Combined Majors

Develop a broader understanding of the world by combining your economics degree with philosophy, political science, mathematics, or statistics.

Program Requirements

Each combined majors program option has different degree requirements, which you can find below. For the specific program requirements from the other departments, please review the UBC Calendar.

Students must complete 30 credits in economics. 18 of these credits must be 300- and 400-level courses.

Economics requirements:

  • 6 credits - Principles of Economics (101 and 102 or equivalent)
  • 6 credits - Economics 2xx or 3xx
  • 3 credits - Intermediate Microeconomics (301)
  • 3 credits - Intermediate Macroeconomics (302)
  • 3 credits - Empirical Economics: Introduction (325)
    • STAT 200 or an approved equivalent can substitute for ECON 325. If STAT 200 is selected, an additional ECON elective at the 3xx or 4xx level is required to ensure that the total number of ECON credits is 30
  • 3 credits - Empirical Economics: Methods (326)
  • 3 credits - Applied Economics (490)
  • 3 credits - Additional Economics 3xx or 4xx

Students must complete 30 credits in Economics. 18 of these credits must be 300- and 400-level courses.

Economics requirements:

  • 6 credits - Principles of Economics (101 and 102 or equivalent)
  • 3 credits - Intermediate Microeconomics (301)
  • 3 credits - Intermediate Macroeconomics (302)
  • 3 credits - Empirical Economics: Introduction (325)
    • STAT 200 or an approved equivalent can substitute for ECON 325. If STAT 200 is selected, an additional ECON elective at the 3xx or 4xx level is required to ensure that the total number of ECON credits is 30
  • 3 credits - Empirical Economics: Methods (326)
  • 3 credits - Applied Economics (490)
  • 3 credits - Additional Economics 3xx or 4xx

Students must complete 30 credits in economics. 18 of these credits must be 300- and 400-level courses.

Economics requirements:

  • 6 credits - Principles of Economics (101 and 102 or equivalent)
    • A student may take ECON 303 and 3 additional credits of ECON at the 3xx level or above instead of ECON 101 and 102
  • 3 credits – Intermediate Microeconomics (301)
  • 3 credits – Intermediate Macroeconomics (302)
  • 3 credits – Empirical Economics: Introduction (325)
    • STAT 200 can substitute for ECON 325. If STAT 200 is selected, an additional ECON elective at the 3xx or 4xx level is required to ensure that the total number of ECON credits is 30
  • 3 credits – Empirical Economics: Methods (326)
  • 3 credits – Applied Economics (490)
  • 6 credits – Additional Economics 2xx or 3xx or 4xx (excludes ECON 320)
  • 3 credits – Additional Economics 3xx or 4xx or 5xx (excludes ECON 320)

Students must complete 30 credits in Economics. 18 of these credits must be 300- and 400-level courses.

Economics requirements:

• 6 credits - Principles of Economics (101 and 102 or equivalent)
• 3 credits – Intermediate Microeconomics (301 or 304)
• 3 credits – Intermediate Macroeconomics (302 or 305)
• 3 credits – Empirical Economics: Introduction (325)

  • STAT 200 can substitute for ECON 325. If STAT 200 is selected, an additional ECON course numbered 300 or higher must be taken. Similarly, if ECON 325 is selected, an additional STAT course numbered 200 or higher must be taken. These additional courses may be taken in any year of the program.

• 6 credits – Either (a) ECON 226 & STAT 301 or (b) ECON 398 & STAT 306
• 3 credits – Applied Economics (490)
• 3 credits – Economics courses numbered 300 and above
• 3 credits – Economics courses numbered 400 and above


Course Planning



Frequently Asked Questions

Application

Admission to the Combined Majors program in Economics is not automatic. To be admitted students must submit a formal application online. Because there are a limited number of places some students who satisfy the minimum prerequisites may not be admitted.

The application will be available on the Vancouver School of Economics website March 15 and the deadline is May 5.

An online application for admission to the Honours/Majors/Combined Majors program should be submitted by May 5, prior to registering for the final 60 credits, to ensure that the student will be considered for admission. Click here to go to the application form. Note:  We will not accept LATE applications after this deadline.  There are no exceptions.

Sorry, we will not accept LATE applications after this deadline for any of the programs listed above.  There are no exceptions.

An application will be accepted, under certain conditions, from a student who has not met all requirements, providing that the student indicates on their application online that there is a firm plan for these missing requirements to be met by August 31. It is the student's responsibility to inform the Vancouver School of Economics, in writing and by the deadline, that the missing requirements have been completed -- the School will not seek this information independently. If otherwise eligible, such students will be admitted provisionally.

Combined Majors Program

Admission to the program is subject to the same admission restrictions and application process that pertains currently to the Major in Economics and is also subject to the admission criteria in the Mathematics Department. Please contact the Mathematics Department for further information.  Specific requirements may be different for students in the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Science.

Admission to the program is subject to the same admission restrictions and application process that pertains currently to the Majors in Economics, and is also subject to admission procedures in Political Science.

Admission to the program is subject to the same admission restrictions and application process that pertains currently to the Major in Economics and may also be subject to admission procedures in Philosophy. In addition to Faculty requirements, the program has Economics and Philosophy requirements.

Students apply to the Combined Major in Economics and Statistics using the same online application form used for application to the Major in Economics. Admission to the program is subject to the same admission restrictions and application process that pertain currently to the Major in Economics, and is also subject to the admission criteria in the Statistics Department.

Note: There are two combined majors options, a BSc and a BA.  Students in the Faculty of Science admitted to the statistics major may apply to VSE to enter the BSc combined major with economics in their second year.  Specific requirements may be different for students in the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Science.

Absolutely not. From the list of applicants to Economics in any one year the Vancouver School of Economics selects a single pool of students based on GPA and admission requirements. Once the overall pool has been selected students are then allocated to the program of their choice, whether it is the straight Economic Major or a Combined Major Program. In other words, students selected to any Economics Program in a given year have all satisfied exactly the same admission criteria.

A double major is two majors one in each subject. This requires approximately 42 credits in each of the fields of specialization, for a total credit requirement of 84. A combined major in two fields is a single major that requires core material from each of the fields. It requires approximately 30 credits in each core for a total of 60 credits for the combined major.

The combined majors code can only be entered by the Vancouver School of Economics if you are accepted into the programs.

You can come to the Vancouver School of Economics Office located in the Iona Building (6000 Iona Drive) call Undergraduate Student Support (604) 822-9699 or send an email to: vse.undergrad@ubc.ca and the specialization code will be re-entered.

Advising

It is essential for students to plan their program of studies over their final two years to ensure that they complete (i) all requirements for their Combined Major program; and (ii) all Faculty of Arts/Faculty of Science requirements for graduation. Students may also be required to obtain approval from the other associated Departments. The student must independently seek verification from the Faculty of Arts Advising Office/Faculty of Science Advising Office as to whether their program satisfies Faculty requirements for graduation.

Graduation

4th Year students registered in their last degree required courses must apply for graduation through the Student Service Centre. Students who are not registered in the Winter Session must contact Enrolment Services for assistance with their graduation applications.

More graduation information can be found on-line at http://www.students.ubc.ca/

Please call the Vancouver School of Economics, Undergraduate Student Support (604) 822-9699 or send an email to vse.undergrad@ubc.ca to book an advising appointment to see if the economic program requirements for graduation have been satisfied.

The Faculty of Arts has a ruling that to graduate with a Major, a student must include in the 120 credits required for the degree at least 42 credits but no more than 60 credits in one subject (discipline) or field of specialization. You may take more than 60 Economic credits but they won’t be used in the 120 total credits required to graduate.

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