Chair   Don Siegel
Department Home Page   http://www.rpi.edu/dept/economics/

The establishment of a Nobel Prize in Economic Science in 1969 officially recognized the logical rigor and analytical content of modern economics. Undergraduate students are introduced to the key ideas of economics revolving around scarcity of resources and the functioning of social institutions designed to make choices among alternatives where all desirable outcomes are not achievable. Through a sequence of progressively more advanced courses, students learn the concepts and tools of economics as applied to a variety of social problems: growth and technological change, resource scarcity and environmental pollution, unemployment, inflation, poverty, government spending and taxation, and regulation, for example. Primary emphasis is on the analysis of how markets perform the central economic task of allocating scarce resources among competing ends, but several courses, such as public finance, government regulation, and cost-benefit analysis focus on public-sector allocative decision making. Engineers, scientists, and managers frequently find their career choices and options heavily intermixed with economic problems and policies.

The basic one-term course, ECON-1200 Introductory Economics, is designed to create an awareness of the problems of our economy and to furnish the student with basic tools with which, as a voting citizen, he or she will be able to reach independent, rational judgments on questions of public policy. The course provides a general introduction to economic principles and institutions. It is a self-contained course and is also a prerequisite for other courses listed. However, under certain circumstances this prerequisite may be waived.

Areas of Advanced Research and Study

At the graduate level, the objective of training is to allow the student to apply the body of economic knowledge and techniques to a variety of issues in academic, government, and business settings. The department’s faculty and graduate students focus their research in selected areas including: environmental and ecological economics, cost-benefit analysis, regional economics, economic regulation, and international competitiveness.

Faculty

Professors
Duchin, F.—Ph.D. (University of California, Berkeley); input-output analysis, structural economics, ecological economics, economic development, technological change.
Gowdy, J. M.—Ph.D. (West Virginia University); ecological economics, industrial organization and public regulation, regional economics.
Hohenberg, P. M.—Ph.D. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology); economic history, economics of technological change, economics of cities (emeritus).
Siegel, D.S. —Ph.D. (Columbia); economics of industry, innovation and technological change, productivity, university technology transfers.
Vitaliano, D. F.—Ph.D. (City University of New York); public finance, cost-benefit analysis, health economics.

Assistant Professors
Erickson, J.—Ph.D. (Cornell University); natural resource economics, quantitative methods, ecological economics.

Clinical Professors
Heim, J.—Ph.D. (State University of New York at Albany); money and banking, international economics.
Hughes, G.—Ph.D. (Princeton University); global economics, economics of information technology.

Undergraduate Programs

The department offers a program leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science. The program is organized to acquaint students with modern economic theory and its application to problems that confront individual business firms, industries, and the national economy as a whole.

Economics Major   34 credit hours are required, which must include the following: Introductory Economics (ECON-1200), Managerial Economics (ECON-2010), Intermediate Macroeconomics (ECON-2020), or Money and Banking (ECON-4130), Introduction to Econometrics (ECON-4570) or an equivalent course in Quantitative Analysis, and a Seminar in Economics (ECON-4900). An approved course in Statistics is prerequisite to the Quantitative Analysis and Econometrics requirement.

Dual Majors   Students are encouraged to consider a dual major as a means of enhancing their employment and graduate school prospects. Training in economics can provide an edge in either situation. A dual major is NOT a double degree, which requires 30 additional credits beyond the first degree. Dual majors may use their economics courses to fulfill the social science portion of the required 24 credit H&SS Core. Otherwise, the requirements are the same as for the single major in economics.

Economics Minor   At least 16 credit hours are required, which must include Introductory Economics (ECON-1200) and Managerial Economics (ECON-2010). All courses must be taken for a grade to count towards the minor (or major).
For further information, contact Donald Vitaliano, Sage 3405, vitald@rpi.edu, ext. 8093 or John Heim, Sage 3410, heimj@rpi.edu, ext. 8086.

The undergraduate major program in economics at Rensselaer differs from such programs elsewhere in three important respects:

• It requires that about one-fourth of the student’s program be in mathematics and the natural sciences.
• Students apply their quantitative tools to real economic problems, notably in problem labs where regression, linear programming, and risk analysis are used.
• Relevant aspects of environmental and ecological economics are dealt with in various courses, in addition to dedicated courses.

