Department of Economics

Dr. Ehsan Ahmed, Department Head
Phone: (540) 568-3215/3216
Email: ahmedex@jmu.edu
Location: Zane Showker Hall, Room 434
Website: http://www.jmu.edu/cob/economics

Professors
E. Ahmed, J. Doyle, S. Elwood, W. Fields, R. Horn, R. Jerome, B. Rosser, M. Rosser, W. Wood

Associate Professors
V. Bhatt, N. Cavusoglu, W. Grant, S. Milliman, A. Neveu, A. Smith, J. Subrick

Assistant Professor
B. Brunton

Lecturers
P. Heap, Z. Gochenour, J. Robinson, M. Sameni

Mission

The Department of Economics is committed to students’ intellectual development by fostering an understanding and appreciation of economic forms of explanation and their relationships to other social sciences. Economics faculty members are dedicated to sound and effective pedagogy, to scholarship of the highest quality and to outreach to the local and business community.

The department provides an intellectual foundation for the appreciation and understanding of economic theory and policy. This foundation is developed within a broader educational perspective that stresses the importance of imaginative thinking, free inquiry and the pursuit of life-long learning. In this way, the program prepares students with the economic literacy necessary to cope with the challenges inherent in a world of accelerating change.

Goals

Help students develop analytical and critical thinking skills.
Promote cross disciplinary forms of instruction.
Seek continuous improvement in the quality of classroom instruction.
Serve the community through outreach services.
Help students pursue careers and additional education.

Marketable Skills

Analytical thinking capabilities highly valued by business, government and the nonprofit sector.
Writing and research skills applicable to a wide variety of careers.
Statistical and econometric skills used in business and finance.
Preparation in critical thinking valued by graduate schools, including law, business, and arts and sciences.
Analytical skills valued by employers for internships in business, government and consulting.

Co-curricular Activities and Organizations

Economics Club (open membership)
Omicron Delta Epsilon (national honor society in economics)

Admission to the Major

Students wishing to pursue a B.A., B.B.A. or B.S. degree program in economics must be formally admitted to the program in order to enroll in the required core courses ECON 331 , ECON 332 and ECON 385 , which all require grades of “C” or better in their prerequisite courses. In order to be admitted as either a B.A. or B.S. candidate, the student must have at least three semesters remaining at JMU to complete the degree requirements. In order to be accepted as a B.B.A. candidate, the student must also meet all of the College of Business admission requirements (described in the College of Business section of the catalog).

To declare an economics major, students must submit the “Change or Declaration of Major” form and a copy of an unofficial transcript to the department head’s office in Showker Hall, Room 434.

Credit by Examination

Credit in ECON 200 will be granted to students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Test in Macroeconomics administered by the Educational Testing Service. Credit in ECON 201 will be granted to students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Test in Microeconomics.