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Department of Economics

Master of Arts in Economics

The Master of Arts (M.A.) in Economics is a traditional graduate program in the John E. Walker Department of Economics. Students in the M.A. in Economics program learn to analyze the effects of scarcity on human behavior, apply economic concepts and models, estimate and interpret empirical versions of models and test hypotheses about markets or government policies. The markets or policies typically relate to agriculture, anti-trust and competition, economic growth, energy, education, employment, environmental quality, innovation, international currencies and trade, health care, natural resources, property rights, regulation, sports, sustainability or taxation.

The curriculum for the M.A. in Economics is relatively flexible. It consists of two required courses in applied microeconomics and industrial organization (6 credits), one required course in applied econometrics (3 credits), three elective courses in economics (9 credits), two other elective courses (6 credits) and thesis research (6 credits).

Full-time M.A. students can complete their coursework in two semesters, write and defend their theses during the summer and graduate within 12 months. Clemson's undergraduate majors (B.A. or B.S.) in economics with at least 90 credits and an overall grade point average of 3.4 can submit a Bachelor-to-Master plan that, if approved, enables them to take graduate courses and earn their M.A. in Economics.

Graduates of our M.A. program are well prepared for jobs in the private and public sectors, which include think tanks for public policy. Employers of recent graduates include Abbott Laboratories, American Transportation Research Institute, Bates White Economic Consulting, Beacon Economics, CareCore National, Collaborative Solutions, Deloitte, Ernst & Young (EY), Gartner, Hanesbrand Inc., IHS Markit, Investinet, Mather Economics LLC, Norfolk Southern, Northwestern Mutual Insurance, Property and Environment Research Center (PERC), Resurgent Capital Services, Shellpoint Mortgage Servicing, Sparks Research and SteelFab. Other M.A. graduates subsequently earn law degrees or doctoral degrees in economics or health economics.

Please consult our handbook for comprehensive information about the M.A. in Economics. To request information not in the handbook, please contact the program's coordinator, Scott Templeton, Ph.D.

M.A. Informal Application

You can initiate your application process with this informal application. To complete a formal application for the program, apply online through the Graduate School.

John E. Walker Department of Economics
John E. Walker Department of Economics | 320 Wilbur O. and Ann Powers Hall, Clemson, S.C. 29634