Economics & Business

Credit

Please see below for information on General Education, AP, IB, GCE, Transfer, and Study Abroad Credit as it applies to the Economics & Business Department.

Each major in the Economics & Business Department requires 15-16 CC credits. For detailed information on the course of study for each major, start at our General Major Information page and explore our four majors from there.

Transfer Credit Guidelines - Economics and Business Department, Colorado College 

For Study Abroad Credit, all transfer requests must start on Summit, not via email. 

Courses for Most Majors: 

  • EC100 Principles of Economics - most Principles of Economics courses will transfer 
  • EC101 Principles of Microeconomics - most Principles of Micro courses will transfer  
  • EC102 Principles of Macroeconomics - most Principles of Macro courses will transfer  
  • BU205 Principles of Accounting - most Principles of Accounting courses will transfer 
  • EC301 Microeconomic Theory - No transfer credits accepted 
  • EC302 Macroeconomic Theory - No transfer credits accepted 
  • Electives in Economics 
  • Courses with EC301 or EC302 as a prerequisite transfer as 300-level electives 
  • Courses with EC100 or EC101 and EC102 as a prerequisite would transfer as 200-level electives 
  • Courses without prerequisites would transfer as a 100-level elective 

International Political Economy Major Courses: 

  • For a course to transfer as the international economics elective, it must have significant international content 

BESoc Major Courses: 

  • BU329 Business Organization and Management - courses with similar content will transfer, including most courses in Organizational Behavior.  
  • BU326 Consumer Marketing - courses with similar content will transfer  
  • BU315 Business Policy & Strategy - courses with similar content will transfer 
  • BU316 Theory of Business Finance - courses with similar content will transfer 
  • BU311 Data, Math and Modeling - No transfer credits accepted 
  • BU310 Society, Business & Economics - No transfer credits accepted 
  • Electives in Business   
  • If the same course is offered at CC, the course will transfer at the same level as the CC course. Otherwise: 
  • Courses with EC100 or EC101 and EC102 BU205, or other EC or BU prerequisites would transfer as 200-level electives 
  • Courses without prerequisites would transfer as 100-level electives 
  • Social Issues Electives: 
  • Courses that have an obvious equivalent on CC’s existing Social Issues list (with a similar title and similar content) will transfer at the CC course’s level  
  • Courses that DO NOT have an obvious equivalent on CC’s existing Social Issues list can be transferred for social issues by going through the Social Issues petition process. Courses with no prerequisites will transfer as 100-level social issues.  

Courses not described above will only be accepted if they have similar content to the courses offered at Colorado College.  

General Education Program Requirements 

Please see a list of courses and their descriptions below that satisfy certain requirements for the General Education Program at CC. 

BU 205 – Principles of Financial Accounting 

An introduction to the fundamentals of the financial statements of corporations, including statement interpretation and analysis. Exposes students to economic decisions and their consequences as they relate to business activities, including operating, investing, and financing activities. Prerequisite: -EC100 or -EC101 and -EC102.  

(Meets the Critical Learning: FRL requirement.) 1 unit - Diaz Ferraro, Miller-Stevens.  

EC 100 – Principles of Economics  

An introduction to the principles of economics (both microeconomics and macroeconomics) with emphasis on decision-making by households and firms, the way in which individual markets work, the distribution of income, governmental impact on specific markets, the behavior of economic aggregates such as total output, total employment, the price level, the rate of economic growth; and government policies which affect them.  

(Meets the Critical Learning: FRL requirement.) 2 units - Acri, Eiswerth, Yang.  

EC101 – Principles of Microeconomics  

An introduction to the principles of microeconomics with emphasis on decision-making by households and firms, the way in which individual markets work, the distribution of income, and governmental impact on specific markets.  

(Meets the Critical Learning: FRL requirement.) 1 unit - Acri, Batmaz, Fenn, Hoel, Kapuria-Foreman, Sumner.  

EC102 – Principles of Macroeconomics  

An introduction to the principles of macroeconomics with emphasis on the behavior of economic aggregates such as total output, total employment, the price level, and the rate of economic growth; and government policies which affect them.  

(Meets the Critical Learning: FRL requirement.) 1 unit - Organ, Sumner, Yang.  

EC348 - Economics of Innovation  

Exploration of the field of technological change: how technologies develop and evolve; and how technologies subsequently affect our economy and society. Using case studies and journal articles as a springboard for discussion, we will apply economic concepts to events ranging from the Industrial Revolution to the present. Topics may include patent law, copyright infringement, the Green Revolution, e-commerce, health and agricultural biotechnology, and energy-related innovation. Required field study during the block, Additional expense $$$ for students. Prerequisite: -EC301 and -EC302. (Meets the Critical Learning: CP requirement.) (Not offered 2022-23). 1 unit.  

