School of Economics

The School of Economics (SOE) The School of Policy and International Affairs (SPIA) offer an interdisciplinary dual master’s degree program in Economics and Global Policy. The dual-degree program is intended for students interested in the application of economics and policy in an international setting. The course of study is normally three years and leads to two master’s degrees: one in Economics (M.A. or M.S.) or Resource Economics and Policy (M.S.) and one in Global Policy (M.A. with a concentration in either International Trade and Commerce or International Environmental Policy).

Double counting credits between degrees:

Six hours of each degree can be counted as electives for the other (i.e., a total of 12 credits can be double counted); as a result, a total of only 51 hours is required to complete both degrees (rather than the 63 usually required for two completely independent degrees).

Thesis / Internship options for the dual degree:

1. For thesis-track SOE students: a thesis is written for the economics degree; an internship is completed for the Global Policy degree.

2. For non-thesis-track SOE students: six credit hours in coursework replace the thesis requirement for the economics degree; an internship is completed for the Global Policy degree.

3. Students may write a separate thesis for the Economics and Global Policy degrees.

Students in the dual-degree program will have two graduate coordinators, one from SOE and one from SPIA. Graduate advising committees must comply with the rules outlined for each graduate degree. Two programs of study (one for each degree) must be developed and approved by the respective unit’s committee (SOE and SPIA) and the individual graduate program coordinators by the end of the second semester of the student’s tenure in the program. The student may choose to have two separate committees with separate SOE and SPIA chairs or one integrated SOE/SPIA committee with two co-chairs (one from SOE and one from SPIA).

The programs of study will be designed to meet the requirements of BOTH degrees in which they are enrolled. However, the dual degree program gives the student and their committee additional flexibility to devise a program that supports their needs.