Section 3
Graduate Program Requirements and Regulations

3.2 The Master's Degree

Overview

Graduate Students may work toward either the Master of Arts (M.A.) or the Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Applied Economics. Both the M.A. and the M.S. degrees require students to demonstrate a Master's-level understanding of economic theory and quantitative methods by successfully completing a set of core courses. Beyond the core courses, however, the programs have different emphases: the M.A. program emphasizes subject matter, while the M.S. program emphasizes research and requires writing a thesis.

Admittance and Course Planning

The Master's programs include course work that presumes students have taken courses in intermediate microeconomic theory, intermediate macroeconomic theory, two semesters of calculus, and introductory statistics. A student who has had courses in all the subjects presumably will be able to embark directly on the Master's curriculum.

Students who have not taken one or more of these basic courses are sometimes admitted to our program, but "with deficiencies." Being admitted with deficiencies does not mean that the department in any way questions the student's ability to perform in the Master's program. Rather, deficiencies are used to indicate courses that beginning Master's students should take to prepare themselves for their graduate program. These deficiencies must be removed as soon as possible, either during the first semester in residence, or possibly even prior to beginning course work here. Students should be aware that starting their program with deficiencies could delay completion of their Master's degree for one or two semesters. An important example of such a delay: Agricultural and Applied Economics 635, the department's microeconomic theory course, presumes that students have had an intermediate microeconomics course and two semesters of calculus. Since Agricultural and Applied Economics 635 is offered only during the fall semester, students with deficiencies in microeconomics or calculus who do not remedy their deficiencies before fall semester of their first year in the Master's program must wait until the following fall semester to take this course.

Requirements for the Master of Arts

To receive the M.A. degree, a graduate student must earn 30 graduate credits with an overall grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale). They must also successfully complete requirements 1-3, below, earning a grade of B or better in each course, as recorded on the official transcript. The specific course requirements are as follows:

1. Microeconomic Theory* (3 credits)
   AAE 635 Applied Microeconomic Theory
2. Econometrics* (6 credits)
   AAE 636 and 637 Applied Econometric Analysis I & II
3. Economic Analysis (15 credits, both a and b)
   1. At least 9 credits of Agricultural and Applied Economics taught courses at the 500 level or above, and
   2. At least 6 credits of Agricultural and Applied Economics taught courses at the 400 level or above
4. Other Course Work (6 credits)
   Six credits at the 300-level or above in any department (including Agricultural and Applied Economics) to bring the total number of credits up to 30. These credits may include independent study.

* Students in the doctoral program who decide to stop with a Master's degree may be allowed to substitute 711, 713 and 709, 710 for these requirements.

Requirements for the Master of Science

To receive the M.S. degree, a student must complete a Master's thesis and earn 24 graduate credits with an overall grade point average of at least 3.0 (4.0 scale). In addition, the courses used to fulfill requirements 1-3, below, must be successfully completed with a grade of B or better in each course, as recorded on the official transcript. The specific course requirements are as follows:

1. Microeconomic Theory* (3 credits)
   AAE 635 Applied Microeconomic Theory
2. Econometrics * (6 credits)
   AAE 636 and 637 Applied Econometric Analysis I & II
3. Economic Analysis (9 credits)
   Nine credits in Agricultural and Applied Economics taught courses at the 500-level or above
4. Other Course Work (6 credits) Six credits at the 300-level or above in any department (including Agricultural and Applied Economics) to bring the total credits up to 24. These credits may include independent study. * Students in the doctoral program who decide to stop with a Master's degree may be allowed to substitute 711, 713, 709, 710 for these requirements.

The Master's thesis is a written report on a research topic chosen by the student, in consultation with the major professor. The thesis must be successfully defended during an oral examination before a thesis committee composed of at least three people, one of whom is the student's major professor and one of whom may be non-graduate-faculty (such as academic staff, visiting professor, emeritus professor, etc.). The selection of the remaining committee members is the student's responsibility, in consultation with the major professor. Faculty outside the department may serve on committees, but a majority of the members must be from within the department. Students are also responsible for arranging the final oral defense with the committee members and making sure they are provided a copy of the thesis at least two weeks prior to the defense date. Students should expect to have to make at least minor revisions to the thesis after the defense, necessitating a stay of at least two weeks after the oral defense to complete the final version of the thesis.

A student may choose whether to deposit her/his thesis in Memorial Library, but he/she must file a copy in the Taylor-Hibbard Library. See the Taylor-Hibbard Librarian for guidelines on preparing the library copy of the thesis.

Typical Course Sequences for the Master's Degrees in Applied Economics

Master of Arts

	Fall	Spring
Year 1	AAE 635 & 636 Any course > 300	AAE 637 Any course > 300 AAE>=4XX
Year 2	AAE >=5XX AAE >=5XX AAE>=4XX	AAE >=5XX

Master of Science

	Fall	Spring
Year 1	AAE 635 and 636 Any course > 300	AAE 637 Any course > 300 AAE >=5XX
Year 2	AAE >=5XX AAE >=5XX AAE 990 (thesis)	AAE 990 (thesis)

Receiving the Master's Degree

By the middle of the semester in which a student anticipates receiving the Master's degree, he or she should report to the Academic Programs Coordinator. The record will be checked to make sure the student has completed all degree requirements, removed all incompletes, etc. If everything is in order, a Master's degree warrant will be ordered from the Graduate School. If something is amiss, the student will be notified. All incompletes must be removed before a warrant can be issued for a Master's degree.

Both M.A. and M.S. degrees may be awarded "with distinction" to students with outstanding academic records. A student may be nominated for distinction by the major professor, course instructors, or the thesis committee. Recommendations are made to the Graduate Committee. If the Graduate Committee accepts the recommendation, the Committee will forward the recommendation to the department for consideration at a faculty meeting. The Master's degree with distinction is awarded only with the approval of the department.

Students must be registered for at least two credits in the semester in which they plan to receive a Master's degree. In rare situations the Graduate School will approve the payment of a degree completion fee for students who have met all degree requirements except thesis defense or removal of an incomplete. To be eligible the student must have submitted the thesis paper while registered. The fee is equal to 2 graduate credits at the in-state rate. The department must complete a request for this exception to be made.

Master's Degree Completion Checklist

• Complete coursework, maintaining at least a 3.0 GPA, and clear all incompletes.
• By mid-semester in semester in which you will receive the degree, notify the Academic Programs Coordinator. You must be registered for at least 2 credits for the semester in which you receive your degree. (see Graduate School Master's Degree Deadlines and Events).
• If receiving the Master of Science, schedule a thesis defense in consultation with major professor, committee and Academic Programs Coordinator
  • Give APC three weeks of notice for warrant to be ordered
  • Take degree warrant to thesis defense for signatures
• Submit bound thesis to Taylor-Hibbard Library
• Submit unbound copy to APC for consideration for department and AAEA thesis award
• If submitting thesis to Memorial Library, consult the Graduate School's Guide to Preparing Your Master's Thesis; walk manuscript and advisor's page to Memorial Library before degree deadline
• If receiving the Master of Arts, at the end of semester verify that Academic Programs Coordinator has sent degree warrant to the Graduate School
• If attending Commencement, make arrangements according to instructions available from the Commencement Hotline, 262-9076
• If leaving department, see checkout instructions in Section 5.4