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Major: Bachelor of Science
MajorOverview
The undergraduate program in Economics aims to acquaint students with the economic aspects of modern society, familiarize them with techniques for analyzing contemporary economic problems, and develop an ability to exercise judgment in evaluating public policy. The program introduces students to macro- and microeconomic theory, teaches them to think and write clearly about economic problems and policy issues and apply essential economic analysis tools. The undergraduate Bachelor of Science degree provides an excellent background for those who plan to pursue PhD degrees in Economics or related disciplines, or technical careers in fields such as finance and data analytics.
Requirements
Core Program Requirements
Core Courses
ECON 1
Principles of Economics
ECON 51
Economic Analysis II
STATS 117
Introduction to Probability Theory
ECON 102B
Applied Econometrics
ECON 102C
Advanced Topics in Econometrics
MATH 51
Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, and Modern Applications
MATH 115
Functions of a Real Variable
All Core courses must be taken for a letter grade. In Fall 24 and onward, students must earn a C or better in all courses completed for the ECON Core.
Field Courses
ECON 108
Data Science for Business and Economic Decisions
ECON 115
Causality, Decision Making and Data Science
ECON 118
Development Economics
ECON 122
Economics of Health Equity
ECON 125
Economic Development, Microfinance, and Social Networks
ECON 136
Market Design
ECON 140
(FIN I) Introduction to Corporate Finance
ECON 141
Investments in Financial Markets
ECON 144
Family and Society
ECON 146
Economics of Education
ECON 149
Management Economics
ECON 152
Advanced Macroeconomics
ECON 155
Climate change and global inequality
ECON 156
Energy Markets and Policy
ECON 157
Imperfect Competition
ECON 158
Regulatory Economics
ECON 165
International Finance
ECON 166
International Trade
ECON 169
Advanced Topics in Macroeconomics and International Finance
ECON 170
Globalization and Growth
ECON 177
Environmental Economics: Models, Data, and Policy Design
ECON 179
Experimental Economics
ECON 185
Data Science for Environmental Business
ECON 198
Junior Honors Seminar
any 200-level course with permission of DUS and course instructor. Students should contact the department Student Services Officer once a course is approved.
All courses must be taken for a letter grade.
Electives
Non-Economics Electives
CS 106B
Programming Abstractions
CS 129
Applied Machine Learning
CS 161
Design and Analysis of Algorithms
CS 221
Artificial Intelligence: Principles and Techniques
CS 228
Probabilistic Graphical Models: Principles and Techniques
CS 229
Machine Learning
CS 233
Geometric and Topological Data Analysis
CS 246
Mining Massive Data Sets
MATH 113
Linear Algebra and Matrix Theory
MATH 118
Mathematics of Computation
MATH 136
Stochastic Processes
MATH 151
Introduction to Probability Theory
MATH 171
Fundamental Concepts of Analysis
MATH 172
Fourier Analysis
MS&E 111
Introduction to Optimization
MS&E 112
Graph and Combinatorial Optimization
MS&E 121
Introduction to Stochastic Modeling
MS&E 135
Networks
MS&E 244
Statistical Arbitrage
MS&E 245A
Investment Science
MS&E 245B
Advanced Investment Science
STATS 200
Introduction to Theoretical Statistics
STATS 202
Statistical Learning and Data Science
STATS 203
Regression Models and Analysis of Variance
STATS 206
Applied Multivariate Analysis
STATS 207
Time Series Analysis
STATS 208
Resampling Methods: Bootstrap, Cross Validation and Beyond
STATS 209
Introduction to Causal Inference
STATS 214
Machine Learning Theory
STATS 217
Introduction to Stochastic Processes I
STATS 218
Introduction to Stochastic Processes II
STATS 219
Stochastic Processes
STATS 229
Machine Learning
STATS 250
Mathematical Finance
STATS 270
Bayesian Statistics
All courses must be taken for a letter grade.
Writing in the Major (WIM)
WIM Courses
Completing ECON 101 (5 units) or at least 5 units of ECON 199D will meet the WIM requirement for the ECON BS.
These courses also complete the Capstone Requirement. See Capstone section below for more information.
