The Mathematical Economics Major
OBJECTIVES
Students majoring in Mathematical-Economics must successfully complete no fewer than 15 units of listed courses in Mathematics (MA) and Economics (EC), including a senior thesis. To solidify basic problem solving skills, all majors must initially take a common set of required courses in economic theory, calculus, linear algebra, and/or differential equations. Contingent on individual course prerequisites, majors may then directly fulfill the elective requirement which undertakes a more advanced treatment of mathematical economics, or complete a sequence of courses that provide exposure to the statistical modeling of data. The major provides strong training for students pursuing private sector careers in investment banking, forecasting, applied mathematics, or finance, as well as graduate work in economics, operations research, and financial engineering.
PREREQUISITES
Students desiring to major in mathematical economics are required to pass the following prerequisites prior to admission into the major. If a student has not taken all three of these courses, that student may be admitted only if currently scheduled for a later section or by consent of the chair if mitigating circumstances exist.
Economics 150 (or 151 and 152) - Principles of Economics 2 units
Mathematics 126 – Calculus 1 1 unit
Mathematics 128 – Calculus 2 1 unit
DISTINCTION IN MATHEMATICAL ECONOMICS is awarded by action of the Department to up to the top 20% of graduating majors based on their GPA within the major with the provision that they have also received an A in Senior Thesis.
COURSE OF STUDY FOR THE MATHEMATICAL ECONOMICS MAJOR
To graduate as a Mathematical Economics major, students must pass a total of 15 units. The fifteen units include eight units of required courses, two units of statistical modeling courses, three units of electives, and two units of senior thesis.
A. Required Courses (Total 8 Units)
Math (4 Units)
| 1. | MA126 | Calculus 1 | 1 unit |
| 2. | MA128 | Calculus 2 | 1 unit |
| 3. | MA203 | Calculus 3 | 1 unit |
| 4. | MA220 AND/OR | Linear Algebra | |
| MA315 | Differential Equations | 1 unit | |
| 4 units |
Economics (4 Units)
| EC150 (or 151 & 152) | Principles of Economics | 2 units |
| EC207 | Intermediate Microeconomic Theory | 1 unit |
| EC209 | Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory | 1 unit |
| 4 units |
B. Statistical Modeling Courses (Total 2 Units)
| 1. | MA217 | Probability and Statistical Modeling | 1 unit |
| 2. | EC408 | Econometrics | 1 unit |
| 2 units |
B. Electives (Total 3 Units)
| 1. | EC 392 | Advanced Topics in Mathematical Economics | 1 unit | |
| 2. 3. |
MA elective EC elective |
} | See list of approved courses on Page 3 | 1 unit 1 unit |
| 3 units | ||||
C. EC 496 - Senior Thesis (Total 2 Units) 2 units
TOTAL MINIMUM REQUIRED CREDIT.....................................15 units
Students majoring in Mathematical Economics are required to meet all College requirements.
Courses that satisfy the EC elective requirement:
Econ 306: Industrial Organization
Econ 311: Monetary Theory and Policy
Econ 317: Investments
Econ 330: Public Finance
Econ 334: Comparative Economic Systems
Econ 335: Environmental Economics
Econ 336: Economics of Labor
Econ 337: Development Economics
Econ 342: Economics of International Trade
Econ 344: Economics of International Finance
Econ 350: The Regional Economics of Western America
Econ 404: Natural Resource Economics
Courses that satisfy the MA elective requirement:
Math 220: Linear Algebra (1 Unit)
Math 222: Computer Science 2 (1 Unit)
Math 313: Probability (1 Unit)
Math 315: Differential Equations (1 Unit)
Math 316: Partial Differential Equations (1 Unit)
Math 318: Numerical Analysis (1 Unit)
Math 325: Graph Theory
Math 340: Topics in Mathematics: Mathematical Modeling
Math 375: Mathematical Analysis
Math 400: Topology
Math 407: Analysis of Algorithms
Math 410: Complex Analysis
Math 417: Mathematical Statistics
Math: Stochastic Processes (1 Unit)*
Courses that satisfy the (ME) requirement at the elective stage will be
taught as EC 392, Advanced Topics in Mathematical Economics.
Below are some of the planned topics.
-
Micro/ Macro
-
Business and Finance
-
Economic Growth
-
Time Series Analysis
-
Mathematical Finance
-
Investment Science
-
Topics in Econometrics: Financial Modeling
-
Game Theory
-
Decision Theory
*being considered as a future course