Work in the major field can easily be combined with meaningful concentrations of study in other fields of interest and with accelerated progress toward professional goals. Some possibilities include:

• emphasizing liberal electives in, for example, a prelaw program or policy studies related to science and technology;
• completing, in five years, requirements for the Bachelor of Science in Economics and for the Master of Science in Operations Research and Statistics or the Master of Business Administration;
• pursuing a minor concentration of 15-18 credit hours in a related professional field, such as environmental or transportation engineering, management, or computer science.

These options are developed in consultation with the student’s academic adviser and may require admission to the Graduate School. They are designed to prepare the student for employment or for advanced graduate or professional training.

The department administers the Edward J. Holstein Memorial Award for Excellence in Economics, the Dobrovolsky Scholarship Fund, and the Shavell-Weinman Fund.

Curriculum (illustrative)

1. Science options are CHEM-1100, CHEM-1200 Chemistry I and II; PHYS-1100, PHYS-1200 Physics I and II; ERTH-1030, ERTH-1040 Natural Science I and II. Other sequences may be substituted with approval.
2. This is a special section of this course for H&SS students, MATH-1010 Calculus I may be substituted for MATH-1500.
* As required.
** Special version of this course for H&SS majors.
*** Degree completion may require more credits.

Minimum Credit Hours   This curriculum requires a minimum of 124 credit hours.

Ecological Economics, Values, and Policy

The Program in Ecological Economics, Values, and Policy (EEVP) is jointly offered by the Departments of Economics and Science and Technology Studies (STS), and satisfies the curriculum requirements for the B.S. programs in both departments. EEVP combines the best of both departments: economic analysis and a broader humanities and social science analysis that emphasizes the roles science and technology play in today’s global economy and culture. Given the strong interdisciplinary background acquired in EEVP, graduates can play a leading role in resolving the critical environmental and social problems of the 21st century. According to a United Nations’ survey, the demand for graduates from EEVP-type programs exceeds the supply. Echoing the concerns of many other development organizations, the U.N. states that it is crucial that we educate people who understand that “sustainable development does not merely deal with the conservation of nature or the management of ecosystems, but more broadly and fundamentally aims at new models of societal development and social transformation.”

EEVP has four main components: 8 Economics courses (all courses are 4 credit hours), 8 STS courses, 10 Science or Engineering courses, and 4 Free Electives-as well as an H&SS First-Year Studies course. The Science and Engineering Component should be used to earn the equivalent of a minor in environmental science or engineering, which can cover such topics as ecology, environmental chemistry or geology, water and wastewater infrastructure, and hazardous waste management. In addition, the economics and social science courses that form the core of EEVP equip students with a variety of skills and methods to assess the economic costs, human health impacts, and quality of life changes that are associated with the evolving lifestyles and living conditions in today’s society. Cultural studies add to the strong global focus of EEVP that prepares students for a successful career in policy analysis, international development, project assessment, and many other areas. The Economics and STS Components will be integrated in the capstone STS Senior Project, on which students will work with an adviser from each department.

See Science and Technology Studies for details on the EEVP curriculum.

Environmental Studies Program

Building on the unusual strength and breadth of Rensselaer’s synthesis of engineering, science, and the humanities and social sciences, the Environmental Studies Program offers students a unique educational opportunity to develop a truly multidisciplinary approach to environmental studies.

Students who enter Rensselaer in the Environmental Studies Program will take a broad range of basic courses in their first two years and then choose one of five majors: economics (with an ecological economics focus), environmental engineering, environmental science (with a concentration in a specific area of science), hydrogeology, or science, technology, and society (with an environmental focus). Students may also choose the dual major program including economics and science, technology, and society: Ecological Economics, Values, and Policy. To complement their major programs, students may earn a wide variety of minors. All the majors in the program offer their own environmental minors, and the Schools of Architecture and Management offer special environmental courses as well. Students who graduate from the Environmental Studies Program will not be narrow specialists; they will receive the kind of multidisciplinary education that is required to address environmental problems.

See Science and Technology Studies for a complete description of the program.

Graduate Programs

The Department of Economics also offers a Master of Science degree aimed at developing skills in economic analysis and an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in Ecological Economics. These programs are oriented toward important applications in industry, government, and education.

Projects under way or recently completed by members of the department include:

• energy and environment;
• technological change and productivity measurement;
• cost-benefit analysis;
• health economics;
• international competitiveness;
• community sustainable development;
• the role of technology as an agent of change in the structure of national output in planned and market economies;
• global economic cooperation;
• cost-benefit analysis of state and local projects and policies;
• urbanization and industrial development;
• the economics of new technologies in nonprofit hospitals;
• technological change in input-output analysis;
• innovation and international trade.

