I am starting school in the Fall as a political science major and I am thinking about double majoring in Economics. I am really good at Statistics but that’s pretty much the only kind of Math I am strong in. In High School I didn’t take Calc either so I was wondering if Economics is a major intended for people who are really good at Math. I will be taking Calc this year and not planning on taking any Econ classes until 2nd semester. Also will this just be course load for me or double majoring in these two subjects will actually be more beneficial than what I am now, which is just a Poli Sci major. Thanks.
Great questions. When I was driving my son to college, I asked him whether he had any particular career in mind. He said that an academic career was a possibility. In what field? “Oh, maybe political science.” My comment: "If you want to do doctoral studies in political science you should have a strong foundation – maybe even major in – economics as an undergrad. He was very good in math, especially in thinking statistically; not so keen on calculus. He chose a major in economics, and all but minored in polisci. It has worked out very well for him, even though he doesn’t have an academic career.
You don’t have to double major; you may major-and-minor in polisci and economics. Either way, you should take as much applied math or statistics as you can handle. Become comfortable working with data. Become a spreadsheet maven. Do analytical work – papers, etc. – for your courses that suits your interests but also develops your technical skills. Explore ancillary areas such as GIS; learn to program in R. You will come out with useful and perhaps marketable skills, or you’ll be ready to go on to an advanced degree (MBA, MPA, PhD, etc.). My son initially chose management consulting, but later went in other directions. However the skill set he obtained in college (as well as before college) was invaluable.
If you don’t like math, you probably wouldn’t enjoy majoring in economics.
Many colleges offer two “flavors” of econ majors. For one, you need to be good at math. This is the pathway that anyone intending to go on to graduate school in econ must follow. For the other, it’s not as necessary to be good at math. This can be the path for people who might otherwise be in a business major.
So, look at the course requirements for the school you are attending.
Check your school’s Econ dept website for required courses. See how many of them involve actual computation as opposed to mathematical reasoning. There might be different tracks within the major: finance vs theory, for example. If you’re interested in business school or accounting, you’ll probably need to be decent at computation. If you’re more interested in theory and policy, you might not need super-strong math skills.
Wouldn’t economic theory be a high-math subarea of economics?
Commonly, economics major programs require calculus as a prerequisite for intermediate micro and macro economics courses (VCU has this requirement). Some schools’ economics departments have a more math intensive option (or sometimes requirement) with multivariable calculus and linear algebra; taking more advanced math and statistics is the usual recommendation for those wanting to go to graduate study in economics.
My daughter was an Econ major. While she was very quantitative, it was possible to major in Econ at her school with no college math other than Intro to Statistics and Calculus for Business and Social Science Majors. She took courses such as econometrics and economic forecasting as her electives, and also double majored in math, but there were plenty of students who took non-quantitative electives and were not particularly math inclined. If you want to go on to advanced studies in Economics you need the quantitative background, but at many schools you don’t need that for a bachelors degree.
Most economics degrees will require calculus and statistics. Economics is a mathematical subject. My son was an economics and math double major at Case Western. He was very interested in economics. He was good at math but not that interested in it. His advisor was the one who suggested that he consider a double major. He is currently in a training program for quantitative analysts at a bank.
My D is another Econ major, math minor. I was also an econ major–calculus and calculus-based statistics were required in my program. D’s program requires both calculus and statistics as well. You can major in econ without taking much more math than that, but calculus will keep being useful and even necessary in your econ coursework.