<p>So I've been going back and forth between econ or government at Cornell. My ultimate goal is to get a PhD (in either econ or political science) and be an economist for state or federal government, maybe even an economic analyst for the CIA or the UN.</p>
<p>Here's the problem: I don't like most mathematics. I like/love statistics, but algebra is not my cup of tea. The thing is that I haven't ever taken calculus (nor will I before Cornell). Is math in econ going to whoop my rear-end? Could I follow the same career path as a government major with a focus on economics?</p>
<p>First of all I’m assuming it’d be fairly easy to double major in both.</p>
<p>Second, I don’t think you’d need anything past the high school equivalent of Calculus BC as far as math goes (I’m in ILR and with a 5 on that test I’ve already met the prequisites for any econ class I would want to take). As an econ major, you’d might want to take one class beyond that just for a solid foundation, along with advanced topics you might hit later in graduate school, but I don’t think its as big a deal as you might think.</p>
<p>^^^^ clarification:</p>
<p>When I say easy to double major, I mean to get into the double major program, not to actually complete the double major lol</p>
<p>There are plenty of econ majors running around, meaning that, as an econ minor, you probably won’t be very competitive for the most appealing economic analyst positions. Most Econ PhD programs require applicants to have multivariable calculus (beyond Calc BC) and linear algebra, and they strongly prefer that you have real analysis, and have done well. While you don’t need to get a PhD in Economics to work for the government, my guess is that Econ PhDs will have the best prospects for government economics positions in general (not sure about the CIA or UN). CayugaRed would be a good person to ask. </p>
<p>I believe Poli Sci PhDs who go into governmental work are generally area studies specialists, or narrowly topical specialists aside from economics (such as security) or and are <em>not</em> trained to be economic specialists. You also don’t need a PhD in govt to go this route. </p>
<p>If you want the best prospects for becoming an economic analysis, that means getting a PhD in economics, and that means taking a lot of math. Roneald’s right that you don’t need much math for the major, but ironically you can’t even get into good Econ PhD programs if you’re an econ major with the minimum math prereqs. You could, however, go from the BA in Econ to a master’s (eg, in international relations, public policy, or urban studies), and then avoid advanced math and still possibly make it as a ranking economist.</p>
<p>^^ Excellent point. I completely ignored the fact that you wanted to get into a PhD level program in the future.</p>