Applicable only to students admitted during the 2012-2013 academic year.

Economics

College of Letters and Science

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Economics offers the Master of Arts (M.A.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Economics.

Admission

Program Name

Economics

Address

8292 Bunche Hall
Box 951477
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1477 

Phone

(310) 206-1413 

Email

jessica@econ.ucla.edu  

Leading to the degree of

M.A., Ph.D.

The Economics department admits only applicants whose objective is the Ph.D. 

Admission Limited to

Fall 

Deadline to apply

December 1st 

GRE (General and/or Subject)

GRE: General 

Letters of Recommendation 

3 

Other Requirements

In addition to the University's minimum requirements and those listed above, all applicants are expected to submit a full record of prior university experience (it is strongly recommended that applicants have undergraduate training in economics, mathematics, and statistics), and a statement of purpose. 

Master's Degree

Advising

Entering students are assigned faculty advisers by the department. The adviser's approval is required prior to enrollment each quarter. Students are encouraged to consult their adviser whenever doubts or questions arise about their proposed program or academic goals. As the student becomes more familiar with the faculty, the adviser initially assigned by the department may be replaced, at the student's initiative, by a faculty member in the student's area of interest and specialization.

In addition, the Graduate Committee meets once a year in the Fall Quarter after comprehensive examination results have been made known, to review the performance of each graduate student in the program. At that time, a student making slow or unsatisfactory progress is interviewed by a committee member and given guidelines for successful completion of the program. The vice chair for graduate affairs (same as chair of Graduate Committee) also meets with students who are failing to meet University and/or departmental minimum standards.

Areas of Study

Economic theory; econometrics; information and uncertainty; mathematical economics; monetary theory; economic history; public finance; labor economics; industrial organization; international economics; development economics; and asset pricing.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The department requires nine upper division and graduate-level courses in economics completed while in graduate status at UCLA. At least seven of the nine courses must be graduate-level courses in the department, one of which must be either Economics 207 or 241 or 242. Each course must be completed with a grade of B or better.

With prior approval of the vice chair for graduate affairs, students may offer a maximum of two courses from departments outside of Economics. However, these courses may not substitute for the seven graduate-level economics courses required.

With the prior approval of the vice chair for graduate affairs, four units of Economics 596 may be applied toward the total course requirement and the minimum graduate course requirement.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Comprehensive Examination Plan

In addition to the course requirements, candidates for the M.A. degree must satisfactorily complete a written comprehensive examination requirement that involves passing two examinations. This requirement may be fulfilled by one of the following:

(1) Master's-level (M) passes in comprehensive examinations for two of the three first-year sequences and a grade of B or better in all three courses in the remaining sequence.

(2) Master's-level (M) passes in the comprehensive examination for one of the three first-year sequences and in one doctoral field examination.

(3) Master's-level (M) passes in two doctoral field examinations.

Examinations are graded H (Ph.D. honors pass), P (Ph.D. pass), M (M.A. pass), and F (fail).

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

It normally takes three to five quarters to earn the degree.

Doctoral Degree

Advising

Entering students are assigned faculty advisers by the department. The adviser's approval is required prior to enrollment each quarter. Students are encouraged to consult their adviser whenever doubts or questions arise about their proposed program or academic goals. As the student becomes more familiar with the faculty, the adviser initially assigned by the department may be replaced, at the student's initiative, by a faculty member in the student's area of interest and specialization.

In addition, the Graduate Committee meets once a year in the Fall Quarter after written qualifying examination results have been made known, to review the performance of each graduate student in the program. At that time, a student making slow or unsatisfactory progress is interviewed by a committee member and given guidelines for successful completion of the program. The vice chair for graduate affairs (same as chair of Graduate Committee) also meets with students who are failing to meet University and/or departmental minimum standards.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Economic theory; econometrics; information and uncertainty; mathematical economics; monetary theory; economic history; public finance; labor economics; industrial organization; international economics; development economics; and asset pricing.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

In order that the program can be tailored to an individual student's background and interests, there are no formal course requirements in the Ph.D. program. In their first year, however, students normally enroll in the standard first-year graduate core sequences in microeconomic theory (Economics 201A-201B-201C), macroeconomic theory (Economics 202A-202B-202C) and quantitative methods (Economics 203A, 203B, 203C).

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass University written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations the University oral qualifying examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to University requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

Written Examinations

All Ph.D. qualifying examinations are intended to determine competency in the overall field. While the courses offered are intended to prepare students for the field examinations, and while the professors of the courses are normally also the examiners, the qualifying examination is not restricted solely to the material explicitly presented in course lectures or assigned exercises. Students are assisted in acquiring knowledge of the overall field by course reading lists that include recommended supplementary and complementary readings.

The department offers written qualifying examinations in the areas listed below (with preparatory courses shown in parentheses):

Core Sequences. Microeconomic theory (Economics 201A-201B-201C); macroeconomic theory (Economics 202A-202B-202C); quantitative methods (Economics 203A, 203B, 203C).

