2023-24 Edition

Economics, B.A.

This major is designed for students seeking a broad education applicable to occupations in business, law, and government or as preparation for graduate school in the social sciences.

The Honors Program in Economics is open to high-achieving students in all Economics majors.

NOTE: Students may complete only one of the three Economics majors.

Freshmen: Preference will be given to those who rank among the highest using the selection criteria as stated in the Undergraduate Admissions section of this Catalogue.

Transfer Student Applicants: Transfer applicants with the highest grades overall who satisfactorily complete course prerequisites will be given preference for admission. All applicants must complete one course in microeconomics, one course in macroeconomics, and two semesters/two quarters of approved first-year calculus. Applicants interested in the major of Quantitative Economics must also complete one quarter/one semester of approved linear algebra. 

Change of Major: Information about change-of-major requirements, procedures, and policies is available in the School of Social Sciences Undergraduate Student Affairs Office and at the UCI Change of Major Criteria website.

All students must meet the University Requirements.
All students must meet the School Requirements.
Departmental Requirements for the Major in Economics

This major is designed for students seeking a broad education applicable to occupations in business, law, and government or as preparation for graduate school in the social sciences. University and School requirements must be met and must include 16 courses as specified below.

A. Lower-division:
ECON 20A- 20B Basic Economics I
and Basic Economics II
ECON 15A- 15B Probability and Statistics in Economics I
and Probability and Statistics in Economics II
MATH 2A- 2B Single-Variable Calculus
and Single-Variable Calculus
B. Upper-division:
ECON 100A- 100B- 100C Intermediate Economics I
and Intermediate Economic II
and Intermediate Economic III
ECON 122A Applied Econometrics I
C. Six additional ECON courses, one of which may be lower-division.
D. A maximum of three four-unit courses selected from ECON 190–199 may be counted toward the major.

Undergraduates in any of the three Economics majors may complete the Honors Program in Economics. Entry into the program requires a 3.4 GPA or better in upper-division Economics courses and an overall GPA of 3.2 or better. Undergraduates hoping to enter the program must apply no later than the spring quarter of their junior year. Students in the Honors Program must complete an honors thesis and the two-quarter Economics Honors Colloquium (ECON H190A-ECON 190BW; satisfies the upper-division writing requirement).

Freshman
Fall Winter Spring
ECON 20AECON 20BIntro. Soc. Sci. course
MATH 2AMATH 2BGeneral Education
Lower-Division Writing Lower-Division Writing General Education
 General Education 
Sophomore
Fall Winter Spring
ECON 15AECON 15BECON 100C
ECON 100AECON 100BECON 122A
SOC SCI 3AIntro. Soc. Sci. courseGeneral Education
General EducationGeneral EducationGeneral Education
Junior
Fall Winter Spring
U-D Econ. courseU-D Econ. courseU-D Econ. course
U-D Econ. courseGeneral EducationU-D Econ. course
General EducationElectivesElectives
ElectivesElectivesElectives
Senior
Fall Winter Spring
U-D Econ. courseU-D Econ. courseU-D Econ. course
ElectivesElectivesElectives
ElectivesElectivesElectives
ElectivesElectivesElectives