Graduate Studies: Programs

 

The Department of Economics offers a Ph.D. program as well as an 8-month Ph.D-stream MA program.

MA Program

Requirements

Students are required to take 9601A (Microeconomics I), 603A (Macroeconomics I), 9605A (Econometrics I) and 9607A (Mathematical Economics I) in the first term. In the second term students are required to take 9602B (Microeconomics II), 9604B (Macroeconomics II), 9606B (Econometrics II) and Economics 9591 (Applied MA Workshop Paper).

Students who complete the MA program are automatically admitted to the Ph.D. program, provided they have obtained an overall average of 78% (with no grade below 60). Students must sit for the comprehensive exams in the summer term immediately following the Master's program. If successful, they can proceed into the Ph.D. program. Students following this route may complete the Ph.D. program in three years following the MA.

Extended Study Option

For MA students holding 3-semester scholarships, we offer an extended study option consisting of a third term. Under this option the Applied MA Workshop Paper course is a full course rather than a half course and is completed over two terms (winter and summer) rather than one. This option is open to all MA students, but is mandatory for those holding a CGS-Masters Award.

PhD Program

Requirements

To qualify for the Ph.D degree in Economics, a student must take a minimum of eight half courses at the 9600 level one of which must be in Advanced Theory (Econ 9611A, 9612B, 9613A, 9614B, 9615A, 9616B) along with Econ 9609B and six option or field courses. Students must also pass the comprehensive examinations in Microeconomics (Econ 9601), Macroeconomics (Econ 9603) and Econometrics (Econ 9605) as well as receive credit for two workshops.

In addition, all Ph.D. students are required to take the Ph.D. Research Seminar (Economics 9691B) and depending on the individual student’s background they may also be required to take all or some of the following courses: 9601A, 9602B, 9603A, 9604B, 9605A, 9606B and 9607A. Upon entry into the program each student’s background will be carefully assessed and their individual requirements determined.

At the discretion of the Director of Graduate Programs, one or more graduate courses taken at other universities may be counted toward satisfying the preceding requirements provided they have not already been counted toward satisfying the requirements for another degree. To be eligible to apply for this kind of advanced standing credit, the student must be able to demonstrate that the course for which he/she has received credit has a close analogue at the 9600-level at Western. The student must also have received a grade of at least 80 in the course. The student must provide a reading list for the course as well as all materials used to assess his or her performance (i.e. copies of test questions, problem sets, research papers or projects and the like).

Workshop Papers

During the summer term at the end of their second year in the program, students must prepare a research paper (the "Summer Paper"). A short outline of its topic and contents must be approved by a faculty member who will act as the summer paper supervisor. The deadline for approval is May 31. It is the student's responsibility to get a faculty member’s agreement to serve as summer paper supervisor, something that should be done well before the deadline.

[Note: The summer paper supervisor would normally be the faculty member who the student wants to be one of his or her thesis supervisors.]

After the paper is completed, it is submitted to a committee consisting of the summer paper supervisor and at least one other faculty member selected in consultation with the Director of Graduate Programs. The deadline for submission is September 30. If the committee decides that the paper is not acceptable, the student will be required to revise it until the committee considers it acceptable. A "Second Year" Paper Prize will be awarded to the best "Summer Paper". The selection committee will consist of the Graduate Director, summer paper supervisors and faculty members assigned to review the summer papers.

During their third year in the program, students are required to participate regularly in at least one workshop. They must register for credit in the workshop during at least one term; the credit is earned by presenting a paper which will be graded by the faculty member who serves as director of the workshop. This paper must either be a newly written one, or a substantially different and improved version of the Summer Paper. Students registered in their first workshop should satisfy their prospectus requirement in conjunction with their workshop requirement. Students must note that the prospectus cannot substitute for the required workshop paper. The thesis prospectus should be defended by September 30th in the student’s fourth year in the program.

During the fourth year, students must also earn a credit by presenting a paper in a workshop (graded by the director of the workshop). Normally, this paper should be different from the third year paper.

Progression Requirements

Admission into the Ph.D. program from the M.A. program, and continuation in the Ph.D. requires an average of 85 over all courses taken while enrolled in the graduate program. Decisions on continuation in the program and financial assistance are made at the end of each academic year.

In courses where the student's grade is based (in whole or in part) on a paper to be submitted by a specified deadline, failure to submit a paper by the deadline will normally result in a grade of zero on the paper. In exceptional circumstances, a grade of "Incomplete" may be awarded. A grade of "Incomplete" must be made up within 1 term beyond the initial registration in a course. If it is not, the student will automatically be assigned a "Fail" (F).

Permission to Enrol in Courses

A graduate student in the Ph.D. in Economics may take any 9600 to 9800 level half course in economics for credit; however, permission of the second-term instructor is required to take only the second term of a two-term sequence. Ph.D students may take undergraduate/graduate courses from other departments provided the Graduate Chair of the home department approves and the department offering the course approves.

Core Examinations

The Core examinations are scheduled on the first three Mondays in June, approximately five weeks after the regular winter exam period.

A student who fails any of the Core exams on his/her first attempt will have an opportunity to write it a second time during the same summer, usually in the last week of August. If any student has failed more than one component of the cores at the first sitting, and thus must write at least two again, then there will be at least a week between each component at the second sitting. A student who fails all three core exams will not be allowed to rewrite. Exceptions to this rule can be made based on non-academic grounds at the discretion of the Graduate Affairs Committee in consultation with the Core Committees.

A student who fails in his/her second attempt at any of the Core exams will not be permitted to continue in the program.

Notes

For more information on the rules and regulations governing graduate programs in economics see the Notes for the Guidance of Graduate Students.