Im a junior in high school and I’m thinking about college and where I want to go, what I want to do, etc, I’m considering majoring in Econ but I’m not the biggest math person. I was always good at math…until I got to calculus. Is Econ a lot of calculus? Is this a bad major choice for someone who prefers not to do hard math?
You can check each school’s economics major requirements. You may find various levels of math required:
- Least math: statistics only.
- Typical math: single variable calculus and statistics.
- High math: multivariable calculus, linear algebra, and statistics.
Pre-PhD students should also take additional advanced math and statistics like real analysis, calculus-based probability theory, etc.
Also, don’t give up on calculus. Seriously: see if you can find a good tutor. Calculus is a very different way of thinking than the math that you have done so far. If you enjoyed math up til now, you may find that once you make the leap, calculus is just fine. A lot of people who do well in advanced math (including econ) struggle at first. If you aren’t getting your teacher, find a tutor of some kind. You may be happily surprised that it comes together during the spring term.
@Forevermia , as mentioned above, different economics departments at different schools have different mathematics requirements for the major. There’s also often a distinction between BA and BS (Bachelor of Arts vs. Bachelor of Science). The BS typically requires a couple more mathematics courses in lieu of major-related elective courses. Some programs’ BA paths only require statistics (and econometrics is common), so you’d have to look into the specific programs you’re finding interest in. Of course, by taking the BA path without higher level math courses means that you will need to take those courses concurrently or prior to a graduate program if you so choose to go on to graduate-level course work. Nearly all graduate econ programs that I’ve researched require some level of calculus, often multiple levels. But, for bachelor level, some departments let you get away with statistics and econometrics.