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PhD Program

Duke University offers a world-class doctoral program in Economics, featuring a vibrant faculty of exceptional scholars and teachers and superior research facilities. There are many qualities that distinguish Duke's doctoral program from those of our peer institutions. The defining characteristic of Duke's Ph.D. program is, however, a dedication on the part of our faculty to anchor all teaching and research firmly in the core disciplines of microeconomics, macroeconomics and econometrics. The first year of the program, therefore, lays the critical foundation necessary for later work in field courses and dissertation-level research.

Dedication to the core disciplines also unifies our faculty and results in a cohesive view of what constitutes sound economic research. The faculty and doctoral students at Duke regard themselves first and foremost as economists rather than specialists in narrowly defined areas of study. Hence, while Duke offers students a wide variety of concentrations, our commitment to the core provides important linkages across fields and results in an integrated research community with common standards and objectives.

Another distinguishing feature of Duke's doctoral program is our innovative summer initiatives for PhD. Students. During the summer between the first and second years of the program, our doctoral students participate in short courses that are designed to prepare them for second year coursework and research. During the summer between the second and third years of the program, all students have an opportunity to serve as a research assistant for a faculty member working in their area of interest. During the summer between the third and fourth years, all students successfully completing their prospectus defense are eligible to receive fellowships that allow them to focus on their dissertation research. There are also ample opportunities to serve as teaching assistants and instructors during the summer months. Our integration of summers into the Ph.D. program derives from a common belief on the part of our faculty that scholarship is a full-time job (and passion) and that our students should come to understand and appreciate - as soon as possible -- the level of commitment necessary to achieve research excellence.

Another important facet of Duke's doctoral program is the commitment on the part of our faculty to include graduate students in our research community and to foster collaboration with and among them. In particular, the majority of funding for students beyond the first year is provided via research assistantships (rather than teaching assistantships). In addition, our graduate center includes a coffee bar, lounge area and several team rooms, designed to facilitate collaboration. Our goal is that our building be a comfortable and productive place for graduate students to meet with faculty, talk with each other, and to conduct research. Our student computing facilities are similarly designed around this concept. Specifically, all areas of our building now have wireless access to a powerful server cluster. Again, the idea is that students should be able to do their computing wherever it is most productive, be it their office, a team room, or the lounge. Another innovative feature of the program designed to strengthen our research community is our many weekly lunch workshops in which students in their third and fourth years of the program work closely with faculty teams and other students to develop their research ideas and methodology. These workshops not only teach students how to perform research, but how to evaluate and comment on the work of their peers.

These are only a few of the aspects that set Duke's doctoral program apart from those offered by other institutions. The guiding principles behind these unique initiatives as well as our Ph.D. program more broadly are that sound dissertation research in economics requires a strong foundation in the core, firm faculty guidance, and an inclusive research community.

For further information, please contact:

Director of Graduate Studies                  Director of Admissions
Dr. Peter Arcidiacono                             Dr. Shakeeb Khan
dgs@econ.duke.edu                               shakeebk@econ.duke.edu


Assistant to the Director of Graduate Studies
Ms. Cheryl Noga
asst_dgs@econ.duke.edu