The Center in Political Economy offers Ph.D. students in Economics and Political Science the opportunity to pursue a field concentration as well as a dissertation research in Political Economy.
The Center also offers an interdisciplinary M.A. degree in Political Economy and Public Policy.
Students entering the M.A. program will be expected to have done basic undergraduate course work in political science and/or economics.
Preparation in mathematics, history or sociology is also useful.
The core of the program includes a seminar in political economy, a theoretical course in economics (either public finance, macroeconomics, or price theory) and a course in quantitative methods from economics, political science or from another social science discipline.
In addition, 15 credits of coursework from three fields of concentration — the formal analysis of institutions, economics, and public policy — are required. The Director and students’ advisors may recommend and/or approve students’ selections. Among the courses offered are The Theory of Property Rights; Game Theory; Theory of Institutions; The Legislative Process; Economics of Environmental Resources; and International Political Economy. Students must also complete an M.A. thesis of approximately 12,000 words in length under the supervision of an advisor or the Director. The 21 fellows of the Center belong to the Departments of Economics, Political Science, Anthropology, and the Schools of Law and Business. In addition, the Center sponsors a seminar series of visiting lecturers throughout the academic year. Students are expected to participate in workshops relevant to their field of concentration and are invited to participate in the entire series.
For more detailed information, please contact the Center in Political Economy at (314) 935-5686.