2025-2026 Academic Catalog

Dec 05, 2025

2025-2026 Academic Catalog

Combined Business Economics, BSB & Social and Applied Economics, MS (ECON-MS-PREG)

Program Description

“Economics” comes from the Greek oikos, meaning “house,” and nemein, meaning “to manage.” Economics is the social science that studies how people manage their resources. In modern economics this includes an individual deciding how to use their time; a family managing its budget; a small business controlling its costs; a cultural organization planning its priorities; a city balancing a tight budget with demands for services; a large company working to control the cost of health insurance for its employees; a national government fighting unemployment, poverty, or inflation; and the world community reducing air emissions of mercury and climate-altering greenhouse gases.

The undergraduate economics program equips students to pursue careers in business and government and prepares them for graduate study in economics, business, or law. Our graduates have achieved success as executives in a wide variety of industries and are employed as professional economists in such diverse areas as urban economics, workforce and training analysis, business forecasting, school finance consulting, evaluation of health and delivery systems, budget analysis, market consulting, government planning, banking, and statistical analysis. Some of our graduates continue their education in our master’s program in social and applied economics. The program outlined here is designed to give our students both the background that will broaden their future options and the specific skills necessary to apply economic ideas. This includes the ability to express economic ideas clearly and concisely.

The Department of Economics offers a professionally oriented graduate program that leads to a Master of Science in Social and Applied Economics. This program is designed to develop professional economists who can solve contemporary economic problems with a unique set of skills created by a curriculum that combines applied economics with social economics. In doing so, the program bridges the gap between research and the application of research for use in a wide variety of business and government professions. Students are encouraged to develop and evaluate new approaches to economic problem solving. The curriculum stresses research and is complemented by our faculty’s teaching and research emphasis on the interplay of theory and applications.

Departmental faculty advisors are available to all students who need advice about formulating and reaching career goals, as well as making decisions about elective courses.

Admission Requirements

Undergraduate economics majors with at least junior standing, a 3.2 GPA average over all undergraduate coursework, and at least 30 credit hours remaining until completion of their bachelor’s degree are eligible to apply for a combined B.A. or B.S.B - M.S. program. This is an accelerated path to the M.S. in social and applied economics. Students will take two graduate level economics electives during their senior year which will count toward both their bachelor’s degree in economics and their M.S. in social and applied economics.

Program Learning Objectives

Students enrolled in the combined economics program will learn to:

Use economic models in domestic and global contexts to analyze individual decision making, how prices and quantities are determined in product and factor markets, and macroeconomic outcomes.
Analyze the performance and functioning of government, markets and institutions in the context of social and economic problems.
Think critically about microeconomic models, evaluating their assumptions, implications and applications to real world problems.
Be familiar with significant developments in the world economy, in both present-day and historical contexts.
Master the skills of developing and analyzing data, employing cutting edge econometric techniques.
Communicate economic thought and analysis in both written and oral contexts to varied audiences.

Program Learning Outcomes

As a result of their learning experience, graduates of the combined economics program can:

Collect, evaluate, produce, and interpret complex data analysis across multiple domains.
Reason through strategic problems, paying attention to economic, social and political dimensions, interrelationships and consequences.
Communicate, in writing and verbally, critical analysis of problems to audiences in business, nonprofit and government organizations.
Develop models and forecasts for real world situations using macroeconomic and microeconomic theory, as well as mathematical and statistical tools.

For More Information

Program Requirements

I. Wright State Core: 36 Credit Hours

As a part of the requirements for a bachelor’s degree at Wright State University, all students must complete the Wright State Core, a general education curriculum. Most programs require 36 hours in the Core, some programs may require additional hours.

Specific Core classes in some of the Elements may be required by some majors. When this occurs, the specific Core courses required will be listed below. In Elements where a specific course is not required, students can choose any course from the Wright State Core Program Requirements.

First-Year Seminar: 1 Credit Hour

All students must successfully complete a First-Year Seminar during their first year. Transfer students who transfer 24 or more credit hours (post high school graduation) are exempt from this requirement and will need to satisfy one additional credit hour in the Additional Core Courses category.

UVC 1010 - First Year Seminar Credit Hour(s): 1 to 3

Element A - English Composition: 6 Credit Hours

First-Year Writing Course (3 credit hours)

All students must successfully complete ENG 1100.  Based on Writing Placement level, some students may be required to enroll in a corequisite course (DEV 0100). 
ENG 1100 - Academic Writing and Reading Credit Hour(s): 3
Second-Year Writing Course (3 credit hours)
ENG 2100 - Research Writing and Argumentation Credit Hour(s): 3

Element B - Mathematics, Statistics, and Logic: 4 Credit Hours

Students will select one course from the list below. Based on Math Placement Level, students may need additional prerequisite or corequisite coursework in mathematics prior to enrollment in the required course chosen below.

Required:

EC 1050 - Elementary Mathematical Economic and Business Models and Methods Credit Hour(s): 4 OR
MTH 2280 - Business Calculus Credit Hour(s): 4

Element C - Arts and Humanities: 6 Credit Hours

Students will select two Arts and Humanities courses, with different course prefixes from the approved Wright State Core Program Requirements. One course must fulfill the History requirement.

