Economics Degree: What to Know

When you’re choosing a major for college, there are several important things to think about. You need a major that holds your interest and that will set you up for a career you can be passionate about. You want to focus on a professional area that will make you enough money to live comfortably. You also have to think about getting into a line of work that will be there for the foreseeable future.

If you’re good with numbers, enjoy making budgets, and keep track of trends in what people are buying, an economics major can be a good choice for filling all those needs.

What can you do with an economics degree? This guide will talk about what you need to know about an economics degree to help you make your decision—what kind of work it can set you up for, what you can expect to make in those careers, and how it compares to other majors in terms of earning potential. Read on to find out more about whether a degree in economics will work for you.

What kind of jobs do economics majors get?

Economics is possibly the most functional social science. Whether it’s financial economics, business economics, mathematical economics, or otherwise, economics degrees open up a wide variety of career opportunities. 

When an asking an expert what economics majors can do professionally, Ryan Decker, assistant professor of economics at North Central College, said, “Anything they want, really. Economics is a way of thinking that can be applied to any field. Generally speaking, (economics) students are either interested in business-oriented fields or government work which can include working for a state or federal government, an NGO, or monetary policy makers.”

While those are the more common fields for economics majors to go into generally, specific programs within the field can make different options more workable. Often a career path for economists can depend not only on the level of education they complete, like an associate degree or bachelors degree, but which degree they hold—a bachelor of arts (BA), bachelor of business administration (BBA) or bachelor of science (BS). 

Gwendolyn Tedeschi, professor of economics and chairperson of the Department of Economics at North Central College, explained, “Students with a (BA economics degree) might go into foreign service, while those with a BBA tend to be entrepreneurs or work in finance, insurance or banking. Those with a BS can do well (also,) as virtually all companies need data analysis.”

A BS degree in economics can also lead to numerous adjacent professional areas such as labor statistics, business analytics, financial accounting, economic analysis, international business or international economics. 

An undergraduate program to study economics involves helpful professional preparation along with general education courses. As with many areas, going to graduate school can give you the chance to delve further into specific economic principles, economic issues and economic theory, or help you decipher the differences in macro vs. micro economics. A graduate degree makes it possible to do extensive research into these areas, ready yourself to teach economics to others, or even get into being an attorney by going to law school.

Tedeschi said, “Graduate programs in economics and applied econometrics are also an option. Economics graduates tend to do very well on LSATs because they use the same critical thinking skills learned in the economics major.” 

If you are looking for further options that are off the beaten path, each economics course you take will help you acquire skills that hold value for employers across the professional spectrum. Regina Borsellino writes in The Muse writes about marketable skills that economics teaches:

• Analysis: researching and monitoring information looking for trends and outliers, putting data together in charts and graphs, and recommending spending decisions 
• Critical thinking: looking at issues from multiple perspectives and forecasting different outcomes for decisions, keeping a healthy sense of skepticism, and not taking things at face value 
• Problem-solving: breaking down decisions strategically to come up with the best choice, acting decisively on as much information as possible
• Business, economics, and financial expertise: every organization can use people with a healthy knowledge of money matters, as they tend to be the root of every project
• Communication: expressing yourself either in words or writing in a clear, persuasive, and compelling fashion for the purposes of keeping colleagues well informed and clients and partners impressed
• Adaptability: changing with the times, learning new skills and technology, and keeping up with important trends and developments; looking at how current events affect financial interests

While the most important thing to focus on especially as you begin your studies is student success, to make yourself as well prepared as possible. But as you get further along and start thinking about your postgraduate future, be sure to visit your career services office on campus. At the career services office, you can ask for guidance on where to direct your career search and what kind of employers are looking for candidates with economics degrees. If you are looking for more details to answer, “What is an economist?” read our guide.