Master’s Program of Study

Though students must become competent in certain fundamental areas, such as economic theory and econometrics, programs in economics are quite flexible and can readily accommodate the person who wishes to combine a graduate-level major in economics with a minor concentration in some related area or who wishes to develop a minor in economics to complement a graduate program in another discipline.

Master’s Degree Requirements

Master of Science   An applicant for the M.S. program should have completed a bachelor’s program at an approved institution with basic undergraduate courses in economics and mathematics, including calculus. Some background in statistics is strongly recommended. A candidate for the M.S. must complete 24 credit hours of course work selected in consultation with the program adviser, submit a six-credit thesis, and pass a comprehensive oral examination. There is no foreign language requirement.

Professional Master’s Program in
Ecological Economics, Values, and Policy

Director   Steve Breyman, Science and Technology Studies

The Professional Master’s Program in Ecological Economics, Values, and Policy (EEVP) is a joint offering of the Departments of Economics and Science and Technology Studies (STS), and builds on our nationally recognized expertise and course offerings in the economic, political, social, cultural, and ethical implications and interactions of science, technology, environment, and society. EEVP is aimed at early and mid-career professionals in state and local government, secondary education, business, and the nonprofit sector—for example, professionals in environmental NGOs (nongovernment organizations)—who are looking to upgrade their skills and advance their careers.

Building on required courses in environmental, ecological, and natural resource economics and in environmental philosophy and policy, EEVP helps students to acquire the skills they will need—for example, policy analysis and ecological valuation—to address the complex multidisciplinary problems any society faces in such areas as environment and health, appropriate technology, and sustainable development. The 21st Century promises a continuation of the march toward globalization that has characterized the current century. Dealing with the prospects and problems of a world economy and the growing human impact on the natural world requires an education that is both broad and deep. EEVP offers students “hands on” training that puts into practice the slogan “think globally, act locally.”

See Science and Technology Studies for detail on the EEVP Master’s Program.

Ph.D. Ecological Economics

The Economics Department offers an interdisciplinary Ph.D. degree in ecological economics with cooperation from the Departments of Science and Technology Studies, Biology, and the Environmental Management and Policy Program in the School of Management. The Ph.D. requires 60 hours beyond the master’s degree and 90 hours beyond the baccalaureate.

The program leading to the Ph.D. in ecological economics allows for individual research specialization and independent study in an atmosphere of close contact between faculty and students based on research participation. Ecological economics is an interdisciplinary field involving economics, ecology, and social theory. Our students take basic theory courses in micro- and macroeconomics and econometrics as well as course sequences in the advanced fields of ecological economics, industrial organization, and public sector economics. Beyond the required work in theory and quantitative methods, students choose an elective field for advanced study and dissertation research. Other advanced courses may be chosen from those offered by the Departments of Biology, Science and Technology Studies, and other Rensselaer departments that may meet students’ interests.

Degree Requirements   The Ph.D. in ecological economics requires 90 hours of study beyond the bachelor’s degree, and 60 hours beyond an M.A. in economics or a related field. This requirement entails a minimum of 30 hours of course work or 10 three-credit courses. However, most students will choose to take more courses and may be required to do so if their background so indicates. Thesis credit will vary between 15 and 30 hours.

Course Requirements   Students are expected to complete core courses in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and quantitative methods. In addition, two of the following three courses are required: Environmental Economics, Ecological Economics, and Natural Resource Economics. Students choose the rest of their program around other advanced courses in economics, biology, environmental management, philosophy, science and technology studies, or environmental engineering.

Qualifying Exams   These written exams cover theory and application in the three required core courses. Exams are offered twice a year. The examining faculty will prepare study questions and a list of related readings for students planning to take the required exams in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and quantitative methods.

Candidacy Exam   When a student has successfully completed the qualifying exams, he or she will organize a thesis committee for the dissertation. One member of the required four-person committee must be from outside the economics department. The student will prepare a dissertation prospectus that covers the theoretical and applied literature in the chosen field of study for the dissertation and outline the planned dissertation research. The presentation of the prospectus will constitute an additional oral field exam in a chosen area of specialization.

Study Plan   The student should draft a study plan immediately on entering the program and keep it current. It is recognized that plans will change from time to time. The plan of study must be approved by the program director or co-director.

Seminars   Students are encouraged to attend seminars conducted regularly in the economics department, as well as other Rensselaer departments, e.g., science and technology studies, and biology.