Academic Majors
Economics
Calvin's economics major has the versatility to match a variety of student interests. The ten economics courses in the major can be organized with a general emphasis, or with more specific emphases in international economics, economic development, business economics, public policy, or graduate school preparation.
Specialized course offerings that fit into these emphases include: Business Cycles and Forecasting, Managerial Economics, Health Economics, Money and Banking, Environmental Economics and Public Policy, Industrial Markets and Public Control, Labor Economics, Urban and Regional Economics, World Poverty and Economic Development, International Economics, Public Finance, and Quantitative Economics and Econometrics. Up to two business courses can be coordinated with economics courses to fulfill specific student objectives.
Group Majors
A Social Science Group major is available for students whose special career interests require business (and/or economics) courses along with course work in another department (e.g., CAS, Psychology, Sociology, Political Science). Group majors particularly appeal to students with interests in human resources, marketing, and public or social services administration.
For those students with a special interest in professional sales, human resource management, marketing communication, purchasing, media management, and other business areas where specialized communication knowledge is important, the department offers a Business/Communications Group major. Students interested in this major need to design a coherent program with the help of a faculty advisor.
General Requirements
Math cognate
Minimum: 143 and 132
Alternative 1: 161, 162, and 243
Alternative 2: 161, 162, 255, 261, and 343
Computer Science cognate
Normally met by 2 one-hour course modules in computer science, one of which must be CPSC 130, and excluding CPSC 101.
Grade requirements
Economics students: a C grade (2.0) in Economics 221 is required.
Graduation with a major in the department requires a C (2.0) average for the major as a whole.
Interim requirement
To be approved as part of any major, an interim course must must have a departmental course prerequisite, and fit the chosen program emphasis as determined by the department and the student's advisor. Though any number of the department's interim courses may be taken, only one interim course is allowed as part of the major.
Interim Opportunities
The January interim offers a wide variety of interesting electives in all departments of the college, including some off-campus courses in places as diverse as New York City, Haiti, Hong Kong and Kenya. Semester-length off-campus programs are offered through the college and associate institutions in Chicago, Washington D.C., Ghana, Hungary, Honduras, China, England, Kenya, Egypt, Russia and Costa Rica. Many of these programs offer courses or internships in business.
Internships
Internships with local businesses and government agencies are available to economics majors each year. Calvin's Service Learning Center offers opportunities to participate in local community service projects.
Finally, students use computer applications in many economics classes, including statistical software, spreadsheets, forecasting simulations, and word processing. Computer access is available in the Department's computer lab, in residence halls, and in the library's computer lab.
Related Programs
Honors Program
An overview of the Honors program for the Economics-Business department.
Off-Campus Programs
Opportunities for study in the U.S. and overseas.