Economics Major - BA or College of Business ?

College Majors
1

Hello,

I am excited to be attending DePaul next fall. It was my first-choice college. I know that I want to major in economics, but I am not sure in which college. DePaul offers two economics majors- one in the Driehaus College of Business, and the other is in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences.

If I were to choose economics in the college of business, I would have take lots of business courses before I can declare my major : ACC101, ACC102, ECO 105,ECO106,MAT135,MAT136,MAT 137, BLW200. On top of that, I would have to complete minimum 66 business core credits ( DePaul operates on quarters, so 192 credits for graduation).

I see myself getting an MBA in the future, so getting my degree in the college of business is perhaps more applicable. With that being said, I won’t have many open electives to choose from.

Getting a BA in economics on the other hand, would allow me to 56 open electives, which means I can take many classes that I am interested in outside of economics.

Lastly, if I choose the economics in the business school, I do not know if it would qualify as a major or concentration ? because the major requirements for the BA in economics is 56 credits, while in the college of business its only 30 credits?

I would have 56 open electives if I choose the BA in economics, while only 16 If I choose the economics in the college of business path.

I would appreciate your advise.

I have attached the requirements for both paths for reference.

http://www.depaul.edu/university-catalog/degree-requirements/undergraduate/business/economics-bsb/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.depaul.edu/university-catalog/degree-requirements/undergraduate/class/economics-ba/Pages/default.aspx

2

If you are interested in taking some, but not all, of the additional business courses in the BSB version of the major, could you go for the BA version of the major and use your additional elective space to take just those specific additional business courses, while having more elective space for other electives?

3

If that is the case, then I will be leaning towards getting a BA. But the problem is, a lot of those business courses have prerequisites, so I am not sure if I will be able to take them.

4

You could get an MBA in the future even if you majored in something completely unrelated to business, so it won’t matter if you pick the BA in economics or the major in the business school. Other than courses, you need to find out whether business school students are eligible for special considerations or career services that you might want.

The business school major is still a major. It’s just that you take fewer classes in economics; the “business core” classes make up a lot of your major there.

5

Thanks for the insight. I am leaning towards getting a BA in economics. I am also considering a minor in real estate, as its something I have always been interested in. On top of that, I will still have many open electives, so I can pursue courses in management, marketing, finance, entrepreneurship etc …

I think this is the best option for me.