Elective Doctoral Fields. Econometrics (Economics 231A, 231B, M232A, 232B); information and uncertainty (Economics 211A-211B, 212A); mathematical economics (213A-213B, 214A); monetary economics (Economics 221A-221B); economic history (Economics 241, 242); public finance (Economics 251A, 251B, 252); labor economics (Economics 261A,261B); industrial organization (Economics 271A, 271B, 271C); international economics (Economics 281A, 281B, 281C); development economics (286A, 286B, 287A, 287B); asset pricing (Economics 291A, 291B, 291C, 291D).

Examinations are graded H (Ph.D. honors pass), P (Ph.D. pass), M (M.A. pass), and F (fail).

Students must pass (with a P or better) the qualifying examinations in all three of the standard first-year core sequences -- microeconomic theory, macroeconomic theory, and quantitative methods -- by the beginning of the Fall Quarter of their second year. Students are required to take these examinations at the first available sitting (June of the first year). If students are unsuccessful on their first try, they may repeat one or all of the qualifying examinations at the next available sitting (September at the beginning of the student's second year). Students who have successfully completed their first-year core requirements must regularly attend either a departmental workshop or a dissertation pro-seminar each quarter of their second year.

Students must pass (with a P or better) qualifying examinations in three doctoral elective fields (or two fields plus breadth option), usually by the end of the second year, but no later than June of the student's third year. Written qualifying examinations may be repeated, but students may sit for no more than nine times in total for all (core and field) examinations combined. Students who have successfully completed all course requirements and written qualifying examinations must enroll in and regularly attend a departmental workshop and a dissertation pro-seminar for each of their remaining quarters in the doctoral program.

Qualifying examinations in all core sequences are offered twice a year (September and June). Doctoral field qualifying examinations are offered at least once a year.

By employing the breadth option, students may substitute a field by coursework, defined as three graduate-level courses for one of the three elective fields. Courses used to satisfy this requirement cannot include any courses used in the core sequence requirements nor can they include courses preparatory for the written qualifying examinations which the student is using for field requirements. The breadth option must include Economics 207 or 241 or 242. Students may apply courses at the graduate level (200-level) outside the Economics Department on written preapproval by the vice chair for graduate affairs. Only courses in which a minimum grade of B is earned may be used to satisfy this requirement.

Paper Requirement

A written paper must be completed by the end of the student's third year. This paper is to be read and evaluated by a member of the department faculty, who must certify in writing that it satisfied this requirement. This paper could be based on or be an extension of an optional or required paper for a course. Alternatively, the paper could be one presented in a workshop or an outgrowth of a research assistantship or independent study. Ideally, the paper would be related to the student's doctoral dissertation. The materials of this paper may be used as the basis for presentation in a departmental workshop, as well as the basis for the dissertation.

Before advancing to the University Oral Qualifying Examination, students are expected to present a paper in a departmental pro-seminar. It is recommended that this be completed by June of the second year.

Oral Qualifying Examination

The University Oral Qualifying Examination, administered by the student's doctoral committee, is scheduled after successful completion of all first-year core examinations as prescribed, completion of the economic history or history of thought requirement, receipt of a pass at the Ph.D. level for at least one qualifying examination in the student's field, and the submission of a written dissertation proposal. The proposal should be made available to the committee members at least two weeks prior to the date of the examination. The examination focuses on, but is not be limited to, the dissertation proposal.

A student should attempt the oral examination no later than the end of August before the beginning of the third year of study. Students must have been registered in the immediately preceding spring term in order to take the examination in the summer. In case of failure, a student may repeat the oral qualifying examination once.

A student's doctoral committee will meet with the student at the end of the third year to determine if the student's progress in the dissertation research is satisfactory. At this meeting, the student will submit a written progress report on the proposed topic that describes the work completed to date and includes a detailed outline of the plan for completing the project. With the consent of the student's committee, completed papers may be submitted as part of, or in lieu of, the written progress report.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Not required for all students in the program. The decision as to whether a defense is required is made by the doctoral committee.

Time-to-Degree

The department has established a five-year normative time-to-degree plan which is divided into a two-year pre-candidacy period and a three-year candidacy period. This projection is suggestive, and it should be recognized that the amount of time necessary to complete the degree has been found to vary widely among students, due to differences in previous training and other factors. All requirements for the Ph.D. degree must, however, be completed within seven calendar years after entering the program.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Students who fail an examination at the first sitting are then required to retake the examination at the next available sitting (September of the second year). Students who do not earn Ph.D. passes in the first-year written qualifying examinations in these two sittings are ineligible to continue in the Ph.D. program.

A student who is not making satisfactory progress toward the degree is notified to meet with the vice chair, who determines whether to recommend termination to the Graduate Committee. Termination is normally recommended in cases where a student: (1) has failed to maintain a 3.00 grade point average; (2) has failed to pass the written qualifying examinations in the first year core fields by the end of the second sitting; (3) has failed to pass all written qualifying examinations in nine sittings (or by the end of the third year); (4) has failed to be advanced to candidacy by the end of the third year; or (5) has failed to complete all requirements for the degree by the end of the seventh year.

The student is informed of the vice chair's recommendation and has an opportunity to provide written materials in support of continued enrollment in the Ph.D. program. The Graduate Committee thoroughly reviews the student's record as well as the supplementary materials provided by the student and makes a final recommendation to the Graduate Division.