At the graduate level, the Department of Economics offers a Ph.D. in Economics, as well as several Master’s degrees in Economics, including an M.A. in Law and Economics, an M.A. in Applied Economics, and an M.S. in Applied Economics and Predictive Analytics. The Financial Engineer publishes rankings of professional masters programs in finance and business that are widely circulated. Based on these rankings, the SMU M.A. in Applied Economics program is currently ranked #31 in the nation (out of 157).
The Ph.D. program has a long and distinguished history. In 1959, the Department of Economics became the first department at SMU to offer a Ph.D. The first Ph.D. degree was conferred in 1963, which was also the first Ph.D. granted in any field by a university in Dallas. In 1966, the Department of Economics conferred the first Ph.D. at SMU to a woman. Ever since, the department has maintained a small and vibrant Ph.D. program that attracts students from all over the world. Recent graduates have gone on to tenure-track positions at institutions such as the Appalachian State University, Auburn University, Bowling Green State University, University of Cincinnati, University of Dayton, University Nevada-Las Vegas, and the University New Hampshire. Other graduates have gone on to positions at the World Bank, Bank for International Settlements, Fannie Mae, and Exxon-Mobil.
The department has an active external speaker seminar series and internal brown bag workshop where faculty and Ph.D. students present ongoing research.
M.A., M.S. Programs Ph.D. Program
