Masters in Economics

Masters in economics programs can have a high financial and non financial return for students as they enable them to improve their quantitative and analytical tools as well as improve a deepen their understanding of economic theory and its applications. When selecting a masters degree program it is very important to do extensive research. There are many programs that differ in quality, difficulty, course content, number of modules offered, quality and research of the staff, reputation of the department and degree of mathematical and econometric skills required. Some programs focus mainly on improving students technical skills and therefore require the student to have a strong undergraduate background in mathematics and statistics. Other courses may require significantly lower levels of quantitative skills but emphasise more the application of economic theory to solving business and policy related problems.

According to PayScale.com, the most popular jobs for graduates holding a Master's degree in economics are general economist and corporate economist.
The average salary for general economists was $52,072 in 2010. The average
salary for corporate economists was $55,000. Salary, however, can differ
depending upon location. Boston $64,199, Dallas $69,500,Chicago $76,125,
Washington $72,644, New York $78,108, Los Angeles 80,000 and San Francisco
$82,266. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has general info on pay scales link

Some economic masters programs are mainly focussed on increasing the student' employability while other programs tend to emphasise academic content with a view to giving students the skill set required to complete a PhD after graduation. Masters programs in economics can vary in he title but typically they offer an MSc or MA degree title, for exam Masters in Economics, Masters in Business Economics, Masters in Economics and Finance, Masters in Health Economics, Masters in International Economics and Masters in Development economics.

A typical straight masters in economics program will have core courses in microeconomics, macroeconomics, mathematical economics and econometrics covering times series, cross sectional and panel data. Thereafter a range of modules will be offered allowing the student to specialise, module could include labor economics, international trade, international finance, economic growth, corporate finance, finance, game theory, health economics. The range of modules offered will usually be dependent upon the research interests of the particular economics department that you choose.

Another consideration is whether you want to do a straight Masters in Economics or a combined degree such as Masters in Economics and Finance more applied program such as a Masters in Business Economics. 

Below are some useful websites aimed at informing you about the best masters in economics degree programs.

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rankingsandreviews.com/economics
The rankings and review website has a ranking of the best USA economics departments with scores out of 5. You can also select by specialization looking at development economics, labor economics, public finance, econometrics, macro and mirco economics, international economics and public finance.

USnews.com/EconomicsRankings
THE USnews website has a global ranking of Economics and Econometrics rankings from across the world. Reputation can be an important part when deciding where to study a Masters in Economics.

Guardian.co.uk/EconomicsMasters
The Guardian has a ranking of economics Masters programs. Full of information on numbers of students, part-time, full time, student spend, completion rates, percentage of UK and non UK students and staff student rations. Very informative.

Thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk
The above links to the complete University Guide ranking table of economics departments based on student satisfaction, entry standards, research and graduate prospects. There is also a useful careers guide to economics.

MastersCompare.co.uk
This website allows you to look up various masters in economics programs in the UK. You can look up by region or university.

MastersinEconomics.com
This site links to various US Masters programs both campus programs and online programs. There is also a good article explaining what to expect from a masters degree.

Findamasters.com/economics
The find masters site is a great way to find different economics masters programs around the world. When you click on a program you get full details along with a link to the relevant site.

Studybusinessmasters.com/economics
This site has a useful overview of the advantages of doing a masters in economics. There is a database of links to courses in various countries both inside and outside of the European Union.

mastersportal.eu/economics
The Masters Portal website has links to a huge number of masters in economics program in various European countries. Includes tuition fee and links to relevant websites.

targetcourses.co.uk/economics
The target courses website lists over 450 UK masters programs. There is a summary of each course along with a description of the various modules and entry requirements.

educaedu.co.uk/masters/economics
Educaedu list a large range of masters programs in the UK and abroad. You can also request further information by email or phone.

hotcourses.com/economics
The hot courses website has a list of masters programmes in UK universities. You can search by cost, region and whether part-time or full time. There are also student reviews of each course so you get some insight into what the programmes are like. There are also video profiles of each university.

ideas.repec.org/top/top.econdept
If you are interested in the research ranking of various departments then the rankings from the repec website provide a fairly useful guide. based on the number of times papers are downloaded from the site.

econtop.uvt.nl/rankinglist
Tilburg University has a detailed ranking of world economics Departments over the years 2007-11. The ranking is derived from publications in 70 of the leading economics journals.

whatuni.com/economics
The Whatuni.com website has links to a number of masters degree programs in the UK including fees and links to the relevant websites.

education-portal.com/EconomicsEarnings
If you want to know how much money you can expect to earn with a Masters in Economics in the USA, then this site provides some very useful information. In addition, you can see what typical undergraduates earn and so calculate the extra reward you can expect from doing a Masters in economics.

best-masters.co.uk/rankingeconomics
The best masters course website has a ranking of the best UK Masters in Economics programs and the top 200 in Europe. The ranking is determined by reputation of the program, salary on first employment and student satisfaction.

postgraduatesearch.com/masterseconomics
Has basic information on what to expect from a masters program in economics and also some student reviews of various programs. You can search programs by location and whether full time, part time or distance learning.

Topuniversities.com/rankings/economics
The top universities website enables you to rank economics programs on the basis of academic reputation, employer reputation and citations per paper. You can use all three criteria or just one or two of them.Over 200 programs worldwide are covered.

Masterstudies.com/MastersinEconomics
The Masters Studies website list a number of masters programs and it can be searched by country, whether full-time or part-time, campus based or online.

gradschools.com/economics
Grad Schools has a range of masters in economics programs you can search by country and city. Over 1000 programs are listed. You can visit the relevant website or request information.

Mastersineconomics.com
Masters in Economic has list of campus and online masters in economics programs. The focus is mainly on a range of US programs and many of the programs listed are joint masters such as economic and finance.

wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_of_Economics
The Wikipedia entry on masters in economics has some basic information and some useful links.

education-portal.com/mastersineconomics
The education portal has a useful overview of what to expect from a masters in economics program. There are also links to various programs.

Universities.com/MastersEconomics
The Universities.com site offers a wide selection of masters programs and you can also look at details about the University offering the program. Mainly covers US offerings.

aeaweb.org/gradstudents
The American Economic Association has plenty of interesting information for those thinking of doing a masters PhD in economics. There is a link to an alphabetical list of programs and information on the Tier1, 2 and 3 schools.

chronicle.com/facultysalaries2012
Interested in what faculty salaries are like once you get a PhD ten this aboce shows the pay at the top Universities.

postgraduatestudentships.co.uk/economics
The above links to postgraduate scholarships to do a Masters in Economics and Business.

TopUniversities.com/Economics
The Top Universities guide subject ranking for Economics Departments rank the top 200 so you can get a good idea about the overall ranking of a Department from this.


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