Our Ph.D. program provides a rigorous background in economic theory and analysis, combined with courses in the student’s area of interest. Students will enjoy small class sizes, a supportive atmosphere, and strong relationships with their major advisor.
The program takes 4-5 years to complete, and offers further training in economic theory and econometrics, as well as major and minor field course work. The Ph.D. curriculum relies on the doctoral core in theory and econometrics offered by Wisconsin’s outstanding and highly ranked Department of Economics. When matched with the department’s applied courses, which teach students how to use advanced methods to conceptualize and answer contemporary economic problems, this strong core training prepares students for a variety of challenging careers.
Active department seminar and workshop series complement formal classroom instruction. Mathematical statistics and linear algebra are prerequisites for admission to the doctoral program. See more about math preparation recommendations from the Economics Department here.
Preliminary examinations are required in microeconomic theory and a major field. The microeconomic theory prelim is administered and graded by the faculty in Economics. Students receiving grades of B or better in the microeconomic theory core can choose not to sit for the prelim. Pass rates for AAE students have historically been around 85%. The major field prelim is administered and graded by the AAE faculty.
The Ph.D. also requires a dissertation. Most students’ dissertation work includes a period of primary data collection and field work either in this country or abroad, often in the developing world.
- Economic theory (9 credits)
- Statistics and econometrics (7-9 credits)
- Major field courses (9 credits)
- Minor field courses (9 credits)
