Prospective Students

Our graduate program is a five-year Ph.D. program with no separate admissions for a terminal M.A. degree.  Students obtain an M.A. in Economics en route to their Ph.D.  We also offer a Graduate Minor in Economics for OSU students enrolled in non-economics graduate programs at OSU.

Application and Admission


Applicants are not required to have an undergraduate degree in economics, but some substantive preparation in economics, covering intermediate micro and macroeconomic theory and elementary econometrics, is highly desirable.   We recommend that a prospective graduate student learn as much undergraduate mathematics as possible with emphasis on calculus, linear algebra, probability and statistics.  We also offer an intensive mathematics camp prior to the start of Autumn Semester.  We recommend that prospective graduate students remedy deficiencies in the core background areas in economics and mathematics prior to entering our program.

All applicants are required to submit Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores, all previous academic transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and a brief autobiography, including a statement of purpose. In addition, Ohio State requires foreign applicants to score at least 550 written or 213 computer based on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). To be considered for any fellowship or assistantship, applications must reach us no later than November 30 for foreign and U.S. applicants. Please see more information on how to apply here, and details about our program structure here.

Contact Rick Tobin, tobin.71@osu.edu with questions.

M.A. in Economics:  Students obtain an M.A. in Economics after successfully completing 45 credit hours of courses that comprise the core of the first year graduate curriculum, and by achieving M.A. Pass on both the micro and macro qualifier exams.  
 
STEM Classification: Effective Autumn 2019, our Graduate Program is classified as STEM (CIP Code 45.0603: Econometrics and Quantitative Economics)