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Bachelor of Economics

Table of Contents

Welcome to Carleton and your Bachelor of Economics degree program

Please read this degree guide prior to registering

Your Degree Program (B.Econ)

Economics is relevant to almost every aspect of our lives. At its core, it is the study of decision making in the face of scarce resources and competing interests. Economics provides causal insights into important social issues such as health care, protecting the environment, reducing inequality, and the best design of social programs and the tax system. Further, technical knowledge gained through the study of economics is portable and highly valued by employers in many areas including banking and financial sector, labour relations, international trade, entrepreneurship, and corporate finance.

The Bachelor of Economics (B.Econ) degree is a 20.0 credit, four-year Honours program. Students who wish to focus their studies may choose to complete either one or two of the eight available concentrations:

The Department of Economics would like to highlight our recently added Concentration in Economic Data Science. The field of Data Science is a rapid-emerging and high-demand area of research and practice that has gained significant momentum in recent years as new technologies have allowed us to gather, store and process large amounts of data (i.e. “Big Data”), and as well, gather data in non-traditional forms (such as user-generated data from websites).

The field of Economics offers a unique perspective for Data Science, based on its development and application of Econometric tools and analysis to problems framed through the lens of Economic theory. The overall emphasis is on providing students with training in general econometrics and the application of modern statistical and econometric methods (e.g. machine learning) to economic questions involving both traditional and non-traditional datasets using Economic theory as a guide. Data Science has found application in the hi-tech, retail and financial sectors, in addition to traditional governmental agencies.

B.Econ First Year: Core Course Requirements

B.Econ Students should take the following core courses in Year 1 (See “B.Econ First Year: Concentration-Specific Requirements” below for exceptions):

Students admitted with a conditional offer to the B.Econ (Honours) with an additional requirement in mathematics, must complete ECON 0005: Preparatory Mathematics for Economics in their first term of study with a minimum of C- or higher to be eligible to continue in ECON 1401: Elementary Mathematics for Economics I in the subsequent term.

Students may check their Offer of Admission Letter for any existing conditions on the OUAC website at under the “View Offers” tab or on Carleton360.

B.Econ First Year: Concentration-Specific Requirements

B.Econ students including the Concentration in Financial Economics in their program and wanting to satisfy their accounting requirement by enrolling in the full year sequence BUSI 1001 and BUSI 1002, instead of only taking BUSI 1003, must first complete the prerequisite BUSI 1800. BUSI 1001 or BUSI 1003 may be used to qualify for ECON 3050 however please note BUSI 1003 cannot be used as a prerequisite for BUSI 1002, BUSI 2501, BUSI 3500, BUSI 3502 and BUSI 3512.

B.Econ students including the Concentration in Computational Analysis and/or the Concentration in Economic Data Science in their programs, should follow the guidelines given above and are strongly encouraged to take COMP 1005 Introduction to Computer Science I [0.5 credit] as an additional core course in Year 1.

B.Econ students including the Concentration in Mathematics and Quantitative Economics in their programs, should take the introductory MATH sequence, MATH 1052 and MATH 1152, along with MATH 1800, instead of the introductory economics math sequence, ECON 1401 and ECON1402.

First-Year Seminar

First-year B.Econ students are encouraged to include First-Year Seminar 1608 (FYSM 1608 [1.0]) in their first-year course load. First-year seminars will get you away from the lecture hall and give you the chance, in a small class setting, to discuss and debate topics with your classmates and professors. You will also receive early and frequent feedback on class assignments and instruction in research, writing, and study skills. Visit the First Year Seminar website for a complete listing and description of the First-year seminars being offered.

Contact

Please do not hesitate to contact the Department of Economics should you have any questions regarding your registration such as concentration suitability or course selection and scheduling.

Phone number: 613-520-3744
Email: economics@carleton.ca
Location: Room C-870, Loeb Building
Office Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday
Website: carleton.ca/economics
Additional program information: https://carleton.ca/economics/undergraduate-studies/b-econ-honours

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