The PhD in Economics is designed to prepare a select number of qualified students for careers in university-level teaching and research and for positions in business and government involving economic research.

Campus Code

Knoxville Campus

Admissions Standards/Procedures

• Admission to the PhD program is based on promise of outstanding scholarship as demonstrated by previous academic performance
• Scores achieved on the general portion of the GRE
• Recommendations
• A master’s degree in economics or a related field is not required for admission

Credit Hours Required

72 graduate credit hours beyond a baccalaureate degree

48 graduate credit hours beyond a master’s degree

Required Courses

• Dissertation Hours:
  • ECON 600  (24 credit hours)
• Quantitative Methods:
  • Completion of ECON 581  with a grade of B or better and completion of ECON 582  and ECON 583  with GPA of 3.0 or better, or by qualifying examination.
• Two Fields of Specialization in Economics:
  • Demonstrate competence in at least two fields of specialization in economics by completion of a two-course sequence with a GPA of 3.25 or better in each field, including grades of B or better in each field course, or by alternative demonstration of competence with the agreement of the dissertation committee. Standard fields and associated course sequences are described in the Economics Department Graduate Handbook.
• Economics Electives:
  • Students are required to complete (with a grade of B or better) two elective courses in economics at the 500 level or above. The two elective courses must be outside the core Micro, Macro and Econometrics subject areas (ECON 511 , ECON 512 , ECON 513 , ECON 514 , ECON 581 , ECON 582 , and ECON 583 ) and outside the fields of specialization (i.e. a course cannot be used to satisfy both a field of specialization requirement and an elective requirement).

Non-Course Requirements

• Economic Theory
  • Satisfactory performance on microeconomic theory and macroeconomic theory qualifying examinations. Exams are administered twice during the summer following the first year of PhD coursework, and a student needs to pass the qualifying examinations to remain in the program.
• Research Paper
  • Satisfactory completion of a second-year research paper submitted to the faculty. A student needs to pass the requirement by the end of the fall semester of their third year to remain in the PhD program.
• Dissertation
  • Students are required to complete a doctoral dissertation and to defend it successfully before the faculty.