Economics

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Florida
1

<p>Just curious. As I was browsing UF's site I noticed two econ majors</p>

<p>1) [url=<a href="http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalog/programs/majors/econclas.html%5DOffice"&gt;http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalog/programs/majors/econclas.html]Office&lt;/a> of the University Registrar<a href="BA">/url</a>
2) [url=<a href="http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalog/programs/majors/economics.html%5DOffice"&gt;http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalog/programs/majors/economics.html]Office&lt;/a> of the University Registrar<a href="BS">/url</a></p>

<p>IMO at first glance it looks like BS is more difficult than BA and there's more room for electives in BA. </p>

<p>And can someone explain to me what restricted electives are? And do you really have to take all that science just for general education? </p>

<p>If I'm completely off, it's because I clearly don't understand all their abbreviations and such very well.</p>

2

<p>Restricted elective sounds to me like, you can only choose certain classes from the list for elective, while other electives , you can basically take anything.</p>

<p>For General Education requirement, I don't think you are required to take all of those science courses, but for your major, you are required to take all of those science courses</p>

3

<p>Generally, BS degrees have more math and science requirements.</p>

4

<p>On second look, the BA actually has more science than the BS. I really hate science btw. I don't mind the math; by the time I graduate h.s., I'll have the base math courses of the two majors Stats and Calc 1 completed through AP. Does the math get any more complicated than just Stats and Calc 1 ?</p>

5

<p>I found this on the USF site where they explain the difference between their BA and BS (which is also at their business college)</p>

<p>
[quote]
In the College of Business Administration, students are required to take a selection of 'core' business courses (in finance, marketing, accounting and other business disciplines) as well as the economics major courses. Students in this college can choose between a B.A. degree (which requires college-level foreign language credit) or a B.S. degree (which does not).</p>

<p>In the College of Arts and Sciences, students must earn a B.A. degree (there is no option for a B.S.). This program has no 'core' requirement, so students in this College have a significantly higher number of elective credits. Students considering a double major or students preparing for graduate studies often choose this option.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>IMO seems to apply here as well. Thanks for the help.</p>

6

<p>my personal opinion about BS and BA is that with a BS, you're more likely to get a job.</p>

7

<p>When I was getting my bachelor's in Economics, my advisor told me that those who are serious about graduate studies in economics (and want to get in a pretty decent school) should get the BA so they can double major in math, which is more important for graduate econ work than an undergrad degree in econ. The business BS is for those who want to go straight to work or on to an MBA.</p>

8

<p>I was always under the impression that the BA has less requirements SO you can take some other concentration (language, etc) and that the BS has more requirements in math and science because it is considered a more technical degree.. the BA stands for Bachelor of Arts and BS stands for Bachelor of Science...</p>

9

<p>For the BA and BS you have to take Survey of Calc I (which is below the Calc I class math majors take) and intro stats. For the BS you have to take one additional class, Statistics for Business Decisions. Thats hardly technical enough to do real economic analysis. For those serious about grad school, theres so many core requirements (Management, Bus. Law etc.) for the BS in Business that taking enough Math courses would be impossible in 120 credits, so thats why the BA exists. Also, alot of pre-law students get a BA in Econ and something else like Philosophy because they both look good to Law School ad coms. For them, the General Business classes are useless. As for the title distinction, it differs from major to major. When you get a BS in Econ you don't have to take a foreign language beyond the requirements needed to get into UF. With a BA you must take 2 semesters of a foreign language at the college level even if you took 2 years in high school. In reality, nobody cares about the title as there are no standards from state to state or sometimes school to school. You'd be hard pressed to convince someone that a BS in Business is more technical then a BA in Math.</p>

10

<p>You should also consider that the BS is run by Warrington, a top 50 college of business</p>

11

<p>As a former UF Econ major, I wanted give you the low down on UF's Econ program.</p>

<p>1) The core Econ classes are identical in the BA and BS programs. The only difference is BA students take Intermediate Micro, while BS students take Managerial Economics. Both courses cover the same material. The difference between the two programs is the non-core requirements. </p>

<p>2) The BA program requires a set number of science, writing, and foreign language courses. This is because the BA degree is through the College of Liberal Arts College, and the CLAS strives to give its students a more well-rounded education. </p>

<p>The BA degree is advantageous if you want to double major in another liberal arts subject (polisci, psychology, chemistry, etc). The BA degree is also probably better if you want to study graduate economics. Most econ grad programs require a ton of math, so your best bet would be to double major in Econ and Math.</p>

<p>3) The BS program requires a set number of business-related courses (e.g. financial accounting, finance, management, etc). It is probably a more practical degree if you seek to gain business experience straight out of UG, since it's generally a more technical degree than the BA. Caveat: a BA in Math/Econ is probably more impressive than a BS in the business world, since it is much more quantitative. </p>

<p>4) The BS degree is much more structured than the BA degree. This can be good or bad, depending upon your preferences. For example, if you like to explore different course areas and are intellectually curious, the BS degree may not be for you. On the other hand, you're in college just to get a job and only want business-related classes, the BS would probably be a better choice.</p>

<p>5) BA Econ students get their degree from the CLAS, while the BS students get their degree from Warrington.</p>

<p>I hope that clarified some of the questions that people had. Remember, the econ courses themselves are the SAME. You will attend classes with both BA and BS students.</p>

<p>If you have any further questions, feel free to post them on this thread.</p>

12

<p>Any recommendations for 3000/4000 level ECO classes?</p>

13

<p>Intermediate Macro with Bomberger was good. Some thought he was boring, but I really liked the class. He teaches using a lot a graphs, similar to Rush. </p>

<p>Game theory is always interesting. However, the prof that I had is now teaching at another school.</p>

<p>Kenny is a great prof. He has a stutter, which can take some time to get used to, but, once you do, you learn a lot. He is also very nice outside of the classroom. Take research methods with him, if possible. You will learn some econometrics/regression analysis, which is very marketable. I never took Public Choice, but wish I did.</p>

<p>Also, Econ of Education was interesting. The prof focuses on regression analysis and you learn how to analyze econ studies.</p>

14

<p>Which was the easiest?</p>

15

<p>You mentioned Survey of Calc 1. I know this is somewhat off-topic, but is it hard? I did have AP Calc in high school but I didn't pass the AP exam, and I did take math all 4 years [up to IB Math Methods]. Should I expect this class to be mostly a review of things I've already learned? I can't imagine, if it's lower than Calc 1, that I'd learn much new, right?</p>

16

<p>Honestly, I found almost all of the econ courses to be pretty easy. However, if you're looking for easy classes, I would avoid game theory.</p>