History Requirement

Choose 1 course from the list below:
HST 1100 - Western Civilizations to 1500 Credit Hour(s): 3 (GI)
HST 1200 - The West and the World since 1500 Credit Hour(s): 3 (GI)
HST 1500 - Introduction to Greek and Roman Culture Credit Hour(s): 3 (GI)
Arts and Humanities Course (3 credit hours)

Choose an additional Arts and Humanities course (a different prefix from what is chosen above) from the approved Wright State Core Program Requirements.

Element D - Social Sciences: 6 Hours

Students will select two Social Sciences courses, with different course prefixes from the approved Wright State Core Program Requirements.

Required:

EC 2040 - Principles of Microeconomics Credit Hour(s): 3
FIN 2050 - Personal Financial Decision Making Credit Hour(s): 3

Element E - Natural Sciences: 7 Credit Hours

Students will select two Natural Science courses, from the approved Wright State Core Program Requirements. At least one course must contain a laboratory.

Additional Core Courses: 6 Credit Hours

Students will select up to 6 additional credit hours from Elements A-E from the approved Wright State Core Program Requirements to reach the 36 minimum hours required in the Core. Unless specified by the student’s major, these are selected by the student. When a major has required courses in this area, the specific Core course(s) required will be listed below.

Required:

EC 2050 - Principles of Macroeconomics Credit Hour(s): 3
Additional coursework to reach the minimum of 36 credit hours required

Additional Core Requirements

Within the 36 credit hours of the Wright State Core students must successfully complete the following:

One Global Inquiry (GI) course

Two Inclusive Excellence (IE) courses

One to two Integrated Writing (IW) courses. To meet degree requirements all students must complete a minimum of 3 IW courses by choosing either (a) 1 in the Core and 2 in the major or (b) 2 in the Core and 1 in the major. Students should check their major program requirements for courses that fulfill Integrated Writing.

Students who do not make choices within the 36 required hours of the Core to fulfill the GI, IE, and IW requirements will take additional Core hours beyond the minimum of 36.

II. Business Core Requirements: 42 Credit Hours

Courses that may be taken prior to admission to RSCOB:

ACC 2010 - Accounting Principles I Credit Hour(s): 3
ACC 2020 - Accounting Principles II Credit Hour(s): 3
FIN 2210 - Financial Management I Credit Hour(s): 3
MKT 2500 - Principles of Marketing Credit Hour(s): 3
MS 2040 - Introduction to Business Statistics Credit Hour(s): 3
MS 2050 - Quantitative Business Modeling Credit Hour(s): 3

Courses that require admission to RSCOB:

EC 3010 - Economics of Global Money Markets Credit Hour(s): 3
ENG 3000 - Business Writing Credit Hour(s): 3
LAW 3000 - Legal Environment of Business Credit Hour(s): 3
MGT 3100 - Management and Organizational Behavior Credit Hour(s): 3
MGT 3110 - Business Ethics and Leadership Development Credit Hour(s): 3 (IW)
MGT 4990 - Strategy: Domestic & International Perspectives Credit Hour(s): 3
MIS 3000 - Fundamentals of Information Systems Credit Hour(s): 3
SCM 3070 - Operations and Supply Chain Management Credit Hour(s): 3

III. Economics Major Requirements: 27 Hours

EC 3150 - Intermediate Microeconomics Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 3170 - Intermediate Macroeconomics Credit Hour(s): 3 (IW)
EC 3190 - Institutional Economics Credit Hour(s): 3 (IW)
EC 4090 - Introduction to Econometrics Credit Hour(s): 3
EC Electives Credit Hour(s): 15

IV. General Electives: 15 Credit Hours

Students must earn a minimum of 120 credit hours for a baccalaureate degree and a minimum of 30 credit hours for a master’s degree. This combined programs allows six graduate credit hours to count in both the bachelor’s degree and the master’s degree.

9 hours of undergraduate electives from any discipline

6 hours from EC 6000-level or above

3 hours from EC 6000-level or above and 3 hours outside of EC approved by the Department Chair

Social + Applied Core Requirements: 24 Hours

EC 7090 - Econometrics and its Applications Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 7120 - Time Series Analysis and Economic Forecasting Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 7150 - Applied Microeconomics Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 7170 - Applied Macroeconomics Analysis Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 7240 - Development of Economic Thought Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 7250 - Economic, Social and Ecological Systems Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 7260 - Contemporary Political Economy Credit Hour(s): 3
EC 7800 - Economic Problems Seminar Credit Hour(s): 3

Total: 144 Hours

Graduation Planning Strategy

A Graduation Planning Strategy (GPS), also known as a four-year guide, is an academic tool showing one example of how a program can be completed in a certain amount of time. All Wright State undergraduate majors can be completed in four years with careful planning. Some programs may require summer coursework. Time to degree is dependent on many factors including student placement in mathematics and writing courses, CCP and AP coursework, transfer coursework, and other variables.

This GPS is valid for this year’s Academic Catalog only and is subject to change. This GPS is a recommendation only and your actual program may vary. Students should consult with their academic advisor on a regular basis and create a personalized plan to degree completion.