NOTE: ECON 199D is only open for enrollment by students accepted to the ECON Honors Program. ECON 101 must be taken at Stanford in California. This course is only open to students in the final year of coursework, and should be taken only after completing ECON 51 Economic Analysis II and ECON 52 Economic Analysis III, ECON 102B Applied Econometrics, and at least two field courses. See Capstone section for more information.
Capstone
Capstone Requirement
Economics capstone experience will consist of two components:
1. Economics ePortfolio
To be completed in junior year: All students must submit an electronic portfolio of their work in the major. Submissions will be graded for completeness by the Economics Major Faculty Advisor. Students must be declared Econ BS Majors BEFORE completing this requirement. This requirement is a prerequisite for the Economics Senior Capstone Course or Honors Thesis.
2. Economics Policy Seminar or Senior Honors Thesis
During their senior year, students may choose 1 of two paths to complete the second half of the economics Capstone requirement. Both options also fulfill the Writing in the Major (WIM) requirement for the major (students choosing to complete an honors thesis must complete at least 5 units of ECON 199D to fulfill their WIM requirement).
(A) Economic Policy Seminar
Graduating seniors may request permission to enroll in the Economic Policy Seminar Course, ECON 101, during the Fall, Winter, or Spring quarter of their final year of coursework.
ECON 101 is only available to students completing their final year of coursework, and enrollment is limited by application at the start of each school year. Student placement notifications will be sent out before the term starts. ECON 101 must be taken at Stanford California and may only be taken after completing ECON 51, ECON 52, ECON 102B, and at least two field courses.
ECON 101
Economic Policy Seminar
(B) Economics Honors Thesis
Research and write an honors thesis under the guidance of a faculty advisor.
Students wishing to apply for the Economics Honors Thesis program must meet the following requirements by the fall quarter of their senior year:
Achieve a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.5 for the units required for the Economics major. Units of ECON 199D or ECON 139D do not count in the computation of the GPA requirement for honors. The GPA will be calculated at two points: (1) when the student applies to the honors program, and (2) at the end of the quarter in which the student graduates. If the GPA is below 3.5 at the end of the quarter in which the student graduates, the student will have to drop honors in order to graduate.
Complete ECON 102B (a core program requirement) and at least two Econ upper division courses relevant to the proposed topic of the honors thesis by the end of junior year.
More information about program requirements and expectations can be found at: https://economics.stanford.edu/undergraduate/honors-program opens in a new tab
ECON 199D
Honors Thesis Research
NOTE: Students must complete at least 5 units of 199D to meet their Writing in the Major (WIM) Requirement. See Writing in the Major section above for more information.
Honors
OptionalHonors
Honors Program Requirements
The honors program opens in a new tab offers independent research, creativity, and achievement opportunities. It is designed to encourage a more intensive study of economics than is required for the typical major, with course and research work of exceptional quality. Honors students submit their theses in writing and present them during the Honors Research Symposium during spring quarter. The honors program requires:
Completing all requirements for the ECON BS major plus five additional units, bringing the total to 90 units.
Achieving a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.5 for the required courses of the Economics BS major (excluding ECON 139D Directed Reading and ECON 199D Honors Thesis Research). See details in the Information Book for Economics Majors.
Complete ECON 102B Applied Econometrics (a core program requirement) and at least two Econ upper-division courses most relevant to the proposed topic of the honors thesis by the end of the junior year. (These can be included in the basic 85 units.)
Candidates must write and present an honors thesis in their senior year for one to nine credit units in their thesis advisor’s section of Econ 199D. Additionally, winter registration for one unit of Honors Thesis Research under the Director of the Honors Program section number (199D-20) is mandatory for all honors students. The thesis must be of very high quality and written under the direction of a member of the department or its affiliated faculty.
ECON 199D
Honors Thesis Research
Conditions
Application Details:
Prospective candidates should communicate with the Director of the Honors Program as soon as possible.
During the start of fall quarter of senior year, prospective candidates for the honors program must submit the following items to the Honors Program Application Form opens in a new tab:
A one-page description of the proposed thesis topic and research question
A one-page proposed timeline
Other information requested in the application form. For example, some courses taken, student information.
After you submit your application, your thesis advisor and the Director of the Honors Program will review it and (if everything is satisfactory) approve it. After you are given the go-ahead, you can declare the Econ BSH in Axess and register in ECON 199D units.
See https://economics.stanford.edu/undergraduate/honors-program opens in a new tab for application deadlines and more information.