<p>I'm planning out some of my college schedule, and want to leave the possibility for Grad school in Economics. I realize that you need lots of math in order to be successful and gain admission, but my schedule doesn't allow it if I continue in a double major in Computer Science and Economics.</p>
<p>Does have a math-related 2nd major help me at all in this situation? Or should I still find a way to take the math?</p>
<p>Most of the math used in undergraduate computer science is not the sort of math you would need for economics. If your double major prevents you from taking the math courses you need for graduate school, you might consider down-grading one of your majors to a minor. </p>
<p>Here’s a link that might be helpful: [recommended</a> math courses for an economics major](<a href=“http://www.wellesley.edu/Economics/Courses/related.html]recommended”>http://www.wellesley.edu/Economics/Courses/related.html)</p>
<p>Agreed. See if you can fit in an econ major with a double minor in math and cs.</p>
<p>An Applied Math major is the best fit for an Economics graduate level course.</p>
<p>Mmm. Don’t know that I’d agree with that. Econ departments are looking for proof-based classes. For what it’s worth, I think an Math major with some Econ courses is probably a stronger profile than an Econ major with some math courses. A Math/Econ double is pretty strong and my D found a Math/Government double with some Econ courses sprinkled in to be effective. (Accepted to a Top 5 program).<br>
From what I"ve been reading, Econ grad programs want, in order, Math, Math, and
more Math. Sure, Micro & Macro Econ through Intermediate and throw in a couple
of other courses. Though fwiw my D got in without DiffEQ on the Math side or Econometrics on the Econ side.</p>
<p>Computer Science actually seems to be the odd man out. I’d at least think about doing Econ/Math and taking some computer science courses. I don’t see a clear juncture where having the Econ is a good complement for Computer Science or vice-versa.</p>
<p>A proof-based class would be something like Analysis. Not really what you tackle in graduate level Economics. IMHO,the one really important class for graduate level economics is intermediate and higher level statistics. You will use it constantly. After that, I’d go with Calc I-III, ODE’s, numerical analysis, and linear algebra.</p>
<p>^ It’s been frequently reported by top PhD programs in economics that a course in analysis is preferred; it’s also said been that such a preference is, to generalize practically, an informal requirement.</p>
<p>b@r!um’s link is very helpful for specific guidelines, and TheDad’s point that lots of math coupled with economics fundamentals is superior admissions-wise to lots of economics supplemented by minimal math (say, the calculus sequence and linear algebra) is one to remember.</p>
<p>Being fundamentally quantitative, a computer science major may be more helpful in admissions than, for example, political science. There is, however, no true substitute for the math sequence that puts you on the track to good economics PhD programs, if that’s what you want.</p>
<p>On another note, though, my understanding is that some who majored in economics and want to go into a PhD program but who lack the full level of mathematical preparedness find that some intervening masters programs set them up well.</p>
<p>^ How is a computer science major fundamentally quantitative? Maybe statistical machine learning or scientific computing, but not the computer architecture/operating systems/compilers/data bases/web design stuff that most CS majors study.</p>
<p>(I do agree with your point. That one comment just rubbed me the wrong way.)</p>
<p>ST…and I’ll admit that I’m at the “Advanced Novice” stage of all this…the picture that I’ve assembled is that if one is looking at a Top 20 program, getting a Masters as the stepping stone is a dicey proposition (for US students). I actually know of one such who is in the entering class at Berkeley but a lot of the “better” schools don’t offer a standalone Masters and thus the rigor of the course work is regarded as more than a bit suspect. The student I know of got his Masters at San Francisco State but apparently did spectacularly, not just “very well.” </p>
<p>Ymmv, etc.</p>
<p>JS, there’s a torrent of reportage that Real Analysis is a de facto near-requirement for top Econ programs and Complex Analysis is viewed extremely favorably and Topology is a nice cherry. You may or may not be able to argue that you won’t <em>use</em> the material that much in your PhD studies but as “gatekeeper” courses to get there in the first place, it’s hard to refute.</p>
<p>I just finished an Applied Math degree and you have to distinguish between core (required classes) and electives. Analysis is part of the required classes for pretty much all Math majors. IIRC, the only ones that don’t have to take that class are the Math education majors. Applied, Pure, and Distributed Math majors, all have to take that class as a requirement.</p>
<p>So unless you’re a Math education major, the requirement that you take a class in Analysis, in order for graduate schools to look more favorably upon your application, is honestly kind of moot.</p>
<p>Yes, but Econ departments are looking for Real Analysis from the hordes of non-Math major applicants, with the others I cited being prominent on their list as well. Even as a Math major, courses like Complex Analysis and Topology apparently make the eyes of the admissions committee light up.</p>
<p>Of course, the elephants in the room in this thread is the question of LOR’s and research experience. </p>
<p>All the right math in the world isn’t going to help much if you don’t have at least <em>some</em> of the very right stuff in those categories.</p>
<p>I agree with that. It’s just one piece of the puzzle.</p>
<p>I also took Complex Analysis, but not for Economics, but rather, for Physics. This may differ from school to school, but I have never seen an Econ major ever take a class like complex analysis. It is a fairly big step up for them math-wise as they tend to have a fairly limited math background (Usually just Calc I-III and maybe ODE’s and stats)</p>
<p>Hmm. Insufficient data on my part. My D was a Math/Gov double with several Econ courses but included Complex Analysis. She did extremely well in her Econ courses so maybe you’re right, the competition was undergunned from a Math perspective. I dunno. (Is one allowed to say that on CC?)</p>
<p>I found my math major very beneficial while I was doing my Econ major. I think it prepares you extremely well for Economics classes. Most people however tend to not be in that boat. They usually only minor in math when they major in Economics and sometimes not even that (I’ve seen a very wide range of minors when it comes to Econ majors). I would be very surprised if an Econ major who was minoring in Math took a class like complex analysis (I’m not saying its impossible and they can’t do it, it’s just that IMHO they might not have the right math background to really excel in the class). </p>
<p>For the most part, a class like complex analysis is mostly taken by science-oriented majors (like Physics and Engineering majors) as part of their math minor (minoring in Math while majoring in Physics is very common).</p>