MA Director Charles Becker on the Diversity of the Program
Who Should Apply?
The Duke MA Program in Economics offers flexibility, rigorous curricula, and the opportunity to explore other departments in one of America’s top universities. It also offers great opportunities to undertake guided research. It is ideal for:
- Students preparing for doctoral studies in economics, finance, accounting, political science, or public policy;
- Mid-career faculty from outside the US seeking to refresh or build skills, especially in an English language environment;
- Mid-career technical researchers from US and foreign financial institutions, governments, and think tanks;
- Students seeking technical degrees with focus in financial economics, applied econometrics, or mathematical economic modeling;
- Students with interdisciplinary interests in Law, Public Policy, Environmental Science, Political Science, Demography, or various area studies concentrations;
- Researchers and students with interests in History of Political Economy.
An undergraduate degree in Economics is not required. Therefore, while it is highly selective program with few prerequisite restrictions – the only absolute requirement is that entering students should have had a full calculus sequence (either Calculus II or Calculus III, depending on their undergraduate institution’s structure) prior to enrolling. International applicants should indicate corresponding courses in mathematics or mathematical economics.
Student Characteristics
& Program Size
The Duke MA Program in Economics has an incoming class of approximately 50 students across all tracks. An additional 5 to 6 students may be admitted for the spring term.
The first year class forms a closely-knit group, with the vast majority taking core courses together, before diverging to pursue specializations. In recent years, the student body has been divided fairly evenly between US and international students.
The incoming class of 2011 has 54 students from 17 countries including Canada, China, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Honduras, Iceland, Indonesia, Japan, The Republic of Korea, Mali, Pakistan, The Russian Federation, Thailand, Turkey, The United States, and Venezuela.