EC 285: Economics of Inequality 

This course surveys the causes and manifestations of income and wealth inequality. We begin by studying the measurement and definition of inequality and mobility and their changes over time. We then examine how skill, education, and health map onto income and wealth over a person's lifetime and transmit from generation to generation. While we review inequality in a global context, most discussion is grounded in the historical and current social and institutional conditions of the United States, focusing on race, gender, and class. Lastly, we look at the driving forces behind the large rise in inequality in recent decades: changes in technology, globalization, demographic shift, and migration. We will hone our skills in handling large datasets, extracting information from data, and visualizing it. Qualifies as a social issue course for the BESoc major. (Prerequisites: EC100 or EC101 and EC102) 1 unit. 

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AP, GCE, and Transfer Credit

Visit the Registrar’s Transfer Credit Into CC page for general information on getting AP, GCE, and Transfer credit. The site includes universal AP and GCE score requirements for getting credit toward courses in the major.

Conversely, transfer credit is approved on a case-by-case basis by the department. To verify that your courses from another institution of higher education will count toward one of our department majors, email the course syllabi for all of those courses to Professor Kristina Acri (kacri@coloradocollege.edu) for approval.

IB Credit

Economics Credit:
Students receive credit for EC101 and EC102 for a 5, 6, or 7 on the IB High Level Economics exam. If you are seeking credit for Standard Level IB Economics courses, please contact Kristina Acri for case-by-case approval.

Mathematics Credit:  
According to the Registrar's Office, students receive 2 units of MA credit for a 5, 6, or 7 on the IB High Level exam and 1 unit of MA credit for a 4 on the IB High Level or 5, 6, or 7 on the IB Standard Level exam. This satisfies the requirement for MA126: Calculus 1 and MA129: Calculus 2 in the first case and MA126: Calculus 1 in the second case. The same applies to the 2 units of MA credit for a 5 on the AP Calculus BC exam and the 1 unit of MA credit for a 4 or 3 on the AP Calculus BC exam or a 5, 4, or 3 on the AP Calculus AB exam. The same policy applies for AP courses in Statistics (in lieu of MA117), and IB courses in Math (where a combined Calculus and Prob/Stat course will qualify in lieu of both MA126 and MA117). We also permit the substitution of MA217 in place of MA117.

Study Abroad Credit

If you haven't declared your major, now is the time to do it! We are unable to approve classes toward your major if you are undeclared. Please follow the steps below to ensure you are in the best position to study abroad!

  1. Check out our list of study away programs that offer approved Economics & Business courses. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list, but rather a starting point if you are interested in building your study abroad experience around economics and business. 
  2. Set up a time to talk with your academic advisor in the Economics & Business department, to define how study abroad can fit into your overall degree progress and plan when the best time might be to go, and what sorts of classes you would like to try and fulfill while on your semester or year away program.
  3. Visit the Credit Transfer Overview page on the Global Education site to understand in-depth information on how to find programs abroad or away from CC that will work for your academic plan, and how courses transfer back to CC. 
  4. Obtain a full syllabus for any Economics & Business courses you plan to submit through Summit to request departmental/Chair approval to count towards your major, as a syllabus is required. Prepare a rationale for why you want to take those specific courses at this location
  5. Complete the appropriate study abroad application in SUMMIT, by or (recommended) well before the published deadlines

More guidance on study abroad

The Economics & Business Department won’t approve courses taken off-campus towards the major or minor if you are not declared yet, so declaring is the first step. Please make sure to also see the “Study Abroad” section of the Economics Department's homepage. 

We accept some relevant coursework from accredited institutions of higher education instead of courses completed at CC within the major during a Study Abroad or Study Away experience. Students are required to ask for course approval before they enroll, so that we may devote faculty time to verifying and documenting each case. Students may request pre-approval on Summit for planned coursework on a Study Abroad or Study Away program to count towards ECON/ME/BESoc/IPE requirements using the Course Approval Form on the required application for Off-Campus Study.

For courses to count as 300-level EC electives, they must generally have Macroeconomic Theory (EC302) and/or Microeconomic Theory (EC301) as prerequisites. Courses with Principles of Economics (EC100) as the only prerequisites are almost always approved as 200-level Economics electives. The Department does not give credit for online learning experiences or internships, and we do not give credit for EC301, and EC302 taken elsewhere during a Study Abroad or Study Away experience. We limit the total number of economics and business courses taken during a Study Abroad or Study Away experience which count toward the major to four.

For a list of approved programs of potential interest to Economics & Business students, see the Advising Guides page.

Report an issue - Last updated: 11/17/2023