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Economics Minor

College of Management / Economics and Finance
Undergraduate minor

About The Program

The economics program area offers a minor in economics that allows students to go deeper in learning how to apply the basic concepts gained from taking the principles of macroeconomics and microeconomics. The economics minor provides a balance of theory and practice in order to increase students' ability to solve problems in their fields.

The economics minor is offered primarily to the following categories of students:

  • students from business and management fields in the College of Management
  • students from human services and public administration, and
  • students from the liberal arts who desire to increase their knowledge of economics

How to enroll

Current students: Declare this program

Once you’re admitted as an undergraduate student and have met any further admission requirements your chosen program may have, you may declare a major or declare an optional minor.

Future students: Apply now

Apply to Metropolitan State: Start the journey toward your Economics Minor now. Learn about the steps to enroll or, if you have questions about what Metropolitan State can offer you, request information, visit campus or chat with an admissions counselor.

Get started on your Economics Minor

Program eligibility requirements

You must earn a grade of S or C- or above in courses to be used to meet pre-requisites.

MATH 115 College Algebra must be completed before admitted to the minor. Upper division economics courses may include pre-requisites other than MATH 115.

Courses and Requirements

SKIP TO COURSE REQUIREMENTS

At least 8 credits in the Minor Required Courses and Minor Electives must be completed at Metropolitan State. See also the COM policies page for requirements that are common to all programs.

Requirements (18 credits)

+ Required

This course focuses on the economy as a whole and studies how government can affect the economy. After starting with principles of markets, the price system and supply and demand, the course covers national income accounting, business cycles, inflation, unemployment, fiscal policy, monetary policy and the Federal Reserve System, different approaches to economic growth, and the foundations of international trade.

Full course description for Macroeconomics

This course focuses on the interactions between the consumer and the producer. It begins with the theory of markets, supply and demand, and the price system. Then it covers demand elasticity, the costs of production including the various factor inputs, the four major market structures (pure competition, monopolistic competition, oligopoly and monopoly), and ways to increase the competition in markets.

Full course description for Microeconomics

+ Electives

Choose for a total of 12 credits. More than one ECON 490 may be accepted; please consult the chairperson of the Department of Economics and Finance.

This course is intended to advance the analytical and quantitative skills of students who have completed introductory level micro- and macroeconomics. Topics include: economic methodology, economic optimization, static and dynamic modeling, game theory and its application, basic econometrics, and economic data. Successful completion of this course will help students to continue their study in upper-division economics courses.

Full course description for Analytical and Quantitative Methods for Economists

This course assesses the role of labor as a production factor in the economy, as well as the factors affecting the supply of, and demand for, labor. Topics include: determinants of labor supply and demand; analysis of labor markets; theories of wages and employment; income and wage inequality among occupations, industries and regions; the role of labor unions and collective bargaining as they affect supply and demand conditions; and the relationships among wages, inflation, unemployment and government policies.

Full course description for Labor Economics

This course analyzes selected issues and problems in international trade and also studies how various countries approach basic economic policy questions. Topics include: the theory of comparative advantage, barriers to trade such as tariffs and quotas, exchange rates, balance of payments, organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization, and an analysis of current issues in American trade policy. The course concludes with an analysis of the economic policies of major trading partners: Japan, China and the European Union with some attention to other capitalist and non-capitalist economies.

Full course description for International and Comparative Economics

This course uses various techniques to examine issues and problems relevant to the themes of race, ethnicity, gender, preference and class. Topics include: how race, ethnicity and gender arise in economics and how they relate to the labor market; the impact of national economic policies on diverse groups; the economics of discrimination; and questions related to domestic partner issues.

Full course description for Economics of Diversity

This course applies microeconomics principles to the health care services field. The role of consumer choice and firm behavior are examined in the markets for health insurance and health care. An understanding of the role of public and private financing and delivery systems is developed. The tools and techniques of economics are employed to facilitate policy, analytic and management decisions in the health care field.

Full course description for Health Economics

Financial crises, either that we are currently in one or about to be in one or some other country is in one, are all the rage in popular media today. More often than not financial crises are the result of bubbles in certain assets classes or can be linked to a specific form of financial innovation. This course will explore theoretical and policy perspective of modern global financial crises in the world. We will review the conflicting evidence about the extent of the harm caused by financial collapses. This course will also provide the students with a good economic and behavioral understanding on the effects of financial crises on the US and global economy. The primary goal of this class is to educate the students to understand the causes of past crises in an economic point of view and to develop a conceptual and policy framework in minimizing the risks of future crises and helping students make informed decisions.

Full course description for Global Economic and Financial Crises: Theory and Policy

Topics covered in this course include: measuring economic performance; the determination of income and expenditures; the role of government in influencing general equilibrium and economic fluctuations; the development of stabilization policies; and the operations of financial markets. The analytical approaches are more advanced than those in ECON 201 Macroeconomics.

Full course description for Intermediate Macroeconomics

This course covers the analysis of consumption behavior and demand using the theory of utility and indifference, the theory of production and costs, and analysis of the firm and industries under the four market structures. Factor pricing and general equilibrium using comparative static analysis techniques are also covered. Selected topics include: market failure, price ceilings and floors under different market structures, subsidies, regulations, price discrimination, and consumer and producer surplus.

Full course description for Intermediate Microeconomics

This course is designed for business and economics students interested in acquiring a broader view of the financial system and its markets. The material is divided into three sections: historical, theoretical and institutional. The historical section covers the evolution of money, money creation, inflation, the economy, and the development of banking. The theoretical part covers methods to trace the impact of money on the economy including classical, Keynesian, monetarist and rational expectation approaches. The institutional portion deals with financial intermediaries and financial instruments.

Full course description for Money, Banking and Financial Institutions

This course focuses on the application of economic analysis to enterprise decision making. The basic topics include analyses of demand, costs, capitalization and strategy. The purpose is to apply economics to achieve long-run profit maximization. Students apply principles of modern strategy to real case studies.

Full course description for Managerial Economics

This course prepares students for the task of analyzing primary and secondary economic data in order to assist decision makers in profit, nonprofit and public organizations. It also provides an introduction to econometrics: regression models, serial correlation, forecasting, simultaneous equation estimation, model building, time series and simulations. Students work on a major project during the course.

Full course description for Economic Research and Forecasting