance Pathway. This option enables you to earn both your BS degree and an MBA in as little as five years of study. Learn how the +1 MBA Early Acceptance Pathway can help you add a competitive advantage to your studies.
+1 MBA: Students who enroll in a qualifying undergraduate degree have the opportunity to add an MBA to their bachelor's degree after their first year of study, depending on their program. Learn how the +1 MBA can accelerate your learning and position you for success.