The Masters Program

The M.A. in Economics strengthens students’ knowledge of economics theory and improves their skills in applying the theory to economics problems. The masters program prepares graduates for the multitude of research and policy positions in the Washington, D.C. area. Graduates of the program may work as policy analysts or research associates. They are qualified to read and judge other research and to conduct their own, either individually or as members of research teams in government or business.

The M.A. degree program is a self-contained course of study for students who are not planning to pursue the Ph.D. program at George Mason University. Students who plan to pursue our Ph.D. degree can earn a master’s while pursuing the Ph.D. and should apply directly to the doctoral program.

Admission Requirements

All applicants should also be familiar with basic statistics. International applicants must also supply a TOEFL score of 230 or higher (575 on the paper based exam) and English translations of foreign transcripts.

Our average incoming student has a GPA of 3.4 and GRE scores of 580 verbal and 740 quantitative. The review committee places a great deal of emphasis also on the quality of grades received in Economics courses as well as courses taken in Mathematics or the sciences.

The application deadline for Fall is March 15. Interested applicants may apply online or access the PDF version of the paper application located on the admissions website.

Degree Requirements

All students are required to complete 30 semester hours of graduate credit. Micro I, II, and Macro I are required in the first year. In addition, courses in Math Econ and Econometrics are also highly recommended. A typical first year sequence would be:

All students are required to pass comprehensive examinations in microeconomics and macroeconomics. The examinations are offered twice each year. Comprehensive examinations, as the name implies, are broader and more comprehensive than courses and course examinations. They require students to read more widely and think more deeply about economics than the course exams.

If possible, part-time students should arrange their work schedules to be able to take two courses per semester for the first year. M.A. students must enroll at the Arlington Campus for their core theory courses. Most elective courses are offered on the Fairfax Campus. Classes are generally offered in the evening, with class times at 4:30-7:10pm and 7:20-10:00pm.

Up to 21 hours of electives may be chosen from any of the fields offered by the department. Students may receive departmental permission to substitute up to 6 hours of electives taken outside economics in closely related fields. Students may also elect the Thesis Track, which offers up to 6 hours of credit for the research, writing, defense, and submission of a thesis paper under the supervision of a faculty member. That is, a student may choose 15 hours of classroom electives and 6 hours of credit for thesis research (ECON 799). Thesis submission must meet university guidelines.

Our Comparative Advantages

Public Policy

The masters program attracts many students already actively employed in government and business in the D.C. area or looking for such employment. With many classes conveniently offered in evenings at the Arlington Law School Campus, students are able to further their education and their career concurrently. Center for Study of Public Choice, the Law and Economics Center, and The Institute for Public Policy, all at George Mason University, provide abundant resources for the student of public policy.

Public Choice

George Mason University is proud to have Nobel Laureate James Buchanan. Dr. Buchanan published ground breaking work in Public Choice and Constitutional Political Economy. He is the coauthor of The Calculus of Consent. He is also the Executive Director of the Center for the Study of Public Choice. The Center for Study of Public Choice funds students interested in Virginia Political Economy and supports two public choice seminars a week: an academic colloquium and an informal lunch. The Virginia School of Political Economy examines a variety of other subjects giving George Mason a unique perspective. For example, the following classes incorporate public choice theory: Industrial/Organization, Macroeconomics, Public Finance, and Monetary Theory.

Austrian Economics

GMU is the premier place for the study of Austrian Economics by faculty, alumni, and graduate students. Mason offers courses, brown bag lunches, colloquia, and the seminars in Austrian Economics series. Past speakers include: Mancur Olson, James Buchanan, Israel Kirzner, Larry White, Mario Rizzo, Roger Garrison, and Peter Boettke. Furthermore, the Center for Market Processes offers a limited number of graduate assistantships to GMU students who are interested in Austrian Economics.

Experimental Economics

George Mason University houses the Interdisciplinary Center for Economic Science (ICES), a world-leader in the study of economic social and market behavior. ICES is comprised of faculty from economics, law, computational science, neuroscience and engineering. ICES is led by Dr. Vernon L. Smith, who was the 2002 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economic Science.